The new aircraft carrier, United States Ship (USS) Gerald R. Ford, is equipped with various high-tech gear, while male sailors find the absence of urinals, the Navytimes website has reported.
According to a Navy official, each bathroom on the Ford is designed to be "gender-neutral." Namely the urinals are all replaced with flush toilets, the Navytimes reported Friday.
Since women account for only about 18 percent in the Navy crew, the vast majority of the 5,000-plus sailors deployed on the Ford are male.
Bathroom design experts said lavatories with seated toilets are not sanitary enough, taking up more room than wall-mounted urinals.
However, the Navy said this new change brought advantages. By eliminating urinals, the Navy can easily change the assigned purpose of the bathrooms and switch the crew's quarters between male and female to accommodate their needs.
This decision has astonished many design professionals.
For men, traditional seated toilets are farther away, hard to accurately focus on.
According to Chuck Kaufman, founder of Public Restroom Company, when obliged to pee in toilet bowls, men are likely to splash urine on the floor, leaving stench and filth.
