"vinyl flooring"

Back in 2013 when the Ipswich Basketball Academy based at Copleston Sixth Form College (which is home to the Ipswich Basketball Club) needed to refurbish their existing floor, they turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 700m2 of their world class Taraflex® Comfort vinyl sports flooring which was installed on top of an existing Granwood floor. By overlaying Taraflex® onto the pre-existing surface, the facility was able to quickly and cost effectively rejuvenate its floor, minimising maintenance costs whilst benefiting from long-lasting durability.Gerflor believe that supporting sports at the grass root level is imperative to ensure that every player and participant, regardless of age and ability, can become champions within their own right. To this end, Gerflor are proud to announce their 2021/22 sponsorship of the Ipswich Basketball Club. This golden opportunity will deliver a much wider social impact: it will help the players to lead healthier lives, to develop new skills for employment and to further engage with the local community in exercise and sporting initiatives.

Skanstes City is a brand new, multi-modal campus that provides retail areas and office spaces to many small and large businesses. The Skanstes City believes that the office today is not a coercive tool to control employees, but a convenient, practical and pleasant place to go to work in simpler and more efficient conditions than at home. The Skanstes campus has many public spaces with great design and dedicated recreational areas.Forbo’s Sarlon acoustic vinyl, Tessera Cloudscape carpet tiles and Flotex flocked floors provide a professional and modern look to the various office spaces and contribute to a pleasant working environment.

he University of South Wales (USW) has recently installed 900 m2 of Taraflex® Area Elastic (AE) System vinyl sports flooring in ‘Maple’ from international flooring specialist Gerflor. This high-quality installation was for a replacement floor in the USW Fitzone at their Treforest campus.“USW were looking to replace their existing timber sports floor due to damages caused by flooding. As they had an installation at USW Nantgarw Sport Park One of our Taraflex Combisport system they wanted costings to install a similar system at the Treforest site.” Tony Thorne added, “We specified 900m2 of our world class Taraflex AE System, as there was existing equipment which included bleachers and doors. As part of the rigorous specification process, we had to meet the same height as the existing flooring. At Gerflor we have timber sports floors within our portfolio, however following conversations with various stakeholders on the project and due to factors, such as non-sport use and high life cycle costs due to the repeated maintenance needed for timber, we specified Taraflex as the floor finish.”Richard Lewis, Capital Projects Manager at USW said,” We decided to replace the existing sports surface due to a previous roof leak that damaged the floor. The Taraflex sports flooring has only recently been installed, but it is already exceeding our high expectations.”The installation of the Taraflex® sports system would be the responsibility of Swansea-based Artisan Flooring who have installed Gerflor products on previous projects.Lewis Williams, Contracts Manager, Artisan Flooring said, “We would choose Gerflor’s Taraflex again as it’s always been a reliable brand, especially when it comes to sports flooring. It’s a great product to work with.”Taraflex® AE systems are area elastic floors consisting of undercarriage construction topped with Taraflex® Surface. Taraflex® Surface is a compact vinyl sheet sports floor covering consisting of a D-Max™ surface - Gerflor’s own complex made up of calendered polyvinyl chloride (PVC) sheets reinforced with a fibre glass grid for high durability and outstanding dimensional stability.

The recent fit out of Savills' new Welsh headquarters saw commercial interior design and supply specialists, Imium, enlisted to create modern-day, cohesive working environment, while still adhering to the brand's traditional values. Forbo Flooring Systems' striking Allura Flex Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) and Tessera Seagrass carpet tiles have played an integral role in the smart new interior. Rhiannon Phillips, Interior Designer at Imium, explained: "The floor comprises of both employee and customer facing areas, therefore it was important that the space was conducive for clients without affecting business as usual . We were notified by the Savills marketing department of the brand guidelines that we needed to adhere to, in terms of finishes, to make sure that the Savills story was portrayed. We took inspiration from the company's heritage and ethos and incorporated different themes within the office based on the various sectors that the firm operates in. For the customer facing area, we used a lot of silk, walnut and a splash of the colour red to reflect the residential sector."

When a high-end development of a new residential student accommodation building in Gloucester city centre required over 3800m2 of high-quality flooring, they turned to Gerflor for a complete solution. The world class flooring installed would include Gerflor’s Tarasafe Impression and Tarasafe Standard vinyl safety flooring, Taralay Impression Comfort heterogenous flooring, together with their stunning Creation 55 LVT and Gradus Boulevard 5000 high performance Secondary Barrier Matting Tiles.Cityheart Living’s accommodation in Cityheart’s Blackfriars Residence is brand new and offers high specification and secure student accommodation to the University of Gloucestershire.Midas Group, a multimillion-pound construction group with seven offices around the southwest and Wales, had been appointed by the developers Cityheart Living as main contractors but went into administration in 2022. Vitruvius who are a team of project and construction management consultants swiftly proposed a Construction Management approach to restart the project and were appointed to take over the project.

