"flooring reinforcements toppings"

Thistle’s Centre of Wellbeing in Edinburgh wanted floorings that couple function and style with the necessary attributes. Consequently, floorings for the gym and meeting rooms were specified. It was Gerflor’s Taraflex® Evolution in Wood Oak that satisfied Thistle’s clear brief for a good looking, comfortable, hygienic, high performing, durable, easy-maintenance gym flooring. It also fulfilled the requirements for a product that could contribute to the warm, welcoming and friendly aesthetic.

Project/location Aula Magna Università Torino –University of Turin in North West Italy is one of the oldest Universities in Europe but continues to play an important role in research and training, ranking 3rd in Italy for Universities covering these activities. This new build project in a lecture theatre in the faculty of Journalism and Literature project was part of ten-year construction project on the University site. For a modern floor finish in keeping with the design of the building a seamless finish was required – in total 301 m2 was installed in October 2020 with the Sherwin-Williams SofTop SL system and 61 m2 of Resuflor HB epoxy floor coatings.The concrete screed sub-base was poured in August. A comfort floor type finish was requested which would have sound absorbing characteristics and have a soft touch. The products being used needed to have extremely low VOC (volatile organic compound) content and have no smell when being applied. The finishing coating of the SofTop system installed was Resupen WB Colour which carries the Eurofin Gold certification for indoor air comfort which confirms that the product fulfils low odour product emissions.Product/technical spec including mechanical grinding and application of angle profiles using epoxy screed including the vertical parts.Following preparation Resuprime pure epoxy resin primer was applied at 400 gr/sqm and broadcasted with a 0,3-0,5 silica quartz to enhance intercoat adhesion with the resin topping. Once cured the SofTop SL polyurethane self smoothing floor system was installed, which uses a body coat SofTop SLR Flex with a UV stable seal coat of Resuflor WB Colour. Under the seated areas an application of a scratch coat using Resuflor HB was applied at 600 g/sqm which was abraded and then another coat of Resuflor HB Ral 7038 applied at 800 gr/sqm. Steps and walking areas were installed with SofTop SL system in Ral 7038 at 3000 gr/sqm to provide 3mm thickness.   The whole area involved sanding the vertical parts to remove roughness of epoxy screed and drops of the resin from horizontal application. This involved using sandpaper with grit 60 to horizontal surfaces and vacuum this ready to be coated. An application of 75 gr/sqm of Resupen WB Colour Ral 7038 was applied. SofTop floors provide extreme durability and robustness, yet retain a soft and comfortable finish which is modern and attractive for diverse applications. Designed with footfall and wear in mind the finish is so tough it’s suitable for industrial areas as well as commercial and domestic facilities. The SofTop range offers a choice of 3 flooring systems providing varying thicknesses with degrees of bounce and flexibility.SofTop SL used at Turin is typically installed at 2-4 mm thickness and is recommended for industrial and commercial areas subject to normal traffic. The system has a high wear resistance, high chemical resistance and medium resistance to shocks. The floor is suitable for dry areas such as schools, laboratories, corridor areas, electronic companies and health care facilities, etc. Where footfall occurs SofTop finishes are good for the back due to the soft impact effect. With many traditional hard floors, regular users can find they experience difficulties with back issues from walking on an unyielding surface. The soft finish provided with SofTop systems provides sound absorbing ergonomics, improving the acoustic properties of the building and reducing acoustic impact on other areas of the building. Systems deliver thickness for strength but with a soft finish which has excellent resistance to sharp objects, impacts, shocks and dropped objects, minimising the chance of remedial repairs being required. Being self smoothing polyurethane SofTop is one of the fastest ways to lay a flooring system and to create a beautiful and durable foundation that completes a construction or refurbishment. The SofTop floor systems available can be ready to receive traffic after only 24 hours. Because Sherwin-Williams systems are seamless and impervious to handle humid conditions, spills that stay on the surface can be easily cleaned and hygiene maintained, with no contamination. 

Situated within the city of Leeds is the recently refurbished Kings House, which is now a prominent multi-tenanted office building. The interior design aspect of the refurbishment would be the responsibility of Wetherby-based Design Tonic Limited. In specifying the crucial flooring aspect of the project Design Tonic would turn to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 400m2 from their award-winning Creation 70 Looselay LVT flooring range.

