Believe it or not, concealed hinges aren’t just for smart furniture with hidden storage or for cabinetry in small spaces. There are other places where you can use invisible hinges, and these include medical equipment. Concealed hinges in medical equipment designs can address numerous problems in wards, operating rooms, and other parts of a hospital. Due to their discreet architecture, these are superior to adjustable and barrel hinges in sterility.
Concealed hinges also boast premium durability, making heavy doors (like radiation shielding doors) sturdier. Most importantly, invisible hinges with hidden hardware are must-haves if you’re designing to match a hospital’s clean and professional aesthetic.
In short, you’re sleeping on numerous advantages when you aren’t considering concealed hinges for medical equipment.
If you’re still on the fence about them, we at SOSS are here to give you compelling reasons to choose heavy and light-duty SOSS hinges over other unsightly and cumbersome hinges.
Let’s dive in.
The Use Cases of Invisible Hinges
You may be wondering where to best incorporate concealed hinges in hospital settings. Here are some use case ideas to get you started.
Medication Storage Areas
There are numerous forms of cabinetry in a hospital, and some of the most critical store medications.
Storage spaces for medicines are some of the most highly manipulated forms of medical equipment as health professionals need access to medications daily. The regular handling of these storage spaces can render cabinets and drawers more susceptible to damage and wear and tear.
Medicine cabinets need hardware that’s built to last, and hardware like hinges must be smooth and operational for the long term to ensure easy access to medications.
Crash Carts
Crash or emergency carts make all the difference during emergency situations like cardiovascular arrest. For this reason, these pieces of medical equipment must be equipped with hardware that won’t jam or pose safety threats. When it comes to components that tick all the necessary function and safety boxes, there’s no better option than the invisible hinge.
Heavy Metal Doors
Paradoxical as it may seem, some parts of a hospital can be hazardous to the average person.
For instance, infectious disease wards can render fairly healthy patients, visitors, and even health professionals ill without the proper personal protective equipment. There are also high concentrations of radiation in places like cancer wards (due to chemotherapy drugs) and diagnostic imaging facilities.
To prevent unauthorized access to these areas, doors and door holders need to be heavy and secure. Of course, with heavy doors (like lead-lined ones) comes the need for robust hardware designed to support their weight.
This is another area where concealed hinges like our Hercules Hinges and SOSS Power Transfer Hinges can be helpful.
Beds
These pieces of equipment must be designed in a way that there are little to no protrusions that can cut into skin, clothing, or even IV lines or cables.
This is where concealed hinges come in. Due to their sleek design, these pieces of door hardware lack protruding elements, so there’s little to no chance of visitors, nurses, or physicians getting scratched by exposed parts like the knuckle.
Custom Bins for Medical Waste
Medical waste bins are essential in any healthcare facility because they keep infectious discarded items like IV catheters and syringes out of reach. Because the goal is to reduce cross-contamination while keeping these items away from human hands, these bins must consist of hardware that is easy to clean, non-exposed, and secure. Concealed hinges like the Model 218 Series Invisible Hinge fit these descriptions to a tee.
The Benefits of Concealed Hinges Over Invisible Barrel Hinges in Medical Equipment
Now that you’re familiar with some ways to incorporate concealed hinges into medical equipment designs, let’s talk about how these pieces of hardware are superior to their barrel counterparts.
Here are five unique benefits of using invisible hinges when you’re designing for healthcare settings.
Benefit 1: Sterility and Cleanability
When it comes to choosing hardware, always think:
The easier it is to clean, the more sterile it can be.
And sterility is key in hospitals and healthcare facilities to minimize infection risk.
On the surface, barrel and adjustable hinges designed by firms like Kiesler Machine Inc. may lend themselves to easy cleaning and disinfection. However, these pieces of hardware have protruding knuckles where microbes can accumulate from handling and traffic. As a result, they need to be cleaned and disinfected regularly.
It gets worse. Even if healthcare auxiliary workers are able to clean these hinges frequently, only the surface components get covered. This means that dirt and pathogens may still accumulate within the hinge’s inner parts like the cylinder.
By contrast, hidden hinges with non-exposed hardware already have a barrier of protection. As a result, there’s only a marginal chance of microbial accumulation within a concealed hinge — even with only surface cleaning.