When South Bromsgrove High School in Worcestershire underwent a refurbishment and expansion programme back in 2007, they turned to international flooring specialists Gerflor to supply over 200m2 of their world class Taraflex® Performance vinyl sports flooring for their main sports hall. It’s a huge testament to the quality of Gerflor’s high manufacturing standards that after fourteen years the Taraflex® sports flooring is still delivering optimum levels of safety and performance and continues to provide users with outstanding amounts of comfort.Wayne Andrews, Sports Specialist North for Gerflor commented, “the Taraflex Performance at South Bromsgrove High School is really standing up to the test of time due to its durability, ease of maintenance and use of a multi-sports capability.”Taraflex® technology delivers long-lasting high-performance of the products for the lifetime of the floors…a massive boon when long-term planning and budgeting are perceived as being two key considerations for specifiers.

F. Ball’s Stopgap Fill and Prime thixotropic primer and Stopgap 1200 Pro levelling compound have delivered a fast-track solution for installing floorcoverings in one of the largest small-animal referral hospitals in Europe.Flooring contractors installed vinyl safety flooring and luxury vinyl tiles throughout a total area of 1100m2 at Southfields Veterinary Centre, in Basildon, Essex.Requiring a timesaving solution for working over chipboard as an alternative to overboarding with plywood, the contractors contacted their regional F. Ball technical representative, who advised preparing subfloors with Stopgap Fill and Prime prior to the application of a suitable levelling compound.Stopgap Fill and Prime is a cement-based primer that is designed for use over raised-access panels and flooring grades of plywood, chipboard, MDF and oriented strand board (OSB 3). It has a thixotropic consistency, meaning that it flows freely when stirred but sets to a gel-like consistency on standing, enabling it to fill gaps between panels to prevent imperfections transferring to the finished installation.Stopgap 1200 Pro levelling compound was then applied in all areas to create a perfectly smooth base for floorcoverings. The product is fast-setting and fast-drying and can also be applied over old adhesive residues, in which case there is no need to prime subfloors beforehand.Polyflor vinyl safety flooring was installed in the treatment rooms using Styccobond F44 solvent-free acrylic emulsion adhesive, which is designed to give a strong initial tack, high bond strength and a long open time.In the canteen, Forbo Allura Flex Wood luxury vinyl tiles were adhered using Styccobond F46 pressure sensitive adhesive, which provides instant grab, preventing floorcoverings from sliding as tiles or planks are subsequently placed. The adhesive is designed to minimise the incidence of trowel serrations showing through thin vinyl flooring and potentially affecting the finished appearance of the installation. Styccobond F46 was also used to secure Polyflor vinyl safety flooring in the corridors connecting the treatment rooms.Capping and coving were installed in the corridors using Styccobond F60 contact adhesive. The formation of an instant bond makes it suitable for securing floor and wallcoverings on vertical surfaces.Commenting on the project, Ben Montgomery, head of projects at Veatu Flooring, said: “While we use a lot of F. Ball products and they’re our first choice because of their quality and availability, it’s the first time we’ve used the tech rep service. They came out and provided a tailored specification for the project we were working on, which ended up saving us a lot of time and expense.”Before any floor preparation work was carried out a moisture test was conducted, which determined that subfloor moisture levels were low enough that a moisture management solution was not needed.

The natural aesthetics, durable performance and extensive colour palette of Forbo Flooring Systems' Allura Wood luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) collection have all played a significant role in creating a contemporary, stand- out environment for Evoo, a new 'barzeria' in Barnsley, Yorkshire. 'Evoo- The Barzzeria' is a pizzeria and bar, which combines authentic Italian cuisine with Britian's popular cocktail cultur, forming the worlds first 'barzzeria'. Set in a once prominent building that was left derelict for years, Julie Poulter Interior Design (JPID) was tasked by restaurant owner, Jaz Boparai, to design 'the best looking bar' in Barnsley. Subsequently, the project was awarded 'commended' in the Fly Forbo competition 2018/2019.

The challenge of installing one of the largest expanses of flooring in a single project – and one of the most complex – faced the hub where east meets west at Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar. The airport is described as ‘the gateway to Qatar’ and the hub for its world-class airline Qatar Airways with the capacity to serve 8,700 passengers per hour and 30 million every year. Specifiers wanted a flooring high in aesthetic and environmental credentials to meet all requirements at this important airport zone and meeting all relevant environmental and health and safety regulations.  SystemThe system chosen was epoxy terrazzo flooring supplied by Sherwin-Williams - 140,000 sq metres of pigmented epoxy resin - involving the shipping of pre-mixed marble aggregates from Italy to complete the design for the main floor areas consisting of three colours, primarily dark grey with pure black or white epoxy terrazzo.The epoxy terrazzo was poured in situ as the 16,000 workers from various countries navigated their way around the 5,500-acre site and ground and polished the flooring to a high finish, bringing with it major environmental benefits. Thin set epoxy conforms to the EU’s solvents and Volatile Organic Compounds Emissions Directive.The installation process itself also meant there was very little waste – the terrazzo prepared for installation was measured accurately to allow as much or as little to be used in application.The epoxy terrazzo is high in aesthetic and environmental features and meets the demands of architects and specifiers for longer-lasting products with ever-greater green credentials.Terrazzo flooring is a composite – a mix of resin with aggregates which give the product such variety in its design. Intended to be a durable, hard-wearing and highly decorative flooring solution, the resinWith simple re-polishing or re-sealing using water-based products a typical terrazzo flooring can last up to 40 years. However, vinyl floor sheets would require replacing typically every 12 years or less.The Sherwin-Williams Difference By putting our customers first, we know that the innovation, imagination, research and development we put into each and every product will be worth it. You are at the centre of our thinking wherever we operate around the world across five continents whether it is advice, specification or on-site inspection. You are the reason we exist. This is the Sherwin-Williams difference.