Ireland's newest major sporting venue, the inspiring Aviva Stadium, required a fittingly impressive entrance and exit zone aesthetic for its opening year. Accommodating up to 50,000 seated spectators meant issues of safety were key to the specification process, and the entrance flooring system chosen had to be the highest level functionally as well as aesthetically. Fortunately, Forbo Flooring system's extensive portfolio of entrance matting systems offered the ideal products for the job. Robust, smartly attractive and with moisture absorbing qualities for anti-slip safety, Nuway Tuftiguard was used for entrance areas

Fulneck School were seeking a new and improved sports surface to freshen up the hall and transform their indoor space. For this reason, DYNAMIK overlaid the old timber school sports floor with a DYNAMIK seamless Polyethylene (PU). We advocate the benefits of solid synthetic surfaces for exceptional durability and seamless installation. Ryan Walker, Director of Sport at Fulneck School, had this to say: "The new flooring has really transformed our indoor space. It is now a first-class facility and all students at Fulneck School will really benefit from using it when we return".

In completing the £21M Park Hill Flats restoration project on a Sheffield housing development Kier Construction and architects Whittam Cox specified 4000m2 of high-quality vinyl flooring from international flooring specialist Gerflor.The project would provide a showcase for two of Gerflor’s signature flooring products -the Taralay Impression Compact heterogenous collection and their slip resistant Tarasafe Standard safety range. Both these innovations would prove to be the ideal solution for Beton House which is the third phase of the Park Hill Flats estate.In choosing both Taralay Impression Compact and Tarasafe Standard from Gerflor the rigorous specification standards set by Whittam Cox and Kier Construction would easily be met.Andy Gordon, Gerflor Area Sales Manager, Northeast commented, “We collaborated with the architects Whittam Cox in the first instance and wrote a specification which included three thousand square metres of our Taralay Impression Compact flooring for the communal areas and one thousand square metres of our slip resistant Tarasafe Standard for the student bathroom areas. The client is absolutely delighted with the final outcome of the Gerflor flooring, and we understand the flooring is performing exceedingly well and meeting all the clients’ expectations.”

When Whitmore High School in Barry, Wales were undergoing a massive £30.5M transformation that required over 6000m2 of new flooring they turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor for their specific project needs.The contractor for the project would specify a mix of Gerflor’s Taralay Impression Compact and Comfort flooring, together with their pedigree Taraflex® sports flooring, alongside their world renowned Tarasafe flooring products, together with their Mipolam ESD EL7 dissipative flooring.Steven Birchenough, Project Manager for the Main Contractor Morgan Sindall said, “Gerflor have a wide selection of flooring products to choose from. We needed a single supplier to provide us with the best-in-class flooring for many areas of the facility.”The installation of such prestigious and large flooring project would be the responsibility of CS Flooring, Cardiff. Anthony Mynett, Director, Carpet Services (Cardiff) Ltd commented,” This was a huge project for a new build school installation and the specification of Gerflor products for the vast amount of flooring needed was absolutely the right choice due to the high quality and performance they deliver every time.”

The Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester is a District General Hospital serving much of central Hampshire and is one of three hospitals serving a population of approximately 600,000 across Hampshire and parts of west Berkshire. Just Floors were asked by the Hospital Trust directly to help out with a Health and Safety issue on around 70 steps that are located outside the main Hospital building. The steps run from the car park level that is situated at the top of a hill down to the main hospital building that is on a lower level.

The building features nearly 2,000 m2 of bespoke gravity lay raised floor panels. These are manufactured by Bathgate Flooring in our UK manufacturing facility. They supplied panels with a real maple lacquered finish. The complete development sees 4 floors of fully accessible maple finished raised floors manufactured to the PSA MOB PF2 PS/SPU British Standard Bathgate Flooring under the Permaflor brand. The complete installation included a full aluminum entrance mat bought and installed by Paragon Mat–Works and the complete raised floor was installed to an extremely high standard by SJ Durman Flooring.

The “44 Floors” in Rotterdam is the residential West Tower in the building complex “De Rotterdam”, completed at the end of 2013. The multi-functional building on the Wilhelmina Pier was designed by OMA, the office founded by Rem Koolhaas, as a vertical city offering a total floor space area of 160,000 m2 with offices, restaurants, a hotel and leisure facilities, in addition to the “44 Floors” apartments and parking spaces. The exquisite luxury apartments were fitted out with sanitary objects of the Subway collection from Villeroy & Boch.