In short, concealed hinges are easier to keep clean and sterile, making them the obvious choice when you prioritize sterility and cleanliness.
Benefit 2: Safer Medical Equipment
Adjustable, European, and barrel hinges have one thing in common: protruding hardware.
Besides being unsightly, these exposed door components can also cause safety hazards as they can snag onto clothing and critical pieces of equipment like IV lines.
Worse yet, there is a chance of injury when these hinges are used. Exposed components like knuckles and even grease fittings can have sharp edges that can cut into the skin, causing scratches, abrasions, or lacerations in the worst-case scenario.
All of these things will be problems of the past when you choose concealed hinges. Unlike barrel, adjustable, or bullet hinges, invisible hinges have all their components flushed in, meaning you won’t see any exposed hardware.
Because of the lack of protruding parts, concealed hinges like the ones we offer are a safer alternative to conventional barrel or European hinges. Their design makes them the clear choice when you need hinges that seamlessly blend into a hospital’s equipment without compromising safety, function, and aesthetics.
Benefit 3: Maximized Space Efficiency
Besides safety and sterility, concealed hinges also outshine barrel and commercial hinges in space efficiency. Here’s how:
Let’s look at typical barrel hinge designs. Seemingly “badass” barrel hinges are designed with cylindrical hubs that give them much of their mobility. Unfortunately, these hubs along with other parts like brass links can be bulky — and this is one of the reasons you see spaces when you open and close doors or lids equipped with barrel hinges.
On the other hand, concealed hinges boast a compact design. Unlike their barrel, adjustable, or European counterparts, invisible hinges are self-contained in their construction, with invisible closers and ball bearings that aren’t present in barrel or quadrant hinges. This means that all components are within the fixings and hinge cups.
As a result, concealed hinges aren’t bulky and can help you get more out of every inch.
Benefit 4: Long-Lasting Performance in High-Use Medical Equipment
From infectious waste bins to medication storage carts, medical equipment is prone to frequent manipulation. Because of the handling and traffic equipment is subjected to, various components lose their durability over time. Among these parts are hinges.
Over time, hinges can dislodge and break as a result of frequent usage and handling. When this happens, replacements become necessary, but finding suitable hinges and installing them can take time.
Luckily, concealed hinges are designed for maximum wear and tear resistance. Often coming with resistant solid brass and stainless steel finishes, exceptional invisible hinges like ours can last for years without a single replacement. With these pieces of hardware, your medical equipment can be more resilient and stay functional when needed most.
Bonus Benefit: Smooth Operation
Functional in their own way, conventional hinges like barrel, European, and adjustable hinges enable decent opening and closure. However, these pieces of door hardware can only open so far — often just over 90 degrees. The limited range of motion provided by these hinges is detrimental to safety and space efficiency, so you need better hinges if you desire more functionality out of any medical equipment you design.
This is where the innovation in our concealed hinges comes in. To add another layer of functionality, we’ve designed our hinges to open to a full 180 degrees. This feature gives any door or lid you use invisible hinges on a greater degree of freedom that results in better space efficiency and, most importantly, easier access and functionality.
Open the Door of Innovation in Each of Your Medical Equipment Designs With SOSS
Hospitals can place great demands on doors and equipment. Luckily, SOSS Hinges are game-changers because of their stainless steel design, offering a brand-new way of outfitting doors and equipment.
When choosing hardware, you can’t go wrong with incorporating concealed hinges for medical equipment designs.
Contact us today or find your next hinges in our full SOSS catalog.
FAQs
Where Can Concealed Hinges Be Used?
There are numerous use cases for concealed hinges. You can use them in various forms of medical equipment like medication cabinetry or heavy doors. Also, beds and infectious waste bins can be optimized by invisible hinges.
What’s the Problem With Ordinary Hinges When Used in Medical Equipment Designs?
Barrel, adjustable, and quadrant hinges have long been the go-to pieces of door hardware for many applications, but they come with exposed parts. These components can snag onto clothing and medical implements like IV lines. Worse yet, they’re also safety hazards as they can scratch skin.
Sources:
https://www.soss.com/types-of-concealed-hinges/
https://www.soss.com/designing-commercial-spaces/
https://www.soss.com/product/218h-invisible-hinge/
https://www.soss.com/product/model-218pt4-power-transfer-invisible-hinge/