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.

School kitchen flooring refurbishment Millfield School kitchen flooring has recently been subject to a significant makeover. The existing vinyl finishes were showing significant signs of wear and needed to be replaced with a new flooring that offered better slip resistance and durability without the need for frequent repairs.The services of specialist industrial flooring installers, Inca Flooring & Structural Ltd, were called upon to offer advice and guidance in selecting the most suited school kitchen flooring solution.Millfield School required a flooring solution that could withstand the test of time in a constantly busy kitchen environment. In order to fulfil the client’s requirements to the highest standards, the contractors recommended using Degafloor’s fast curing, slip-resistant Full Broadcast System with associated coving.Degafloor Full Broadcast is specifically designed to deliver outstanding hygiene, performance and safety even in tough environments such as commercial kitchens, canteens and food technology areas.The school kitchen flooring was installed across two kitchen areas. Due to the ultra-fast curing nature of Degafloor MMA and flexibility of the contractor, the entire project was completed over the Xmas break.

Based in the heart of Glasgow, the Bank of Scotland's flagship branch required a makeover that would add personality to the brand, while reflecting the bank's proud Scottish roots. Specified by M Worldwide, an array of Forbo Flooring Systems solutions were installed throughout the building to help create a warm and welcoming space and provide the bank with its own identity.While the Bank of Scotland has a strong history, having been established since 1695, it became part of the Lloyds Banking Group in 2009, as Helen Shelley, Creative Director at M Worldwide explains: “This refurbishment project gave us the ideal opportunity to establish the brand’s character and to create a rich visual story of its Scottish heritage.Forbo’s Tessera In-Touch carpet tile planks in a variety of colourways, including a bespoke shade, and Allura Wood Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) were chosen to create an integrated flooring scheme that would seamlessly connect the various areas of the space.

Over 100m2 of Gerflor’s newest loose-lay innovation Taralay Libertex has been installed at Alverton Woodland Nursery, Cornwall. The refurbishment solution was a fast-track product that saved the End User significant install time with minimal disruption on site.Taralay Libertex provides installers with a rapid, high quality, easy-to-lay flooring product. It’s where practicality meets creative flair head-on to provide a harmonious union. Taralay Libertex is the ideal flooring choice when time really is money, providing up to a 30% saving on installation costs for new builds and renovations as it can be laid directly onto most existing or uneven subfloors.Taralay Libertex features a new generation of textile backing across the sheet vinyl range, specifically developed for commercial applications such as education, hospitality and shops, offices, care homes, together with housing and common areas.

Having trouble viewing this email? Click here to view onlinePRESS RELEASE:Taraflex® wins repeat specification at Loughborough University Badminton CentreAlmost 600m2 of Gerflors’ World class Taraflex® vinyl sports flooring has been installed at Loughborough University. The badminton performance centre decided to bring forward the like for like replacement of Taraflex to ensure they stayed at the top of their game when it came to facilities.Originally constructed in 2003, Loughborough University’s Badminton Centre was built with Olympic specification in mind and upgraded in 2011 with Gerflor’s Taraflex® as part of the specification.

The Royal & Derngate Theatre is a mult-purpose space which can be configured for a variety of performances. Harlequin’s stage refurbishment project was the first restoration undertaken since 2005 when the theatre was first re-developed.A comprehensive multi-layered Harlequin Stage System. Harlequin fitted new battens to strengthen the stage over which a further double-layer of wood ply was installed. The stage surface was finished with a black Harlequin Standfast vinyl performance floor. The complete refurbishment project covered the entire stage area incorporating wings, lifts, orchestra pit and retractable removable seating.

F. Ball and Co. Ltd.’s newest high-performance water-mix smoothing underlayment, Stopgap 1500 AquaPro, has been used alongside the company’s Styccobond F46 pressure sensitive vinyl adhesive to provide a time-saving solution for installing floorcoverings in Derbyshire’s largest hospital.Derbyshire Flooring Contractors installed an eye-catching bespoke vinyl flooring design in the waiting area and connecting corridors of the children’s outpatient ward at Royal Derby Hospital, a total area of 800m2.The floors in the ward required refurbishing as the old floorcoverings had become worn. Work needed to be carried out in the evening, in stages, so that it would not interfere with the day-to-day running of the ward. Requiring a time-saving solution, contractors opted to use Stopgap 1500 AquaPro water-mix smoothing underlayment, avoiding the need to remove old adhesive residues.Stopgap 1500 AquaPro uses the latest technology to offer a water-mix smoothing underlayment that can be applied over old adhesive residues, including bitumen, carpet tile tackifiers and ceramic tile adhesives. In such applications, there is no need to prime beforehand, saving further time and expense. Fast-setting and fast-drying, it is walk-on hard in as little as 60 minutes after application and ready to receive floorcoverings from just four hours.Work began with the labour-intensive task of uplifting old floorcoverings. Stopgap 1500 AquaPro was then applied at a thickness of 3mm over the subfloors to create a perfectly smooth base for new floorcoverings.A bespoke two-tone design, resembling a river running through the children’s ward with ‘islands’ of colour either side, was created by cutting shapes from two different colours of Polyflor Classic Mystique PUR vinyl sheet flooring, with the pieces adhered using Styccobond F46 pressure sensitive adhesive.Styccobond F46 provides instant grab, preventing floorcoverings from sliding when placed, helping with the creation of designs and patterns. The adhesive is also formulated to minimise the incidence of trowel serrations showing through thin vinyl flooring potentially affecting the finished appearance of installations.Commenting on the project, Mark Grant, Managing Director at Derbyshire Flooring Contractors, said: “We like using F. Ball products – they’re really good quality and reliable. Also, their tech reps are always available, if needed, to provide advice on products to use and procedures to follow throughout a project, from start to finish, including keeping us up-to-date with the latest technology that can help us achieve optimum results efficiently. That’s how I found out about Stopgap 1500 AquaPro, which saved us a lot of time outside of normal working hours and enabled us to complete the work while the ward wasn’t in use, minimising disruption to services.”

