When it comes to creating the right first impression, the entry way of your business premises – from offices to schools and everywhere in between – is an important factor for both staff and visitors alike. But more than making your facility look professional and welcoming, commercial entrance mats make your business safer for anyone crossing that threshold.
Selecting the right entrance matting for your building can have a big impact when it comes to the key factors of performance, durability, and cost effectiveness. Each of these three elements will largely depend on the materials from which the entrance mats are made. The higher your foot traffic, the more consideration must be given for using heavy duty matting. Having an insight into the material characteristics of various mats on the market can be helpful when you’re looking to identify the right matting for your premises.
At phs Syncros, we offer a range of high quality, functional and versatile matting to suit all types of premises, and our expertise in selecting the right products for our customers is second to none. Here we offer you a guide on the benefits of heavy-duty entrance mats to help you make the right choice, whatever your business environment.
Why entrance matting is necessary for your building
Whether the foot traffic crossing the threshold of your premises is fairly light or extremely heavy, commercial heavy-duty matting is essential for a number of key reasons:
- Safety
- Cleanliness
- Floor maintenance
- Design
Safety
According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), ‘slips, trips and falls at the same level’ (i.e., the floor) are the most common type of non-fatal accident for employees in the UK1, accounting for 33% of those recorded. Approximately the same figure has been reported for members of the public. HSE recommends protecting floors from contaminants such as liquids and debris as the first course of action to reduce risk. Having appropriate, well-installed entrance matting will contribute to removing excess fluid, dirt and debris from footwear and wheeled traffic. Ensuring that entrance ways are kept accessible and safe is a legal requirement, making your entrance matting a key component of compliance.
Cleanliness
In today’s climate of concern for reducing the risk of spreading contaminants, particularly where there is a greater risk to health – such as hospitals, surgeries, and other premises frequented by vulnerable adults and children – taking care to protect flooring is a necessity. High-quality, heavy-duty matting – such as that supplied by phs Syncros – helps to collect contaminants and stops them from being transferred onto the buildings’ interior flooring thereby reducing spreading.
Floor maintenance
Wear and tear of flooring is inevitable over time, particularly in high traffic areas. However, an effective heavy-duty entrance mat that is appropriately sized can significantly improve the durability of flooring. Commercial floor mats can trap dirt and create an area for decontaminating footwear that prevents debris from being carried across internal flooring. This means that flooring will require less cleaning and maintenance, reducing overall costs.
Design
A well-designed, well-maintained entrance, which is clean, tidy and compliments your branding won’t just offer a welcome site to your staff and visitors – it can also enhance other design features of your premises. This means you can achieve dual benefits of form and function. The colour of your entrance matting can be used to reflect corporate personality and complement surrounding colour tones, whilst custom branded matting can emphasise your business’s presence and leave a lasting impression.
What materials are commercial entrance mats made of?
Considering the reasons for installing door mats, it is vital to take into account the type of mat you install – whether its material properties will stand up to their required use and ensure that your entrance way is safety compliant. Some entrance mat materials are highly absorbent and can wick away moisture more effectively than others. They may also have inherent quick drying properties. Some fibres retain their structure making them more crush-resistant, and are designed to enable visitors to decontaminate footwear more easily, such as our range of tough scrapper mats. Mats come in a range of materials including nylon, polypropylene, microfibre and rubber – depending on your type of use and cleaning regime. Our phs Syncros range of mats offers a diverse selection of hard-wearing materials.
How are door mats manufactured?
There are a range of manufacturing methods that can impact the performance, durability and cost effectiveness of each mat. Popular techniques of producing absorbent matting include ‘tufting’, ‘weaving’ or ‘needle punch’. Some entrance matting is made from a combination of materials to give it a multi-action performance, such as being able to sustain professional laundering. You will notice that many entrance mats, such as our principal tough scraper mats feature strips of different materials for scraping, brushing and wiping contaminants.
All our commercial matting at phs Syncros are guaranteed to provide high quality and versatility. Contact one of our expert customer account managers to discuss your needs and options today.
