WORLD Toilet Organisation founder Jack Sim was not surprised at the results of our study.

The 52-year-old said: 'Most of the club toilets in Singapore are actually rather nice. What hits them the hardest is when drunk people hurl and miss.'

That problem, Mr Sim pointed out, could be solved with vomit bowls.

Clubs in Europe all use vomit bowls, which look like big, round sinks without drainers.

Another tip we could pick up from the European nightspots, Mr Sim added, was using design to bring out a toilet's 'aesthetic character'.

Brighly-lit and well-ventilated spaces with spiritually uplifting ambiences will definitely help, he added.

Ladies' toilets should ideally also have double the floor space than that of men's lavoratories as they need more 'mirrorspace'.

But all of these measures still can't beat having professionally trained toilet cleaners.

What sets them apart from their run-of-the-mill counterparts, Mr Sim explained, is timing.

'They have to know when to get into traffic so that there is sufficient cleaning time and yet avoid any obstruction to the patrons,' he said.

A Japanese cleaning course called the Restroom Specialist Training Course is available at the World Toilet College and is heavily subsidised by the Workforce Development Agency.

Mr Sim also said that 'good ergonomics and work-flow considerations' is essential to every restroom.

'The sink, soap dispenser and hand-dryer should be placed close together to ensure that the place is kept as dry as possible,' he said.

'In Singapore, they are usually all far apart from each other which really makes no sense at all.'

This article was first published in The New Paper.