Get to grips with slips
April 1st 2005

Workplace slips and trips cause 9,000 people each year to suffer a serious injury. The annual cost is estimated to be as much as £763m. But according to Acrypol Products, the correct floor surface can dramatically reduce such accidents and the associated costs to employers Slips that result in falls are the most common cause of major injuries in the workplace and they are costing employers millions of pounds in compensation claims every year. One slip or trip accident occurs every three minutes in the UK and 95% of major slips result in broken bones.

The cost? Employers have a Duty of Care to ensure potentially dangerous or “slippy” environments are as safe as possible for those who use them regularly – if this duty is breached the financial consequences can be crippling. The overall figure reported to the UK Litigation Authority for slip claims, runs into hundreds of millions of pounds a year – the average claim being around £5000. However, evidence exists showing single claims that are as high as £600,000.

Action? In view of all this, the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) has included slips and trips as a priority consideration. In turn this supports The Workplace (Health Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 requiring surfaces to be suitable by NOT being potentially slippery, therefore reducing employee exposure to hazardous environments. Legislation helps, but is there more we can do to make potentially dangerous environments, like walkways, balconies, stairs, ramps and risers safer? What next? Prevention of slip accidents requires the provision of adequate friction on surfaces through the use of the correct surface coating.

Such environmental factors as the friction of the floor when in contact with footwear being too low, the surface micro peaks being too low, the profile of the floor being too shallow, poor drainage and poor installation can all adversely affect slip resistance.

To this end building owners and facilities managers are coming under increasing pressure to ensure the chances of such accidents happening are minimal.

In addition, new Health & Safety regulations have re-emphasised the importance of ensuring effective risk control in potentially slippery environments. Flooring solutions Minimising and managing contamination of surfaces areas by spillages, wet cleaning methods, rain, sleet, snow, condensation, grease, oil, diesel, dirt and dust can all help to reduce slip accidents.

But anti-slip floor surfaces take preventation one step further.

A sample of Quartzdek walkway and balcony floor waterproofing and slip resistant coating, manufactured by Acrypol Products, was recently tested by the Building Research Establishment (BRE).

Testing Quartzdek’s slip resistance, the BRE officially rated it as having a low potential for slip when wet – and an extremely low potential for slip when dry.

The test, which under a scientifically controlled environment is designed to predict the likelihood of someone slipping on a Quartzdek surface, showed conclusively that the product has the potential to help reduce slip accidents in potentially hazardous walkways, balconies, or pedestrian locations where the existing surface has low slip resistance. Launched a few years ago in the UK, it is becoming increasingly popular in public sector environments. However, Acrypol says it is now also penetrating a market which is more difficult to influence – the private industrial and commercial sector.

Installation Quartzdek does not depend on exceptionally long cure times – so working facilities need not be closed off or be in-accessible for long periods of time. It gives proven waterproofing protection and slip resistance in one product – alleviating the need for two wet trades on site.

Installation is simple. The deck is first sealed with a coating of Quartzdek resin, thinned by 50% with a universal thinner.

After eight hours a further coat of Quartzdek is applied in 1m widths. While still wet, the Quartzdek granules are scattered evenly. The surface is then left to cure eight hours. Any excess quartz is brushed or vacuumed away and can be re-used.