Having trouble viewing this email? Click here to view onlinePRESS RELEASE:Towering triumph for Gerflor’s Taraflex® at Beaconsfield High SchoolBeaconsfield High School, in Buckinghamshire have been delivering a highly successful academic culture for more than over 50 years. Creativity and physical activity are just some of the additional life skills and behaviours that are taught to pupils. When the school wanted to refurbish their main sports hall, the natural choice was to turn to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 635m2 of their world class Taraflex® Performance vinyl sports flooring, in Light Blue, to successfully complete the project.Taraflex® Performance is a synthetic indoor sports flooring that can be specified for a wide range of sports applications, in a variety of sectors and is available in an extensive choice of vibrant designs, making it the ideal choice for a host of locations. With a complete range of outstanding sports surfaces that can meet specification requirements for compliance with P1/P2/P3 shock absorption Taraflex® sports floorings are perfect for delivering optimal safety and protection for users, regardless of their age and sporting ability.

Styccobond F49 Hybrid PS vinyl adhesive has helped to take the floors up a gear in the West Bromwich showroom of Evans Halshaw. Styccobond F49’s temperature-tolerant properties made it the perfect choice of adhesive. It was applied by flooring contractors for the installation of the LVTs. Stopgap P141, an acrylic primer for non-absorbent subfloors, was applied over the original ceramic tiles, to help promote the adhesion of the levelling compound to the subfloor. Once the primer had dried, Stopgap 1200 Pro levelling compound was then applied to the entire area, before the installation of new LVT flooring.

Over 360m2 of Attraction® interlocking tiles have been installed in the main assembly hall at Mary Immaculate High School, Wales. Delivering an outcome that would be both visually stunning and practical for this extremely busy school was a challenge well-met by Cardiff-based Trefoil Interiors, who turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor. Peter Incledon, Senior Estimator at Trefoil Interiors commented,” We chose Gerflor’s Attraction flooring tiles as it can be easily overlayed on a Granwood composite floor. After speaking with our Gerflor representative we were confident in the Attraction product, as it has been successfully installed in several other locations where an existing Granwood floor required a fast-track covering solution.” Tony Thorne, Sales & Specification Manager, Gerflor commented, “I am absolutely delighted to have worked on this project alongside Trefoil Interiors. This project has been a great success for such a prestigious educational facility”. Peter Incledon also added, “we always recommend Gerflor flooring whenever we can, we trust their tried and tested solutions for all markets.” Gerflor's Attraction® range is a perfect solution for renovation, it is a fast track loose lay vinyl tile with interlocking edges which allows for rapid installation and replacement.

Delivering ‘the perfect flooring installation’ for luxury Crystal cruise ship, the Crystal Endeavour, has been achieved by flooring contractors.To guarantee the highest levels of aesthetics and durability, flooring contractors used Styccobond flooring adhesives and Stopgap 1200 Pro levelling compound.To install carpets, contractors opted for a dual bond system comprising Styccobond F40 and F3 adhesives. Styccobond F1 rubber latex adhesive was used to seal carpet edges to reduce the risk of fraying and fibre loss, maximising the longevity of the installation.Luxury vinyl tiles were installed using Styccobond F46 pressure sensitive adhesive, which provides instant grab to prevent tiles and planks from sliding as adjacent tiles/planks are laid into the adhesive. Prior to installing the LVT, flooring contractors used Stopgap 1200 Pro levelling compound to create a perfectly smooth and level subfloor surface.

London's leading workplace caterer, The Good Eating company, has opened its first commercial Cafe in the city. Requiring an interior design that reflects its core values, the sophisticated charm of Forbo Flooring Systems' Allura Flex Wood luxury vinyl tiles, along with its ease of installation and maintenance, has helped to complement the stylish and relaxing dining environment. Giovanni Insalaco, Managing Director at Nova Design, commented: "The Good Eating Company has a history of over 20 years, and it was important that who they are, what they do and what they represent as a business was reflected in the restaurant. While it's called "Café GEC", it is in fact a restaurant, offering a bistro-style menu in relaxed and stylish dining environment to suit the vibrant area aroung Lower Thames Street. "I chose Forbo's Allura Flex LVT planks in the Grey Autumn Oak shade for its ability to replicate the look and feel of natural wood. By specifically opting for a herringbone installation, this helped to add dimension to the space and bring the floor to life. This has worked really well in contrast with the plain counter and solid coloured furniture in the restaurant. Having never used Forbo's products before, it really has been a game changer both in terms of design and ease of installation. We've had lot's of questions about what the floor is and received plenty of compliments - it's fantastic."

