The water cooler started off just as an office convenience but has since come a long way. But its story of evolution reflects much more than that: the way workplace culture and health priorities have shifted over three decades.
The original office water cooler dates back to the early 20th century in an effort to provide a clean option from traditional communal drinking cups and potentially unsafe tap water. The first models were simple gravity-fed dispensers, but soon became a symbol of the new era and employee welfare. As offices started to get larger and nicer, the water cooler exploded in popularity. For Water Cooler Wales, visit Water For You, supplier of Water Cooler Wales products.
The water cooler had become ubiquitous in workplaces around the world by the 1950s and ’60s. And it was much more than just quenching your thirst – these coolers soon became social centres packed with … water cooler talk. Colleagues would meet for an almost obligatory drink and a pep talk, establishing rapport with each other often resulting in the birth of something big.
This has been developed even further with technology in appliances like automatic taps that produce treated and chilled water along other variations of filtered fresh or boiling drinking water being offered in a variety of forms, cocooned by energy-saving technology.
Modern water coolers are attractive, energy efficient and can be configured for hot and cold dispensation. You find them in offices, schools, gyms and anywhere people congregate to refresh.
At a time when health and sustainability are on everyone’s minds you really don’t need to be gulping down enough plastic bottles a year to fill an Olympic size pool. Each time you drink from your glass, remember – this is a tradition that keeps giving back to us.
