Interior & Flooring

Today, with the increasing focus on going green and building homes with a similar aesthetic, several flooring materials have been developed that are recyclable or have recyclable content, low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).

The sustainable flooring leaves a small carbon footprint and are sourced from either sustainably harvested, recycled or reclaimed sources.

Forbo provides you the best solution of sustainable flooring.Forbo is a leading manufacturer of flooring systems, building and construction adhesives as well as power transmission and conveyor belt solutions over 50 year.

Here we are introducing you CORAL – THE BEST SOLUTION OF SUSTAINABLE FLOORING 

The first steps in protecting your building. By stopping up to 95% of walked in dirt and moisture, our Coral entrance floors can prolong the life of your floor as well as greatly reduce cleaning costs and the risk for slipping. With almost 50 years of experience Coral offers you the best entrance flooring solution for your entrance area.

Coral entrance Mats

A good quality entrance matting system is vital for modern building design. By stopping up to 95% of walked in dirt and moisture, our Coral entrance floors can reduce cleaning costs by up to 65% and greatly reduce the risk of slipping.

Forbo Coral delivers superior performance in even the toughest environments. Whether facing rain, snow, sand or soil, Coral keeps the outside from getting inside. Coral entrance floors are highly functional and through their large design options always form an integral part of the building design scheme.

Coral is the international market leader in textile entrance flooring for almost 50 years and now offers you more choice than ever before. Each individual range in the collection has been designed to deal with different soiling behavior as every entrance is unique and has it’s own requirements.

A well-designed and innovative entrance flooring system will:

• Reduce the risk of slip injuries
•  Prolong the life of the interior floor finish
•  Reduce the cost of ongoing maintenance
• Make the entrance look good and inviting
• Contribute to an environmentally friendly building by reducing the use of detergents for the maintenance of the other floors

STUDY INTO THE EFFECTIVENESS OF CORAL ENTRANCE MATTING

Introduction-

A trial has been conducted at Leeds General Infirmary to examine the effect of installing 3 metres of Coral entrance matting in a busy entrance to the hospital. Particular emphasis has been placed on measuring the reduction in soil levels inside the building and the consequent benefit of reduced cleaning costs.

                                                                 Leeds General Infirmary

Site Details

The entrance to Accident and Emergency was chosen for the installation, this being selected by the hospital as being a very busy site with some 800 –1000 footsteps every 24 hours representing some 7000 footsteps per week.

                                             Figure 2. Accident and Emergency Entrance

Shows the layout of the site-

The area was approached through double doors leading to a long, straight corridor with a reception area off to the right hand side some 4 metres from the door.

Installation

Hospital cleaners carried out routine maintenance at least once daily, although more frequent visits were often necessary in wet weather in order to
prevent a slip hazard resulting from water tracked into the area.

Test Procedure-

The first series of trials were carried out without any protective mat in place.Tests were carried out at a distance of 6.5 metres from the door – colored green in the site diagram Levels of soil present on the floor were obtained using the Camraso Soil monitor. This is an instrument which transfers soil from the floor onto a preweighed GF/C filter paper. The paper is subsequently dried to constant,weight, and the increase in weight represents the weight of soil picked up from the floor. Six replicates samples were obtained from the area under test.

                                                    Figure 6. Sampling using the Camraso Soil Monitor

                                            Figure 6. Sampling using the Camraso Soil Monitor

The average amount of soil present in the corridor before the mat was installed was 252.9 g per sq. m Three metres of Coral entrance matting was then installed and measurements of soil levels were then determined on four successive weekly visits. The level of soil now present on the floor was very significantly reduced as can be seen in table no. 1

Potential savings in cleaning costs-

Given the reduction in soil levels, it is clear that obvious savings in cleaning costs can be made. Theoretically ,it could be claimed that the frequency of cleaning could be reduced by around 95%, but clearly in practice this would be an unreasonable option. In Table 2 therefore we have looked at some possible alternative scenarios which we consider to be realistic and calculated the potential savings in effort to clean 100 square metres over one year.. We have considered six possibilities. One where the present regime involves damp mopping daily for either 260 or 365 days per annum; one where it is sprayed cleaned for either 260 or 365 days per annum; and one where it is scrubber dried for 260 or 365 days per annum. In each case, using typical productivity rates, we have calculated the hours required. We have then looked at the benefit of installing the entrance matting on reducing cleaning frequencies.
             For this exercise Table 2 shows some typical alternatives that are possible. In column two the productivity rates are given for the different task options.Column 3 shows the time required to clean 100 square metres per annum if there is no Coral installed and presumes, because of the absence of the matting, the primary task has to be carried out daily. It also shows the time required to clean 100 square metres per annum if spot mopping replaces the primary task four times per week in the case of the 260 days service sites,and twice per week in the 365 days service sites.   

Conclusions-

A remarkable reduction of 95% of the soil entering the building has been achieved by the installation of the Coral matting.
This clearly represents an opportunity both to significantly reduce cleaning frequencies in the entrance to buildings and hence cost, (whether it be an entrance that is damp mopped, scrubber dried or spray cleaned) but also to reduce ambient levels of soil throughout the entire site if soil coming through
the door is all but eliminated. It does presume, however that the entrance matting will be maintained to a high standard in order to retain its effectiveness.
An added benefit, recognized by the hospital is that on days when the weather was wet there was a significantly reduced need to regularly visit the entrance in order to mop up water thereby reducing slip hazards.
The benefits that have been demonstrated using Coral in this trial can be applied to many other locations where there is a large pedestrian flow.Schools, universities, supermarkets and airports are typical examples of sites where significant savings can be made