The Allsop family started planning their kitchen renovation project in September 2021 and wanted to create an inviting room featuring special touches such as glass work surfaces alongside the latest in energy-saving technology. As they had already installed underfloor heating in their home before, they knew that an electric floor heater would be the ideal heating solution due to its ease of use, sustainable technology, and low running costs. The DCM-PRO was chosen as the most efficient solution, offering rapid installation times and increased and huge savings on energy bills due to its efficiency, further enhanced after being paired with our 6iE Thermostat. This system was perfect for use with the Allsop’s new Karndean vinyl floors and is also ideal for kitchens with stone or ceramic floor tiles as its decoupling technology helps protect tiled floors from damage. The low-profile design of the DCM-PRO is also perfect for all types of refurbishment projects in rooms with fixed ceiling heights as it will have a negligible impact on floor levels.

For the new office of one of the UK’s leading healthcare specialists, workplace interior design specialists, ID:SR – Sheppard Robson, specified the natural beauty of Forbo Flooring Systems’ Allura Flex Wood Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) to help ‘bring the outside in’.  Occupying the first and second floor of a new seven-storey Grade A office building in Leeds, the healthcare specialist has brought over 250 staff together into one co-located environment. Expertly designed by ID:SR, the 25,000 sq ft space comprises a variety of agile work and social settings to support a range of activities, a dedicated client reception, meeting suite and lounge.   “To support employee wellbeing, the office also engages with the principles of biophilic design, so we incorporated natural looking materials where possible to emphasise the connection between people and nature. The beautiful and realistic wood effect of Forbo’s Allura Flex Wood LVT supported this idea of bringing the outside in. Offering convincing, authentic visuals and excellent functional performance, we used the finish in prominent positions of the office as we felt the flooring supported the overall concept of the scheme.”  Allura Flex Wood in the Weathered Oak colourway was fitted in a herringbone pattern with bursts of Seaweed Solid Oak, Charcoal Solid Oak and Smoke Solid Oak in the main reception and staff breakout areas. Thanks to its tackified installation, the high quality, dimensionally stable Allura Flex tiles provides answers to key issues such as limiting valuable downtime, the re-use of floors and minimising environmental impact, perfect for busy office spaces.  What’s more, Surestep Material in Cool Concrete was specified in the kitchenette of the staff breakout area, where there is an increased risk of slip. The safety flooring combines outstanding slip resistant properties with differentiated design and through the use of Step Crystals, the natural colourway offers a clean, fresh look and improved cleaning and maintenance properties. The PUR Pearl finish ensures that it is stain and chemical resistant.  

High performance resin for mortuary flooring areasAs with many high-care environments, mortuaries and post-mortem rooms require high performance flooring to cope with extremely demanding conditions. Any floor finish must be slip-resistant, hygienic, totally impermeable and incredibly durable.Traditional mortuary flooring specificationTraditionally, mortuaries and post-mortems rooms have utilised vinyl sheet or terrazzo floor tiles. However, both have inherent problems such as failed joints, cracks and poor slip resistance making them less than ideal. The failure of these traditional finishes can allow water and other contaminants to penetrate into the substrate below, which creates significant hygiene challenges.In addition to hygiene challenges, failed floors can create health and safety issues such as trip hazards and any repairs will be time consuming and disruptive.High performance mortuary specificationDegafloor have developed an alternative, high performance flooring specification, ideal for post-mortem and mortuary flooring. The Full Broadcast and QTA systems are ultra durable, seamless and highly slip-resistant finishes that can be easily cleaned.Both offer a profiled surface finish that provides outstanding slip-resistance and durability. Despite the surface texture, Degafloor flooring systems are easy to clean and and the seamless nature of these floors results in outstanding durability, avoiding contamination issues.Degafloor high performance flooring systems can bond to a variety of substrates, and cure both chemically and physically within 2 hours of installation. This ensures that every solution we deliver can be installed extremely quickly and cost effectively, resulting in minimal disruption.Our mortuary flooring projects include; Peterborough City Hospital, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Barnsley General Hospital, Luton and Dunstable Hospital and Basingstoke & North Hampshire hospital.

St Francis of Assisi Catholic College in Walsall, needed to replace their existing flooring in their main sports hall, in order to cater for the demanding needs at the facility.International flooring specialist Gerflor supplied 650m2 of their world class Taraflex® Multi-Use vinyl sports flooring in Light Grey (Concrete) to complete the refurbishment project to the highest standards.Chris Newey, Gerflor Specification Area Sales Manager, West Midlands said, “The existing sports hall floor was in desperate need of refurbishment. The new Concrete effect Taraflex has transformed the look of the hall from a dated school sports hall to a fresh and very modern look.”The management and procurement process of the new sports floor would be the responsibility of the Schools Site Manager Bernie McNally who is a former professional footballer for West Bromwich Albion and has also pulled on the green jersey for his home country Northern Ireland.Bernie McNally said, “We are delighted with the results and how less intrusive Gerflor’s Taraflex sports flooring was to fit, against digging concrete out which would have been a lengthy, costly, and messy process. Our Headmaster is really impressed with the new Taraflex sports floor, which is performing really well and also looks amazing, the before and after pictures speak for themselves.”The installation of the new Taraflex® Multi-Use floor would be undertaken by the Solihull-based FLR Group. Adam Kaid, Contracts Manager, FLR Flooring said, “Gerflor have some of the best options and varieties out there and we are always extremely confident in the quality of their products.”

