Ambiguous Visual Controls: Caution! Possible Scalding

Labeling and signage alone are about as effective in preventing accidents as fences are in preventing birds from flying over them. Warning labels can come across as a mere attempt to minimize a business’s liability, rather than a thoughtful approach to preventing injuries and enhancing the customer experience. It may appear that the proprietors are either lazy, lacking creativity, or disengaged from their work. However, there is an opportunity for businesses to focus on customer safety and experience simultaneously. By investing time and effort into thoughtful prevention measures, businesses can not only protect themselves from potential lawsuits but also create a better overall experience for their customers.

Amusingly Poorly Executed Safety Signage

This example of poorly designed and executed safety signage came to my attention only after failing to note or take heed of its warnings for three consecutive showers, and suffering the consequences. It reads:

ご利用の際、急にハンドルを回しますと熱湯が出る場合がございますのでご注意ください。

It translates to: Please use caution as turning on the water, suddenly can result in unexpected extreme temperatures and possible scalding.
If it were not for my appreciation of ambiguous visual controls, I might have felt stupid or annoyed, rather than amused.

Critique of Ambiguous and Ineffective Safety Signage Design

Why is this an ambiguous visual control? Let us list the ways.

   

• Placement. The visual control is not at eye level.
• Readability. The visual control is barely readable. The font is small. There are only words, no useful images. The droplets of water distort the letters, requiring one to look at it up close. The message is not concise. Here it is at near actual size.
• Punctuation. The punctuation, specifically the placement of the comma, makes the meaning ambiguous. It states, “…turning on the water, suddenly can…” which implies not that “turning suddenly” causes this, but that any turning can suddenly cause an unexpected and extreme change in water temperature. The latter scenario seems like a design defect in the plumbing hardware.
• Translation. The translation is not precise. In fact, the Japanese translation means “turning on the water suddenly” as in jerking the faucet one way or the other, can cause hotter or colder water than expected to come out. Or possibly, the original was in English, as the Japanese are much more muted, reading “Please be careful as turning the handle [knobs] suddenly can cause hot water to come out.” No mention of extreme temperatures or scalding.
• Caution. The instruction to “use caution” is inherently ambiguous. When avoiding mistakes or accidents, clear positive action is better than a clear negative or vague action. Why not, “Please turn the knob gently to avoid…”? At best, “use caution” is a vague action, as it is not clear where or how to exercise caution.

Choosing the Right Knob: Deciphering the Warning Label on Your Shower Controls

• Choice. There are two knobs. To which does the warning label apply? One or both? The temperature of the shower was set using the lower dial, red for hot and blue for cold. This is a fairly common visual control. The knob worked as advertised. No sudden changes in temperature, the ambiguous and unnoticed warning label notwithstanding.
• Cartoons. The two cartoon stickers on the upper knob were useless. Both work the shower. It is not clear why the one on the left shows a person under what looks like a ceiling-mounted shower and the one on the right a hand-held shower wand. There was no ceiling shower.

Shower Surprise: The Tricky Upper Knob and Cold Water Blast

While the lower shower knob operates smoothly, the upper knob can be a bit of a challenge. Even a slight turn beyond the “off” position can cause the water to stop briefly and then start flowing again. Unfortunately, this quirk is often discovered at the end of the shower when attempting to turn it off. This can result in an unpleasant dousing of cold water, leaving customers feeling less than refreshed. The vague red blur of the ambiguous visual control only adds to the confusion. Despite multiple failed attempts, it’s important to note that there is very little margin for error with this tricky knob. The hotel room may have been recently renovated with dual shower capabilities, but without a ceiling shower, both directions on the upper knob release water to the single shower head – with unintended results. It’s possible that the release of cold water was a “hot fix” to the scalding problem, but the result is certainly a shower experience to remember!”

The Curious Case of Shower Labels: A Height Mystery

What’s troubling is the journey made by this label in order to arrive at its ultimately ambiguous and futile home. The workers who installed the bathrooms and placed the labels there did not wonder at the location specifications, barely 3 feet off of the floor. It’s understandable that they may not have read what was on the label. However someone had to compose, translate, typeset, design, approve, print, die cut, and package this label. Noone along that chain paused long enough at the word “scalding” being anywhere in the range of acceptable settings for a hotel bath, or to question such a label’s efficacy and safety. User cautioned, job done.
One should not have to think so deeply or carefully when taking a shower in a hotel boasting more than 2 stars. But since it is so, let us be thankful for this bountiful lesson in various failure modes from product design, installation, and user interface through customer experience.

*The effec­tive use of visu­al con­trols is one of the essen­tial enablers of a Dai­ly Man­age­ment Sys­tem. Learn how visu­al con­trols pro­vide a crit­i­cal infor­ma­tion link for teams to man­age and improve their performance at gembaacademy.com.

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