The DYNAMIK Komfort Elite Play is an A4 area elastic floor system finished in Oak to provide a classic wood floor finish with all the benefits of a sprung system. Combined with DYNAMIK Acoustic Sports Wall panels the finished result shows a stylish Sports Hall.

Creating a more welcoming arrival experience for children and their families at Leeds Children’s Hospital, Forbo Flooring Systems donated its time and flooring solutions to help transform what was once a tired entrance at one of the UK’s largest specialist children’s hospitals.Two state-of-the-art hospital buildings are being built at Leeds General Infirmary and one will be a brand-new home for Leeds Children’s Hospital. As part of the transition to the new spaces, Forbo supplied 600m2 of its Modul’up Compact ‘Fast Fit’ flooring to help transform the existing tired entrance space.

The restaurant at Edinburgh's Botanic Gardens features a Douglas Fir floor finished with Bona Traffic HD. The area was sanded back to bare wood using Bona’s ‘dust free’ system so no need to ‘tent’ the adjacent mezzanine area. Traffic HD was specified to provide the required level of durability in such a busy area. It's a very low VOC formulation which protects wood floors in highly trafficked areas. Its fast development time means busy commercial floors can be put back into full use just 24 hours after application.

Belfast Harbour’s estate spans over 8,000,000 sq. m. The award-winning 'City Quays II' development was completed in 18 months with a construction value of €31 million.Kingspan RMG Simploc was installed on the ground floor Management Suite, with RMG and RMG Simploc fitted on floors three through to seven. RMG performs to PSA medium grade, featuring galvanised steel-encapsulated panels that come with a 25-year total system warranty. The system has also been designed so that the flooring can be easily removed or replaced.

The Cibes “A” Series of Platform Lift is the most versatile platform lift on the market, the “A” Series is a Commercial and Public Platform Lift which uses Cibes Smart ECO technology and now comes with Smart voice synthesiser. The “A” ECO Drive platform lift has the lowest energy consumption of any platform lift and operates and delivers the same comfort and performance you expect from a commercial lift traveling at 0.15ms. Platform sizes are fully Part M and Equality Act compliant and can be installed in around two days.

Over 4700m2 of Gerflor high performance sports and safety floorings have been installed at Marr College, Scotland. The client required an Olympic pedigree sports floor for their main sports hall to serve a multitude of uses – Taraflex® was the chosen innovation. A trusted, high-quality safety flooring was also required to ensure the safety of pupils, staff, and on-site visitors. Tarasafe Ultra was the natural choice.Taraflex® is available in 17 colours and four wood-effect designs and has been used by the largest international sports federations for decades and has been present at the Summer Olympic Games since 1976.Tarasafe Ultra is a specialist slip-resistant vinyl safety flooring inlaid with mineral crystals particles, as opposed to carborundum giving a brighter appearance. It also comes with a tough PVC wearlayer and meets HSE guidelines.

Gerflor’s highly proven, slip-resistant Tarasafe™ Standard vinyl flooring was found to be the perfect safety flooring solution for the heavy-duty, high slip-risk areas within the City of Hull’s new state-of-the-art, multiple events complex, named the Bonus Arena.

Built-In Flexibility26,000 sq. m. of Kingspan RMG600 Simploc raised access flooring.The key to creating a successful co-working environment is to build-in flexibility. To help futureproof Two Southbank Place, 26,000 sq. m. of Kingspan RMG600 Simploc raised access flooring was installed.