A selection of floor coverings from Forbo Flooring Systems, combining aesthetics, functionality and exceptional performance, has helped Maze Workplace to create a dynamic and flexible Next Generation Workspace for Insight Direct's new office in Manchester.Global IT solutions company, Insight Direct has relocated from an existing office in Salford, to a smaller, but more central 9,000 sq ft premises in Manchester. The new office space offers employees a contemporary mix of alternative co-working environments and includes open plan hotdesking for 44 people, arranged in smaller ‘neighbourhoods’, two hot offices, five meeting rooms, two open/soft meeting areas as well as a well-being room and a large games area.The office’s urban location is represented throughout by Maze Workplace’s clever and creative choice of products. This is clear as soon as you enter the office, particularly in the reception area. Here Forbo’s Allura Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) have been used to visually connect the outside pavement area with the interior of the building, by using a concrete aesthetic. Kate explained: “We used Forbo’s Allura in the warm concrete dots colourway in the reception area, which added a nod to the urban location and offered something different from the standard ‘concrete’ look.” Warm underfoot and easy to maintain, Allura LVT provides exceptional dimensional stability, strength and performance, making it the perfect solution for the high traffic reception are

The ProjectsThe Northern Health and Social Care Trust and The Southern Health and Social Care Trust are two of the largest healthcare associations in Northern Ireland. Between them, they provide services to over 850,000 people. Among the facilities under the Northern Trust’s control is Causeway Hospital in Coleraine. The Southern Trust has Craigavon Area Hospital as one of its major healthcare sites.H&J Martin was established in 1840. For well over a century and a half it has been delivering the highest level of quality work in every aspect of construction and fit outs. For this reason, the company was chosen to oversee and facilitate the work on these prestigious hospitals.The hospitals needed new flooring to be installed throughout the buildings. The floorcovering would need to be made from a resilient material such as vinyl, making it easy to maintain high standards of hygiene using industrial cleaning machinery. The flooring would also need to be supported at the floor-to-wall junctions and around corners, to prevent flooring failure or collapse and to protect against the heavy-duty cleaning equipment.The ApproachH&J Martin decided to use Quantum Flooring’s CCFM1 internal and CCFM2 external floormitres to help protect the flooring around corners in the hospitals. Vinyl or other resilient floorcoverings can be particularly vulnerable where the flooring meets the wall at corners, as it can be difficult to mitre the angles correctly. These floormitres help to create a uniform finish every time, leading to greater structural integrity along with improved aesthetic results.Quantum’s QCF35 cove former was utilised to complement the CCFM1 and CCFM2. This profile fits perfectly with the curve of the floormitres, helping to create a flush and hygienic finish every time, at each floor-to-wall junction and around corners. The coving and the floormitres protect the floorcovering from damage at the join, and make the flooring easier to clean. For wet rooms, the vinyl can be fitted all the way up the wall where the floormitres can also be used in the wall-to-roof corners.The UCS3 slimline flexible capping strip was used to create neat finishes to the floorcovering up the walls of the hospitals. The UCS3 profile is specifically designed for healthcare environments. It has a slimline cap, reducing the accumulation of dirt and dust over time, and providing a smaller surface area to be cleaned than traditional capping strips. UCS3 is available in 25 metre coils making the packaging compact and the product easy to fit.The OutcomesCauseway Hospital and Craigavon Area Hospital were fitted with over 2,000 metres of floormitres, cove formers, and capping strips between July 2022 and July 2023. Sean O’Reilly, the Flooring Supervisor for H&J Martin, says: “As you can see from the finish, high quality work was made easier with floormitres.”The profiles used have been expertly fitted by H&J Martin employees, resulting in great looking and hygienic installations for both hospitals. The floormitres, coving, and capping strips will be protecting the floorcovering for many years to come, and helping to keep the facilities safe and clean for both patients and healthcare professionals.The Northern Trust and the Southern Trust can rest assured that H&J Martin’s professional work with Quantum Flooring’s excellent product range will help them to continue providing their vital services to the people of Northern Ireland. Cutting Corners cove solutions are perfect for healthcare and pharmaceutical projects, improving the quality and standards of cap and cove, cleanroom, as well as wetroom installations.The CCFM1 Internal and CCFM2 External Floormitres are specified and fitted in countries worldwide.www.cuttingcorners.org.uk

