Almost a quarter of a million people visit Castle Quay shopping centre in Banbury every week, so the pressure to keep shoppers safe within a busy environment is high.
In order to meet this demand, Forbo Flooring Systems Nuway Connect entrance flooring system was specified to keep the public areas dirt and moisture free in an effort to protect visitors from slips and trips, whilst maintaining appearance standards.
When the time came to refurbish the entrance areas of the shopping centre, Operations Manager at Castle Quay, Nick James’s key consideration was safety. The floor area must remain dry and free from moisture so as to not expose any person to a risk to their safety - particularly in wet weather, when the majority of dirt entering a building is tracked in from the outside.
“With such an extreme volume of traffic passing through the doors on a regular basis, the entrance and exits required an entrance matting system that would also withstand intensive use,” Nick comments. In addition, the entrance system had to be attractive and meet the guidelines of the Equality Act in terms of providing easy access for disabled users.
Effective entrance systems have a pivotal role to play in the removal of a significant proportion of foot borne moisture, therefore helping to reduce the risk of injuries caused by slips. Forbo’s flexible rigid Nuway Connect entrance system was recommended by SDS Matting – a Forbo Entrance Systems Specialist Installer (FESSI) and due to its incredible moisture absorption properties, was specified to cover a 245m2 area over 6 entrances areas.
Nuway Connect is a very versatile roll-up single sided entrance system that is easy to shape on site, making it ideal for awkwardly shaped entrances. This ease of installation enabled SDS Matting to install the product quickly and easily out of hours, with no disruption to the shopping centre. Connect is available with a wide choice of heights ranging from 10 mm depth to 22 mm, in both open and closed constructions.
Open construction Connect mats can be rolled up for ease of cleaning of the mat and the patented product design ensures that the mat can only be rolled inwardly, helping to prevent the bow wave that can occur on other rollable products.
“Forbo’s Technical Service Department provided its usual outstanding support throughout the project, particularly when it came to ensuring that the aesthetics of the product, once installed, suited the environment,” explains Simon James, Director at SDS Matting. “For the internal primary matting zone, we decided to use Connect with a colour-coordinated Coral Classic insert in the colourway Anthracite on the secondary matting zone. This combined with the low lustre aluminium anodized finish, helped to prevent a strobing effect in bright conditions.”
Nick concludes: “With the amount of people entering the building at any one time, safety is our number one concern. Having had Forbo’s effective Entrance System products installed by a FESSI contractor, we have the confidence that the entrance systems have been installed correctly and will be fit for purpose.
“The product has certainly been tested as we have experienced harsh weather conditions. The Nuway Connect has coped remarkably well in not only keeping the interior surfaces dry, but also helping to retain the overall appearance of the shopping centre.”
FESSI is a unique national network of Forbo Entrance Systems Specialist Installers, which was set up to help improve the standard of installation of Forbo entrance flooring systems that for members provides an assurance of quality for their customers.