Appointed to design Hammerson House, Wohl Campus, a new care building, P+HS Architects specified a variety of solutions from Forbo Flooring Systems’ large portfolio, to help bring the vision of a country house hotel to life. Offering 116 bedrooms, with communal lounges, a café, and an inter-generational activity room, Forbo’s Surestep, Safestep and Allura ranges have been installed throughout the building.Hammerson House was founded in 1961 by Sue Hammerson to provide care for older members of the Jewish community. From here Hammerson merged with Nightingale House to form Nightingale Hammerson who run both homes as a joint group. Located on the Wohl Campus near Hampstead Heath, the home is based within beautiful woodlands enabling residents to enjoy the local scenery. Offering medical services, including a visiting GP, a large communal hall, an onsite shop and a hair salon, the care home is able to provide for all of its residents’ needs.Martha MacKinnon, Senior Architect at P+HS commented on the project: “We were tasked with creating a welcoming space that delivered a contemporary vision of a country house hotel, where visitors, residents and staff could feel settled. Therefore, when it came to specifying floor coverings, we had to carefully choose products that could contribute to the warm and welcoming interior we wanted to achieve.“In the resident’s area, on the lower ground floor, it was important that we specified a vinyl flooring, as it needed to be durable, but also provide a warm and homely feel. Additionally, a low-level contrast between the carpeted areas and the vinyl flooring in the bedrooms was also vital, as some of the residents living at the home have dementia.”With the above in mind, and to connect the building back to its countryside roots, P+HS Architects specified Forbo’s Allura LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tiles) in the natural looking Steamed Oak colourway “The wooden aesthetic of Forbo’s Allura really helped us to connect the indoors to the outside, whilst contributing to our design brief, thanks to its warm shades. We mainly used Allura in the household and staff dining areas, and the lower ground floor bedrooms,” Martha explained. “Not only this, but the chosen Allura design has also been accredited by the DSDC (Dementia Services Development Centre), which means it has been approved for use in dementia-friendly environments, making it the perfect choice for this project.“In the areas where spillages are to be expected and therefore slip resistance was a factor, such as in kitchens and the residents’ ensuites, we specified Forbo’s Surestep and Safestep safety flooring. Both ranges deliver guaranteed lifetime slip resistance and are available in a variety of bright, contemporary designs.”Forbo’s Step safety flooring collection meets all the European and HSE safety norms, delivering safety with minimal compromise on cleaning and maintenance, thanks to its PUR Pearl finish, and design.Sara Glaser, Head of Marketing from Nightingale Hammerson spoke about the finished project: “We’re delighted with the work P+HS has done; it looks lovely and really fits the design we had wanted to achieve. We’re particularly happy with how safety conscious it is, as our residents are our primary concern. They like the house and how it looks, so we couldn’t be happier with the end result!”Finished at the start of 2021, Hammerson House, Wohl Campus recently achieved a rating of ‘Good’ from a CQC inspection of the home. Additionally, the building was awarded the Best Social Care development at the Building Better Healthcare Awards 2021 and ‘Commended’ in the Forbo Escapes 2021/22 competition.

ACS International Schools educate over 3,300 students across four sites. Firm believers that sport plays a huge part in personal character building going far beyond physical development, the school decided to invest in the best flooring system. Basketball and Volleyball are key activities within the new sports hall so in addition to two match basketball and three match volleyball courts there is a “show court” for both with seating for 400 spectators. The ideal DYNAMIK Helsinki sports floor system fully supports bleacher seating and the DYNAMIK Athen sports floor system was selected for the Dance Studio.

With over 2,000 m2 of floor space and seating for up to 1,655 people, the £12million Essex Sport Arena is another innovative facility where DYNAMIK Sport has installed their world class sports flooring. Home to the netball super league with 3 netball courts, 8 badminton courts, 3 basketball courts, 5 volleyball courts and 2 futsal courts, all available for hire to sports groups. The arena boasts DYNAMIK’s A4 area elastic sprung floor which we hope will play some part in supporting elite sport and the future successes of the teams.

When Cardiff Castle wanted to regenerate an under-used space within the heart of the historic site, to provide a marketing and promotional suite for the city, they turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 200m2 of its stunning and award-winning Creation 70 LVT Halifax Stone flooring for the new area.

Project: Aylesbury Vale AcademyFlooring: 860m² - Maximus Click - French Oak StormFrench Oak - Storm | Maximus Click | Invictus® vinyl flooringContractor: Folkspur Flooring LTD

When Cardiff High school needed a high-quality multi-use sports flooring solution for their main hall, they chose international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 700m2 of their world class Taraflex® Multi-Use vinyl sports floor. Gerflor also supplied an Isolsport underlay and their ubiquitous Taraflex® Bateco moveable protective covering which would ensure that the Taraflex® sports floor would remain protected during non-sporting activities.The contracting responsibility for the sports floor would be undertaken by Cardiff-based Floor Furnishings Limited. Nick Jefferies, Company Director, Floor Furnishings Ltd commented, “Gerflor’s Taraflex sports floor was extremely easy to lay. The Isolsport underlay also supplied by Gerflor, enabled us to lay the Taraflex Multi-Use directly over the existing concrete floor, this was a real benefit as the project was on a very tight schedule, due to the hall being required for exams.”The Taraflex® Multi-Use is a P1 category sports flooring, designed for both sport and non-sport use making it ideal for multi-purpose areas. Taraflex® Multi-Use protects users with excellent shock absorption and impact protection of 25% to 35%. Yet it’s tough enough to protect itself against non-sport demands often found in many education environments such as the movement of tables, chairs, and exercise equipment.

