News
Carpet Can Cater For Special Needs People
Abby Chandler, marketing manager of Heckmondwike FB, explains what specifiers should consider when choosing floorcoverings to cater for pupils with special educational needs (SEN): CARPET is a popular choice of floorcovering for SEN schools, but it is crucial for specifiers to ensure that their chosen product provides comfort, safety and durability. Safety is a key concern in SEN environments, as pupils are particularly vulnerable to slips, trips and falls. The Department for Children, Schools and Families recommends anti-slip and...
read moreWhat Went Wrong?
Asking the right questions can help get great results with refurbishments, says Peter Daulby, Altro’s technical services manager: CONTRACTORS are regularly asked to advise on product selection for refurbishment projects. All too often, the refurbishment is needed because something didn’t go right first time round, possibly because unsuitable products were selected and installed. However, customers don’t always make sensible choices – especially if they’re under pressure to deliver for an unrealistic budget. Unfortunately,...
read moreGood As New
Flooring is often a major part of any refurbishment: Altro reports that its new generation, heavy-duty 2.5mm safety flooring, Unity 25, is providing a tough and cost-effective solution in the visitor centre toilets at the world-famous Eden Project in Cornwall. David Moore, Eden Project maintenance manager, said: ‘We had to find an alternative because we were having to repaint the resin flooring in the toilets every four years. We approached Cornwall Safety Flooring, who we have used before. They recommended Altro who suggested Unity...
read moreAll Set For The 2013 Resin Flooring Awards
FeRFA is returning to the Belfry in the West Midlands for this year’s agm, exhibition and seminars, to be held in the Woodlands Suite, the Belfry’s large conference area. There’s a great line-up of speakers at the seminars. And you can find out what is new by visiting the stands at the industry exhibition. The awards presentation in the evening will be hosted by Martin Bayfield (pictured right). At 6ft10in, he was one of the tallest men in rugby and after retiring, his height helped him secure the part of Robbie Coltrane’s body...
read moreSmall In Size But With Huge Impact
Helen McGachie, ceo of FeRFA, outlines the role and significance of the resin flooring association: FeRFA, the trade association which represents the resin flooring and surface preparation industry sectors, has been in existence for 44 years. In comparison to many construction trades, the resin flooring sector may seem quite small, but in terms of influence, it has a huge impact across the UK manufacturing sector alone, where it provides high performance and durable flooring to withstand the most rigorous of processing environments....
read moreResin Flooring Delivers Versatility Underfoot
Chris Dobbie, of Flowcrete UK, which has been providing industrial flooring for more than 30 years, gives an insight into many benefits of resin flooring: RESIN flooring is long renowned as the workhorse of industrial environments – providing a robust platform to withstand the day-to-day operations of manufacturing, processing and maintenance areas. But resin floors aren’t just about durability. Hygiene performance: Carefully designed floor finishes can ensure outstanding hygiene performance at ground level. Design features...
read moreThe Voice Of Resin
Resin flooring is suitable for many different locations: Mapei reports that its resin flooring was specified at the newly built Leyton Jubilee Park Sports Pavilion in East London. The pavilion was a part of the Olympic Games Legacy Scheme which was honoured by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) to improve the play facilities and the surrounding landscape. The resin flooring system was installed throughout the pavilion’s football changing rooms, covering 350sq m of flooring. Mapei’s Mapefloor I 350SL, a two-component multi-purpose...
read moreGreen Light For Borrowing Now In Sight
Craig Pawson on government backed lending THE last few years have been difficult for small businesses and particularly those in the construction sector, but Government-backed lending could make a difference. The challenge for small businesses is to meet customer demand and deal with increasing material costs. Reduced bank lending has limited opportunities for growth and employment. But now there is the Government-backed Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG). Despite its launch in 2009, many still don’t understand the benefits of the EFG...
read moreHealth & Safety – No Need To Be Afraid
Steve Scotter on the risks for carpet cleaners DOES health and safety scare you? If it does, don’t despair, you can just keep it simple. Carpet cleaning, carried out by a skilled carpet cleaning technician, should be low risk so long as attention is paid to the workplace and the task in hand. Self-employed technicians need to concentrate on earning a living, which can make Health & Safety seem like an inconvenience, but if you work to simple systems it can be easy to comply with the regulations. The main risks from carpet cleaning...
read moreYou Can’t Afford To Be Wet Behind The Ears
Rob Winstone on Equilibrium Moisture Content -- Part 3 LAST month I explained how timber is affected by both relative humidity and temperature. We also have to consider the type of building that the material will be installed into. BS 8201:2011 Code of practice for installation of wood and wood based panels says that the timber flooring should not be installed into a building until the environment is at the ‘in service’ levels and that the moisture content of the wood should be matched to that environment. With the new Sustainable...
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