Your floor is walked on by your employees, forklifts move materials across it, production equipment operates on it, tools fall on it and chemicals spill over it. Over time, your floor could start looking pretty bad. You want your staff to have a pleasant and safe working environment.
What else does your floor need to do?
Your floor has a big role to play since it supports every part of your production facility. And, each area of your plant can have special requirements. So, the look of your floor is certainly important, but you need to consider the demands you are placing on it. By taking a more comprehensive approach, you can get a new floor that can be more of a “partner” for your organization.
So, what are we talking about?
Here are some examples of special requirements in your plant:
- Chemical storage: these areas require a floor coating that will resist the harmful effects of repeated chemical spills.
- Boundary markings: tape and paint can wear out quickly in many areas, so durable color markings embedded in the floor help keep your Safety and 5S initiatives going strong.
- Frequently cleaned areas: regular hot or cold wash downs can more quickly deteriorate floors when the wrong coating is applied.
- Sharp or heavy objects falling: some areas of your facility are subjected to repeated impacts of falling tools or other production materials. These zones need to have a floor coating formulation made for these situations.
- Slip resistance: do you have areas where improved traction is needed for your workers? A new floor can help your Safety program be more successful.
- ESD issues: these floors require effective static discharge and this capability can be easily built into your floor.
A new floor project is more complex than it seems.
Of course, there are many more factors to consider when planning for a new floor. And, you want to achieve a long-term solution that meets all the requirements of your manufacturing facility. The first step, for planning this type of project, is to carefully review your needs and plant processes.
Need some help getting started?
Try our, easy-to-use, Industrial Flooring Self-Assessment questionnaire!
Industrial Polymers at 866-361-3331.