When the Cliff Hotel in Gorleston-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, wanted to transform an out-dated breakfast room into a stunning new bar and dining area, MBS Flooring set about proving just how easy and creative one can be with Gerflor’s Creation 55 Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT) flooring collection.

High performing acoustic underlay was selectedfor use below a 20mm engineered wood flooras part of a flooring refurbishment project in aprivate home. The SS400 was loose laid to the subfloor with the 20mmengineered wood flooring floated above. The tongue andgroove joints were bonded with PVA adhesive.Other points to include:• SS400 manufactured using recycled rubber crumb, so extremely environmentally friendly.• Durable - provides long lasting performance and will not deteriorate or collapse over time.• SS400 is a high performing acoustic underlay, ideally suited for use with wood flooring and laminates, providing excellent impact performance in excess of the UK buildingregulations.• Hygienic – naturally antimicrobial, anti-allergy and resistant to decay with low VOCs.Benefits of Soundsure 400• Exceeds the performance standards required in the UK Building Regulations for sound insulation• Suitable for use with underfloor heating systems• Manufactured using recycled materials and fully recyclable• Recycled rubber crumb ensures long-lasting acoustic performance• Cushioned underlay to provide underfoot comfort• Rubber crumb provides superb stability, performance and durability• Will not deteriorate or collapse over time.• Reduces subfloor preparation times as screed or smoothing compounds are not required• Green Label Plus accredited

The modern Smart Kids Kindergarten in Gdansk, Poland, is inspired by the Finnish teaching method, now recognised as one of the best methods in the world. The Finnish model is geared towards supporting creative activity. The Kindergarten impresses with an inspiring, stylish interior in subdued colours. On the floor Forbo Sphera homogeneous vinyl flooring has been installed.

The requirement for a fast track flooring and durable solution would be well-suited to international flooring specialist Gerflor who would supply their amazing GTI Max flooring. This would prove it’s worth in saving both time and money.

We designed, installed and project managed the installation of 5,344 sq. m. of high-performance RMG600 access flooring system throughout the building’s Grade A workspaces including leisure spaces, a three-storey atrium reception and roof terraces.

Colours inspired by the natural environment, combined with the outstanding performance of Forbo Flooring Systems’ luxury vinyl tile (LVT) and carpet tile solutions, have helped AMH Workspace create an uplifting working environment for Furniture Clinic’s new HQ, which ‘brings the outdoors indoors’.AMH Workspace was brought on board by Furniture Clinic as part of the refurbishment project to create a warm and welcoming new HQ for the company’s 65 employees. With wood being an integral part of the business, it naturally features prominently both on the external façade of the building and internally.A striking feature of the new 50,000 sq ft premises is the atrium area with a cedar slat wall covered with natural moss that catches the eye as soon as you enter the building. Full floor to ceiling height windows and a balcony area with open walkways completes the visual spectacle and have transformed the entrance area into a bright, welcoming and memorable space.“Using Forbo’s Allura Flex LVT flooring in Brown Raw Timber in the ground floor reception area adds warmth to such a vast space,” explained Heather. Available in 34 wood designs, Allura Flex comes in 4 different plank sizes, offering greater design freedom. The matte surface features a natural looking fine wood grain with a true to life embossing, while the tile’s special backing is designed for comfort and improved impact sound reduction. This has helped to control the noise in the expansive reception area.Heather continued: “We chose Allura Flex for its natural looking characteristics. The extra-large 150 x 28 cm planks were perfect for such a large space, while the 5mm thickness and 1mm wear layer offers exceptional performance, making it the ideal solution for this high traffic area.”Forbo’s Tessera Cloudscape carpet tiles in the green hues of Monsoon Cloud and Summer Storm have been used throughout the offices and meeting rooms. In the open office area, Cloudscape has been installed in conjunction with Allura Flex, again in the Brown Raw Timber colourway, to create separate work and meeting/breakout zones. Forbo’s range of Tessera carpet tiles combine well with Allura Flex LVT, as the same adhesive can be used during installation, which means there is no need for transition strips, enabling a seamlessly integrated flooring design.

