Anti-Slip Flooring: A Specification Guide
If a floor is slippery when clean and dry, no cleaning regime will fix it. Specify graded anti-slip resin systems zone by zone, and prepare the substrate properly or the coating will fail early.
Facilities and maintenance managers, health & safety leads, food and production site operators.
Slips Are Still The Most Common Workplace Injury
Slips and trips account for a large share of reported workplace injuries in the UK every year. In warehousing and production the causes repeat: water tracked in from yards, condensation around chillers, oil and hydraulic residue near plant, and concrete that has been polished smooth by years of trafficking.
Cleaning Problem Or Surface Problem?
This is the first question to answer, because it determines whether you need a procedural change or capital works. If the floor is only hazardous when contaminated and safe once clean and dry, the fix is contamination control and cleaning frequency. If the floor is slippery when clean and dry, or a light film of moisture makes it dangerous, the surface has lost its micro-texture and only a change of surface will resolve it.
A useful indicator: any location with a permanently deployed wet floor sign is an unresolved action, not a control measure.
How Slip Resistance Is Measured
The recognised UK method is pendulum testing, which produces a pendulum test value (PTV). Broadly, higher values mean lower slip potential. Level pedestrian areas are usually targeted in the mid-thirties and above, with higher values specified for ramps, wash-down zones and external routes where water is always present.
| Area type | Typical target | Common system |
|---|---|---|
| Dry internal walkway | Low slip potential, light texture | Resin coating with fine broadcast |
| Production area, occasional splash | Medium texture | Resin with graded quartz broadcast |
| Wash-down / chiller | High texture | Heavy-duty resin, coved and sealed |
| Ramps and inclines | High texture | Aggregate-loaded system, directional finish |
| External apron / walkway | High texture, UV stable | Weather-resistant anti-slip system |
Matching Texture To The Task
Over-specification is a genuine risk. An aggressive profile in a food or pharmaceutical environment becomes hard to clean, which creates a hygiene problem in place of a slip problem. Specify zone by zone, and involve the cleaning team in the decision.
- Light texture where cleanability and trolley movement matter most
- Medium texture for general production and light contamination
- Heavy texture for wash-down areas, ramps and external routes
- Colour zoning to reinforce walkways and hazard areas at the same time
Preparation Decides The Lifespan
Anti-slip coatings almost always fail for the same reason: they were applied to a substrate that was not properly prepared. Diamond grinding or shot blasting to a sound, open profile, plus repair of cracks, spalling and joint damage, is what turns a coating into a floor that performs for years. Where the slab itself is failing, planned repair before coating is always cheaper than recoating twice.
Programming The Works
Most defined areas can be prepared and coated within a weekend shutdown, with typical resin systems accepting traffic 24 to 48 hours after application depending on product and temperature. Phasing zone by zone keeps the rest of the operation live.
Build A Specification List In One Walk
Anti-Slip Survey Walk
- Mark every location with a recorded slip or near miss in the last 12 months
- Photograph every permanent wet floor sign
- Note where water enters the building from the yard
- Identify ramps, inclines and steps with no texture
- Record areas where the concrete is visibly polished or shiny
- Check cleaning regime and chemical compatibility for each zone
Get a zoned anti-slip specification
We survey the site, pendulum-test where needed and give you a zone-by-zone specification with a phased programme that fits around your operation.
Request a site survey