How entrance flooring is key to a stylish interior

Chris Rand, Category Marketing Manager – EFS from Forbo Flooring Systems, explores how entrance flooring systems can provide function and design while creating eye-catching interiors.

First impressions count. That’s why entrance flooring systems are so important, not only performing a functional role but an aesthetic one too. Entrance flooring is important in all buildings, but especially so for the education, healthcare, retail and office sectors – where you can expect to see high volumes of footfall all year round. In schools it can often be challenging to get younger students to slow down and physically wipe their feet before entering a building. In healthcare settings, as well as the obvious need for hygiene, the dangers of falls due to wet flooring are even more present. 

British Standard 7953:1999 states that an entrance flooring system is necessary to reduce the risk of slip injuries, as well as prolonging the life of other interior floor finishes and helping reduce cleaning, repair and overall maintenance costs. An entrance flooring system should scrape, wipe and retain soil, making contact with both feet of the people entering the building and, in the case of wheeled traffic, with the full circumference of the wheels, releasing dirt easily when cleaned. 

The industry recommendation is to use at least three metres of an entrance flooring system for light use areas and up to seven metres for busy entrance areas. As a general rule, the more matting used, the more effective the entrance flooring system will be at preventing dirt and moisture from entering a building. All systems should be zoned into exterior matting, the main entrance itself, and all circulation areas to reduce residual soiling.

Entrance flooring and design

Entrance matting also has an important (and often underrated) role in welcoming people into a building and setting the right tone. An uninspiring or uncoordinated entranceway can potentially deter prospective visitors, students or customers or, in the case of healthcare, set a bad example for the building’s cleanliness.

With new technologies and design methods appearing in the industry, many manufacturers are now able to offer a far more varied portfolio of entrance flooring solutions, from different scraper bars and textile insert colours to new install patterns. This design flexibility offers specifiers the ability to make the entrance as stylish as the rest of the building, as well as enabling the creation of bespoke entrance flooring using a company’s branding, logo or colours for a more personalised finish. 

Choosing an effective entrance flooring system has numerous benefits, with the headline advantage being the reduction of dirt and moisture inside a building. This has other positive knock-on effects, making cleaning and maintenance easier, with up to a 65% reduction in the time spent cleaning interior floor coverings. With budgets becoming tighter year-on-year and data suggesting that floor coverings can account for up to 60% of a building’s total cleaning and maintenance cost, the potential savings are considerable. 

Nor are the benefits of entrance flooring systems reserved solely for the entranceway to a building, as they can also help to optimise the long-term performance of other interior flooring coverings. 

Part of Forbo’s Nuway collection of barrier entrance matting, which was originally launched to the market in 1924, Nuway Connect Plus is the company’s latest addition. With larger textile inserts and reduced aluminium strips, it can accommodate more varied designs including chevron shaping, typically a bespoke offering. Forbo’s latest entrance flooring option is made to order, with the ability to create striking designs or logo mats. Available with a choice of four Coral Classic textile inserts, this allows the primary entrance system to be colour coordinated to the secondary matting zone. All inserts can also be replaced on site, helping to extend the wear life of the product.

In addition, when you combine any Forbo interior product with Coral or Nuway entrance flooring, as part of the same project, the product guarantee will be extended by 50%. As an example, the 10-year Marmoleum guarantee will increase from 10 years to 15 years. 

www.forbo.com/flooring/en-uk