In a recent refurbishment of their main sports hall the choice of the playing indoor surface underwent a rigorous specification process. The hugely important decision would demand that only the best products be used and the final specification would settle on some 610m2 of Taraflex® vinyl sports flooring in ‘Maple’ from international flooring specialist Gerflor. Anthony Mynett, Director, Carpet Services (Cardiff) Ltd commented, “we are the preferred flooring contractor at the college and chose Gerflor’s Taraflex sports flooring as it conformed perfectly to the college’s requirements.” Adding, “Taraflex Evolution is unique as it covers a Granwood floor surface.”

When charity, Small Steps, secured its new home at the heart of Richmond, it required a warm and welcoming interior environment that would support children living with physical disabilities and their families. Providing the perfect natural canvas, Forbo Flooring Systems' linoleum brand, Marmoleum, was installed throughout the purpose built facility. Spread over three floors of a former office building on Worple Way, the 517 m² site that Small Steps now calls home, was funded through a generous donation. The entire design team – which included JTP Architects, Robert Bird & Partners, MTT Consultants, ISG Ltd, PIP Building Services and P2 Design – worked together, many on a pro bono or reduced fee basis to complete the refurbishment for the charity.

We supplied our partner, Fast Floor Screed Ltd with SMET LiteFlo® Lightweight Flowing Screed for the first floor of a timber frame house. This lightweight screed is ideal for renovation projects where loading is an issue. This is a high quality pumpable, factory-produced, CE marked, self-levelling screed based on calcium sulphate. German-made SMET LiteFlo® is unique because it’s the first pumpable lightweight flowing screed available. Made from specially selected aggregates – means it’s 30% lighter than conventional flowing screeds and can be laid in reduced thicknesses. The screed offers a high yield, 43kg per m2 @ 40mm.Innovative SMET LiteFlo® is particularly suitable for use in timber-frame builds, suspended timber floors, tower blocks, apartments, and high-rise buildings. SMET demonstrates best practice in construction partnerships – providing a superior level of customer service to their Smet Supported Partners during the installation process.Whether your job is – self-build, retro-fit, floor renovation or repair, design floor, commercial or shop, sustainable build, historical renovation, ECO build, Lightweight, or an industrial flooring venture – SMET have a flooring compound or ready to use product suitable for your application.www.smetbuildingproducts.com or www.smet.ie

Cableplan supplied and installed over 20,000 sq. m. of Kingspan raised access floor solutions.This 35,000m2 office facility incorporates 14,000 sq. m. of RMG Simploc (screw down) and 6,350 sq. m. of RHG Simploc (screw down).