When two top-performing Wakefield schools needed to source high quality flooring for their sports halls they turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply 1300m2 of their world class Taraflex® Performance vinyl sports flooring, together with 1350m2 of Isolsport isolating membrane to complete the refurbishment project. The transformation was completed, and the client is delighted with the refurbishment.So, it’s no wonder that specifying a sports floor for both schools that could deliver both outstanding performance, comfort, and high levels of safety for all users regardless of their ages, and sporting ability would be top of their agenda.Kent Oliver Estates Manager at Queen Elizabeth Grammar Wakefield said, “We had an urgent need to refurbish our Boys’ and Girls’ tired granwood main sports hall flooring. We engaged with a number of Gerflor’s previous clients, who could not speak highly enough of the quality products installed and the fantastic levels of service provided by the Specification and Technical teams.”Wayne Andrews, Gerflor Sports Manager North UK said, “The client is extremely pleased with the final installation. A number of Gerflor people were involved, right from the Specification Team through to high-level management who all agreed how important and unique this project was.”Kent Oliver ended by saying, “We would definitely specify Gerflor again. The performance and appearance has surpassed our expectations and we have received nothing but positive feedback from the schools, and other sports hall users.”

CRT Flooring Specialists Ltd have used UltraFloor’s latest product innovation, Level IT Hydra Bond, to install 800sqm of vinyl flooring at Warrington’s £4.3 million Emergency Department extension.BackgroundLeading infrastructure and building specialists, Tilbury Douglas, have been appointed by Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to complete the £4.3 million Warrington Emergency Department extension.The much-needed investment will increase capacity, improve patient care and modernise facilities.The ChallengeHigh performance products that would work quickly and withstand the constant and heavy trafficking of hospital staff, patients and medical equipment were critical to the success of this project.The SolutionFollowing a bespoke site specification completed by UltraFloor’s Technical Training and Site Support Manager, Martin Pouncey, CFA members and expert flooring contractors, CRT Flooring Specialists Ltd, used DPM IT, Prime IT Multi-surface Primer and Level IT Hydra Bond to complete the 800sqm installation.DPM IT is a two component, solvent free epoxy resin system for use as a surface damp proof membrane. Designed to provide protection against subfloor moisture, DPM IT has a pot life of 45 – 75 minutes, a cure time of 5 hours and boasts a 98% RH floor moisture tolerance.Formulated to promote adhesion to all UltraFloor smoothing underlayments, Prime IT Multi-surface Primer reduces pinholing, minimising the risk of costly failures. With a coverage rate of 200m² at 3:1 dilution, Prime IT multi-surface Primer is a must-have product for all flooring installation projects.Once fully dried, UltraFloor Level IT Hydra Bond was applied across the 800sqm area. Level IT Hydra Bond is a ground-breaking, water based floor leveller that can be applied to bitumen and adhesive residues without the need to prime.Level IT Hydra Bond is a super polymer modified smoothing compound which utilises UltraFloor’s unique technology – a process which enhances application and boasts unrivalled flow properties. What’s more, each bag of Level IT Hydra Bond also contains 20% recycled material.In addition, Level IT Hydra Bond can receive bonded floor coverings after 4 hours, has an extended working time of 45 minutes for optimal usability, and is moisture tolerant and protein free.ResultsOn the performance of UltraFloor Level IT Hydra Bond, Richard Martin, Office Manager at CRT Flooring Specialists Ltd, commented: “It’s fantastic. Flows really well.”The vinyl flooring installation was completed on time and the remaining extension work is continuing as scheduled.

The ProjectAlbion Mills is a high-end, purpose-built office complex near Willerby Shopping Park in Hull. It is a two-storey building, with numerous office suites for businesses to utilise.The custodians of Albion Mills planned to revitalise the interior of the offices. The new-look space would need a design with an understated colour scheme, which would be suitable for a working environment. This would include resilient flooring in parts, with carpet tiles adjacent to it. To link the vinyl and carpeted areas, a flooring transition would be needed.The flooring transition would need to bridge the gap between the two floorcoverings, incorporating the different thicknesses of the resilient and carpeted flooring without creating a trip or slip hazard. The design of the new offices called for the transition to be curved into different shapes, meaning that they would need to be suitable to curve on-site.The ApproachFloors Hull were appointed as the flooring contractor for the refurbishment. After deciding on the floorcoverings they would use for the project, they needed a flooring transition that would link the two together. Floors Hull decided that Quantum Flooring Solutions’ TopClip transitions range would offer the best option.TopClip is a range of flooring transitions which consists of 4 uPVC tops, which can fit into 6 different bases; 2 aluminium and 4 uPVC. All of the uPVC bases can be curved to a radius of approximately 750mm. Between them, the TopClip range can transition between practically any different gauge or type of floorcoverings.For the Albion Mills project, Quantum’s QTC42R top was used with the QVB1 uPVC base. This meant that the profiles could be curved into the necessary shapes. In order to get around tight curves, it can help to gently heat the profile with a hot air gun. This would have to be done skilfully by Floors Hull, so the profile would not become distorted.The OutcomeSteve McDonald from Floors Hull fitted the flooring in Albion Mills, along with the TopClip transition profiles. The end result looks fantastic, with the QTC42R and QVB1 curving well. As Steve says: “A very small amount of heat was used to create this tight radius, but the product itself was very flexible and went round with ease. Fantastic transition profile.”TopClip tops have 3 “teeth”, which allow them to be pushed flush to both floorcoverings which they transition between. This ensures that TopClip fits snugly on both the carpet and vinyl in Albion Mills, minimising the risk of trips. The tops are also slip resistant and durable, for extra safety.The flint coloured QTC42R tops look great with the dark and light grey carpet tiles. They fit perfectly with the aesthetic of the refurbished offices. Floors Hull, with the help of Quantum Flooring, have ensured that Albion Mills has a modern, professional design scheme for prospective tenants.

