Increasing Workplace Safety via Non-slip Floor Covering

Trips and slips happen across all industries and are among the most prevalent triggers of workplace injuries. In most cases, the type of floor surface is the main culprit. The floor may be wet, uneven or dirty or it may be covered with loose, worn out or unstable carpets. So it is important to know the kind of non slip floor covering that is best suited to the conditions of your workplace.

Floors lack enough traction

When dry, most types of flooring are pretty slip-resistant. However, contaminants like dust, oil, solvents or water can increasingly reduce the amount of traction they provide. Besides, when a floor surface that is made of wood, vinyl or concrete gets polished, its level of traction is greatly minimized. Slipperiness can also be increased if surfaces made of concrete or steel are worn out or damaged. If you haven’t thought of another way to add more friction to your workplace floors, this is the right time to do it. You only need non slip floor coating that has been properly tested. It will increase friction or grip between the users’ shoes and the surfaces they are walking on top of.

Create slip-resistant flooring with grit

One thing you should pay attention to is your floor’s COF (coefficient of friction). COF is a measure for the slip resistance of the flooring and it is attained via laboratory testing. If the COF value is higher, the surface will be less slippery and the recommended one is 0.5. Depending on the type of workplace you have, you might need a higher coefficient of friction. In order to get the actual value, you should have your workplace flooring tested when it’s dry and flat and when it’s dumped and on an incline.

The best way to create non-slip floor coating is to use a grit for traction, although the surfaces can also be made rougher and safer with coatings and paints. Grit creates hard and rough edges that easily grips footwear. This grit or aggregate can be created with silica sand, aluminum oxide or quartz. To make it more durable, however, manufacturers prefer to make grit with epoxy and when finer grit is needed, they mix several different kinds of materials. In high traffic areas, fiberglass is safely used as it can also resist hazards that might be caused by spilt hydraulic fluids and oils.

Using non-slip mats and tiles

The best anti-slip mats and tiles can be placed on top of dangerous workplace floors. They can be joined together during installation to create a seamless, tight and stable surface. In most cases, non-slip mats and tiles are made of polyurethane, PVC or rubber materials and then reinforced with a hard material like silicon carbide to give them a grit surface. Their grip or friction can be increased with a knobbed, corrugated or ribbed top surface. So, if you pour oil or grease on these mats, it will get in between the knobs or deep ridges instead of smearing out on top of the grit surface where people are stepping on.

To reduce tripping accidents with non slip floor covering, use mats that come with beveled edges. These edges can also be added to your workplace tiles. Beveled edges are slightly inclined to the floor while standard floor mats have raised edges that could cause trip accidents. They can also develop some tears and holes, and their corners could curl and cause accidental trips and falls.