FORBO’S INTEGRATED FLOORING HELPS TO REFURBISH FLEXIBLE WORKSPACE  Forbo Flooring Systems’ contemporary range of floor coverings were specified by Momentum, a leading furniture expert based in Cardiff, to create a warm and vibrant hybrid working space for Newydd Housing Association. Forbo’s Tessera carpet tiles, Allura Luxury Vinyl Tiles, Coral entrance flooring system and Surestep safety flooring were all used.   Founded in 1974, Newydd Housing Association is a charitable housing association that offers 3,000 affordable homes for rent and sale. With properties based around South and mid Wales, Newydd Housing Association seeks to help those with the greatest need to find a home. Momentum worked with the housing association to refurbish their existing office spaces to create an environment that inspired a new hybrid style of working.  Momentum designed the whole refurbishment and specified all the materials used, as Rhian Worgan, Interior Designer at Momentum, explains: “After securing the tender for the design of Newydd’s offices, we were asked to create a space that supported and inspired the new hybrid way of working that many offices have adopted post-Covid. Newydd really wanted to achieve a flexible and adaptable environment, so that any future changes could be made at minimal cost and with little disruption.   “One of the first things they had asked us to do was to remove any designated areas for teams or individuals. This was to encourage the sharing of information between staff in collaborative spaces. We replaced these areas with zones that supported a variety of tasks, like desk work, formal and informal meetings, brainstorming and more. The idea behind the whole design and layout of the office was that the employees would choose the area that supported the task at hand on any given day.”  However, it wasn’t just the zoning of the office that was important, Newydd desired a workspace that was warm, vibrant and welcoming for its employees. With this in mind, Rhian spent a lot of time finding the right way to subtly incorporate the branding that represented Newydd’s ethos and values, as she explains: “For me it was really important we got the colours we used right. We really wanted to make this a space that employees could explore their creativity and problem solving in and not a traditional, bland workspace. For this reason, it was key to find the right colours and materials to convey this feeling.  “This was part of the reason I specified Forbo’s flooring, there’s such a wide range of products, I knew there would be something that would fit what we were looking for.”  Forbo’s Tessera Chroma and Cloudscape carpet tiles made up the majority of the flooring space across the three-floor office building. Rhian talked about this specification, saying: “I really like Forbo’s Tessera carpet tiles, as they have this beautiful naturally inspired palette that complemented our design plan. We used the Tessera Cloudscape in Grey Dawn extensively across all three floors in the circulation areas and for one of the meeting rooms, due to their thick pile height and sound reduction qualities. It also has this beautiful mixture of greys that create a serene feeling to the floor. We used this product alongside Forbo’s Tessera Chroma in the Chanterelle colourway in the main office space, using the Cloudscape tiles to create geometric shapes embedded into the larger flooring scheme.   “We then used Tessera Chroma in the Pasture, Nautical, Blossom and Mineral colourways. These were installed in the different meeting pods and dedicated call rooms where we matched them to the paint scheme on the walls. It just added this pop of colour, which broke up the greys used in the circulation areas and main office space. Chroma was perfect for these areas, due to the sheer number of colourways available to choose from, as well as it’s underfoot comfort.”  Not only this, but Tessera Chroma has a 26 dB sound reduction, making it perfect for the meeting room pods that are connected side-by-side, stopping noise from distracting those outside or next door.   Furthermore, Forbo’s Allura LVT was specified across the refurbishment and was laid in a Herringbone pattern. Rhian continued: “We specified Forbo’s Allura planks to break-up the carpet tiles we had already used quite heavily across the scheme. We needed something that we could install easily and wouldn’t look out of place in the eating areas. We went for the Light Honey Oak colourway as it is very light and has a lovely grain embossing to it.”  Forbo’s Allura LVT was also used in the Mist Texture colourway for the ground floor entranceway.   With the hybrid nature of Newydd’s office they expected to see a lot of footfall, so it was important that an entrance flooring system was installed to protect the interior floor coverings, by preventing dirt and moisture from being brought inside. Rhian said: “We also had Forbo’s Coral entrance flooring system installed in the front entrance in the Shark Grey colourway, which complemented the Allura LVT installed in the foyer nicely. Having an effective entrance flooring system meant the rest of the office would stay looking better for longer, something which is important for an office where people are being encouraged to move around and work in a hybrid fashion.”   With its R10 slip rating, ensuring staff stay safe whilst using the onsite facilities, Forbo’s Surestep safety flooring was also specified for the ground floor bathroom and showers in the Star colourway.  Rhian concluded: “We’re delighted with the way the office space has come together, as are Newydd themselves! I’ve worked with Forbo on many projects in the past and trust the products to do what we need them to. Their portfolio on offer, alongside the customer service and technical support provided, is something that keeps me coming back to Forbo.”  Started towards the end of 2021 and finished in November of 2022, Newydd Housing Associations’ new offices have been received well by staff.  To find out more about Forbo’s offering for offices, visit: https://www.forbo.com/flooring/en-uk/segments/commercial-offices/poitcq#panel_5.  

Harlequin has worked with Michael Nunn and William Trevitt, founders of the BalletBoyz, on a number of projects, providing Harlequin floors for their studios, tours and film productions. The BalletBoyz studios, based in Kingston Upon Thames, have two studios with Harlequin Activity sprung floor and Harlequin Cascade vinyl. The BalletBoyz rehearse for their tours there as well as hosting workshops including Parkinson's CAN Dance. In 2019 Michael and William directed the film Romeo and Juliet: Beyond Words where all performers, featuring dancers from the Royal Ballet, danced on printed Harlequin Cascade vinyl and Harlequin Liberty sprung floor panels. When touring, the BalletBoyz have danced on Harlequin Studio and Harlequin Reversible vinyl.