MORROW, Ga., Jan. 8, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- TOTO, the world's largest plumbing manufacturer with more than $5.19 billion in annual sales, announced that Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world's busiest airport with more than 107 million annual passengers, is the first facility in the world to offer the Smart, Fully-Connected Restroom System. Thanks to a collaboration by TOTO and GP PRO, the airport is now testing the tools and connected products it needs to help ensure its busiest restrooms are always clean, comfortable, and fully operational. At CES 2020, this Public Restroom of the Future will be on display in the TOTO booth (#43125) in the Smart Home section of the Sands Expo.
"For more than 100 years, TOTO has improved people's bathroom experience with revolutionary products and technologies that provide a consistently clean, comfortable experience," said Shinya Tamura, CEO of TOTO USA. "As we confidently embark on our next 100-year cycle, we will continue our pioneering work by expanding our core competencies through collaborations with leading-edge companies, like GP PRO, whose inventive technologies and innovative business models redefine the commercial restroom experience."
Public Restroom of the Future Takes Flight
To help ensure its passengers enjoy a clean, comfortable restroom experience every time, Hartsfield-Jackson has installed TOTO and GP PRO's smart, fully-connected restroom solution. Leveraging the Internet of Things, the award-winning KOLO™ Smart Monitoring System uses wireless communication technologies, cloud-based processing and data storage, and cutting-edge sensors and sensing technology to provide timely, customized and secure communication between connected restroom fixtures and facility managers and their custodial staff through smartphone, tablet, and desktop apps.
Installed on TOTO's EcoPower® flush valves and faucets and GP PRO's enMotion® and Compact® paper towel, toilet tissue and sanitizer dispensers in the busiest restrooms (B Concourse) at Hartsfield-Jackson, the technology monitors product usage, jams, outages, and leaks, alerting the airport's custodial staff in real time so that problems are addressed immediately — long before weary passengers encounter them.
For Hartsfield-Jackson, a bad restroom experience can affect its bottom line. A JD Powers' study (2015) found that for large airports (at least 30 million passengers per year), "delighted" passengers spend up to 190% more in the airport than disappointed ones. Since the Atlanta Airlines Terminal Company (AATC) installed the KOLO Smart Monitoring System and connected products by TOTO and GP PRO in Concourse B, its busiest restrooms, the AATC has enjoyed improved sustainability, increased labor efficiency, and increased costs savings in restroom operation. Further, the AATC has seen an increase in custodians' job satisfaction and has reduced waste.
"At Hartsfield-Jackson, we strive to provide our passengers with a world-class experience -- one that truly delights them. Not simply because it improves our bottom line, but also because it has a positive impact on their perception of our airport and our city as whole," said Dr. Kofi Smith, President and CEO of the AATC. "In the past, our public restrooms were a major source of passenger frustration and complaint. However, since we installed the KOLO Smart Monitoring System in B Concourse — our busiest restrooms — we have elevated our passengers' experience and seen a significant positive impact on our custodial staff and bottom line. It's truly transformative technology."
In the future, TOTO believes that consumers will be able to experience clean, comfortable public restrooms wherever they travel for work and play—airports, restaurants, office buildings, train stations, hospitals, retail spaces, and stadiums. The smart, fully-connected restroom solution comprised of the KOLO Smart Monitoring System and connected products by TOTO and GP PRO is customizable and a smart investment for small, medium or large facilities.
"Our KOLO Smart Monitoring System provides consistent tracking and monitoring across a site's entire restroom environment, be it a single building or a multi-building campus," said Mike Slawson, Vice President of Connected Devices for GP PRO. "It offers benefits that help meet the facilities' critical needs, including improved sustainability, improved labor efficiency, and increased cost savings in restroom operation."
By remotely monitoring and analyzing restroom conditions and responding in real time to potential problems, the KOLO Smart Monitoring System helps maintenance and custodial teams ensure that the right staff are performing the right tasks at the right time, and consumers enjoy a clean, comfortable experience every time.
To learn more about TOTO's commitment to providing consumers with a consistently clean, comfortable experience through IoT enabled restrooms – public, retailer and mobile – visit TOTO's Booth #43125, Smart Home Section, Sands Expo, throughout the 2020 International Consumer Electronics Show.
About TOTO
TOTO USA is headquarters for the Americas Division of the TOTO Global Group, which was established in 1917 with the founding of TOTO, Ltd., in Kitakyushu, Japan. TOTO is the world's largest manufacturer of bathroom fixtures and fittings with $5.19 billion dollars in annual sales (as of March 2018 and its exchange rate). For the past 100 years, TOTO has been the recognized leader in innovation, technology, performance, and design with products that enhance the luxury bathroom experience. Today, the company maintains 33,431 employees in 20 countries and owns manufacturing facilities around the world in countries as diverse as Japan, Mexico, Germany, the USA, India and China. Guided by its corporate philosophy, the TOTO Global Group strives to create a great company, trusted by people all around the world, which contributes to the betterment of society. Dedicated to engineering products that respect the environment while meeting people's needs for comfort, beauty and performance, TOTO is the sole plumbing manufacturer to maintain a research and development center devoted to universal design, advanced science, and technology. Consumers enjoy the peace of mind that comes from knowing they purchased a brand that innovates to improve people's quality of life. Winner of numerous domestic and international awards and recognitions, TOTO is the only plumbing manufacturer honored as Water Efficiency Leader by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The company continues to raise industry standards and consumer expectations as to what is possible in the bath space, as TOTO believes a high-quality bathroom is an experience and an everyday luxury people value and appreciate. For more information, consumers may visit www.totousa.com or call 1.888.295.8134, Option 5. Follow TOTO on Twitter (@TOTOUSA) and Instagram (@TOTOUSA) and become a TOTO fan on Facebook.
About GP PRO
GP PRO, a division of Georgia-Pacific, manufactures and sells well-known brands like ActiveAire®, Angel Soft® Professional Series, Brawny®, Compact®, Dixie®, Dixie Ultra®, enMotion®, and Pacific Blue™. GP PRO products meet restroom, foodservice, and break room needs for office buildings, healthcare, foodservice, high traffic, lodging, retail, and education facilities, plus a wide range of industrial and manufacturing facilities in North America. For more information, visit gppro.com.
SOURCE TOTO
