Beginners Guide

The basic functions of Industrial Flooring are:-

1. It must support any given applied or superimposed load ( e.g storage of stock or equipment or human traffic)
2. It must provide safe access routes for people and moveable equipment.
3. Its design should be such that it does not facilitate the collection of dust, dirt and fluids.
4. Its design should be such that it prevents the slipping, sliding or skidding of feet.
5. Its design should be such that it is aesthetically pleasing.

There are four basic types of flooring:

1. Open grid Flooring Rectangular open grid flooring consists of a series of transverse bars forming a rectangular open grid pattern. The bars form the two main components namely: The bearer bar - which carries the applied loads. The transverse bar - which separates and supports the bearer bars to form a fixed pattern
2. Expanded Metal Flooring Expanded metal flooring consists of a solid sheet of metal that is slit and expanded in a cold drawing operation into a lattice of diamond meshes in which the strands are set at a sharp angle, imparting strength and rigidity to the sheet. The size of the diamond mesh as well as the thickness of the strand have a direct bearing on the strength of the sheet.
Punched Metal Flooring Punched metal flooring consists of a solid sheet of metal that is slit and punched in in modular panels. The punched areas form a serrated tooth-like pattern which have excellent non-slip properties. The modular panels may be bolted together to form walkways etc.
Pressed Metal Flooring Pressed metal flooring consists of a solid sheet of steel which is pressed complete with a slightly protrudingchequered diamond mesh pattern or a protruding nodule pattern. These patterns enhance the non-slip properties of thid particular type of flooring.