When the Coleg y Cymoedd (translated meaning is the College of the valleys) in Wales needed to totally refurbish the flooring element of their campus in Ystrad Mynach (near the town of Caerphilly), they turned to international flooring specialist Gerflor to supply over 1000m2 of flooring for numerous areas and spaces throughout the campus. It was a project that provided Gerflor with the perfect platform to showcase a raft of high-quality flooring solutions ideal for the concerned demanding education environment.Tony Thorne, Gerflor Sales and Specification Manager - South Wales commented, “This project started at the specification stage with the Architects Austin-Smith: Lord. Over several meetings, we looked at a number of products to be used in various areas of the building scheme. The installation at the Ystrad Mynach campus is an outstanding example of how a mix of Gerflor innovations can achieve world class results. Mixing gym tiles with sheet vinyl, safety flooring and LVT, yielded incredible results for this college refurbishment project.”Kate Thomas, Director Austin-Smith: Lord commented, “The refurbishment project, part-funded by the Welsh Government’s 21st Century Schools and Colleges Programme, formed part of the college’s plans to continually invest in new facilities and equipment that will allow learners across its catchment area to have access to the latest training opportunities and career paths.”Mark Bond, Estimator and H&S Manager at Floor Furnishings commented, “The client is extremely impressed with the end results. We regularly work with Gerflor products and recommend Gerflor where suitable, in line with our client’s requirements and expectations. Gerflor’s staff are particularly skilled in being able to work in collaboration and alongside both the end user clients, as well as contractors in achieving an excellent final result that is pleasing to the client and meets the complicated design brief.”

For The Refinery, a new build student accommodation complex in Leeds, Jasper Sanders + Partners looked to create a fresh and contemporary interior design scheme that underpinned the site’s historic significance. With a variety of activity zones, Forbo Flooring Systems’ Tessera Cloudscape carpet tiles and Sarlon acoustic sheet vinyl were specified, helping to create a fully integrated and striking space that meets the demands of modern student living. The Refinery was a winning project in the Fly Forbo 2020/21 competition.Built on a former industrial site near Leeds City Centre, The Refinery is a 397-room student accommodation complex providing high quality apartments, shared living spaces and a whole host of amenities. Developed by Gregory Property Group and operated by Fresh Student Living, the interior of The Refinery was designed by Jasper Sanders + Partners (JS+P), who worked alongside AHR Architects and GMI Construction to deliver this market leading student accommodation project for specialist investor Curlew Capital.

A stunning installation created by Parisian design studio 5.5, was unveiled on Tarkett’s stand at this year’s Euroshop. Celebrating creative expression, the design with its poetic cloud of intricate vinyl shapes, was inspired by Tarkett’s daring new Luxury Vinyl Tile (LVT) collection, iD Mixonomi. Part of Tarkett’s successful ‘Floor is the new Playground’ concept, the daring new collection offers architects and designers unparalleled opportunities to push the boundaries with LVT. Not only can they have fun creating expressive designs across the floor, designers can also easily achieve unique, personalised flooring – perfect for unique customer experiences.

F. Ball products have been used for the installation of vinyl sheet safety flooring and carpet tiles as part of the refurbishment of Kingussie Courthouse in Scotland. Contractors were called to install flooring over an anhydrite subfloor which contained underfloor heating. Before applying Stopgap 1100 Gypsum smoothing underlayment, they primed the subfloor with Stopgap P121 acrylic primer. Stopgap 1100 Gypsum smoothing underlayment was then applied throughout the area. Contractors next used Styccobond F46 pressure sensitive acrylic adhesive to install the vinyl sheet flooring. Next, Styccobond F41, a solvent free acrylic polymer emulsion adhesive was used to fit the carpet tiles.

A floor preparation system from F. Ball has been used to install 2,700m2 of floorcoverings at Glasgow University Library. First, old linoleum floorcoverings were removed. Over this area, Stopgap F77 waterproof surface membrane was applied due to excessive relative humidity levels. Stopgap 1200 Pro smoothing underlayment was applied on concrete sections of the subfloor. An F. Ball primer was applied to a ramp constructed from plywood before Stopgap 700 smoothing underlayment was used to receive floorcoverings. In the entranceway, Styccobond F46 adhesive was selected to install vinyl sheets, with Styccobond F41 carpet tile tackifier used to install carpet tiles.

F. Ball products have been used to create a high-quality flooring finish at a London Hospital for the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. Contractors were called to install a combination of vinyl sheet and safety flooring. Stopgap F78 was applied in two coats, to provide a quick and effective barrier against excess subfloor moisture which could attack subsequent adhesives and floorcoverings. Stopgap 300 HD levelling compound was then applied to provide a smooth, hard-wearing base for the receipt of new floorcoverings. The new vinyl sheet was then applied using Styccobond F46 Pressure Sensitive Adhesive.