Stepping into a workplace might seem like a straightforward experience, but have you ever considered the role that floor mats play in shaping your first impression?
Commercial floor mats are more than just decorative accessories; they are essential contributors to the overall safety, cleanliness, and functionality of a space. In this blog, we delve into the reasons why commercial floor matting truly matters, exploring the impact it has on visitor safety, hygiene, and the longevity of internal flooring.
Selecting the right commercial floor mat for your business
While selecting floor mats for your premises may not be at the top of your priority list, their practical and aesthetic benefits should not be ignored. By becoming a crucial component of any business’s health and safety strategy, they can help to reduce the number of slips and trips in your building. They also help to keep your workplace clean, reduce the spread of germs, and contribute to the wellbeing of both your employees and visitors.
What’s more, placing floor and door mats around your premises helps to demonstrate that health and safety regulations are being respected and adhered to.
Whether you are deciding on a mat for your reception, and service areas, or simply looking for a solution to protect the floor beneath appliances such as water coolers, there will always be a mat to suit your specific needs.
Here are the different ways in which a floor mat could benefit your business:
1. Floor mats preserve cleanliness and hygiene:
Well-designed commercial floor mats play a crucial role in reducing the amount of dirt and water being tracked into a building. This not only enhances safety by help to reduce the risks of slips and falls but also substantially improves the cleanliness of the facility.
Placing mats strategically in high-traffic areas, such as entrances, reception areas, and corridors, ensures maximum dirt collection, helping to keep these spaces clean and presentable.
Opting for floor mats with a high proportion of microfibers enhances their effectiveness. These tiny strands attach themselves to microscopic dirt particles for optimal pick-up and absorption. To put this in perspective, a single mat can absorb several litres of water and a few kilograms of dirt between cleans!
2. Meeting industry standards and regulations:
Compliance with industry standards and regulations is a non-negotiable aspect of running a workplace. Commercial floor mats, although not strictly legislated in the UK, play a vital role in meeting the guidelines relating to safety, accessibility, and cleanliness.
Within the framework of the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974), employers are responsible for ensuring that workplace floors are safe and comply with relevant standards.
The British Standards BS8300:2009+A1:2010, focuses on the design of buildings and their approaches to meeting the needs of disabled people. It emphasises the importance of implementing appropriate entrance flooring systems (BS 7953) to reduce soil and surface moisture ingress into buildings.
Initial Washroom Hygiene provides floor mats with a superstyrene backing, which helps to keep the mat flat, as this backing reduces friction, movement, and ripples.
For areas such as pubs and bars, or leisure centres and gyms where spillages can occur frequently, microfiber or non-textile rubber mats are recommended.
These antislip mats are specifically designed to reduce movement on wet, hard surfaces and minimise the risk of slips and trips, and therefore the likelihood of injury to employees or customers.
3. The financial benefits of commercial floor mats:
Well-designed commercial floor mats not only contribute to safety and cleanliness but also offer substantial financial benefits to businesses, such as:
- Preserving flooring: Commercial floor mats significantly reduce dirt and water entering spaces, preserving the condition of internal flooring and decreasing maintenance costs.
- Cost savings: Strategic placement of high-performance outdoor and indoor floor mats minimises wear and tear, leading to lower repair and replacement expenses over time.
- Liability mitigation: Quality floor mats contribute to preventing slips, trips, and falls, helping businesses mitigate potential liability costs associated with accidents on their premises.
- Operational efficiency: Cleaner spaces, facilitated by effective entrance matting, can lead to increased employee productivity and customer satisfaction, positively impacting revenue.
4. Floor mats create a positive first impression:
Contrary to the well-known expression, people often judge a book by its cover. A mat can be one of the first things customers, clients, and employees encounter upon arrival at your business. It’s worth opting for an entrance or front door mat that is aesthetically pleasing to help make a good first impression.
Consider placing custom floor mats (logo mats) outside your premises or in reception areas where they can provide a splash of colour, while at the same time demonstrating an added level of consideration and care.
Initial’s Outdoor Mat, not only collects dirt and water as visitors enter the building but can be customised with your business’s logo to communicate your brand message to anyone entering your building.
5. Contributing to customer and employee wellbeing:
If you are looking to boost employee or customer wellbeing and enhance their experience when visiting your premises, consider exploring anti-fatigue mats. These mats are designed to address ailments associated with long periods of standing on hard surfaces, including joint pain, backache, and tiredness. This helps increase employee comfort and, in doing so, increases their levels of concentration and efficiency.
Long-Term Protection
Choosing the correct floor mats to suit your business requirements is important to help protect and prolong the life of your flooring. Floor mats can be effective in trapping dirt, water, and other substances from trailing into your premises, as well as preventing accidents.
But, what if you’re not sure which mat to opt for or where to place them for maximum benefit? If you have any queries, don’t be afraid to consult the experts. A comprehensive range of commercial floor mats is available for all types of business sectors. Whether you require front door mats for your lobby, office floor mats, or kitchen mats for your food preparation area, it’s worth discussing the best floorcare solution for your unique needs.
Initial Washroom Hygiene’s floor mat service option for textile mats can provide your business with freshly laundered mats at an agreed frequency, ensuring that your floors are constantly protected and that your mats will work harder for longer.
Transforming business spaces with floorcare
Managers must do their best to enforce floorcare best practices — not only to enhance their premises aesthetically but most importantly, to protect visitors.
By maintaining high standards of cleanliness alongside the strategic use of quality mats, businesses can unlock significant advantages. Take a moment to assess your business profile and the specific needs of your environment when selecting the right commercial floor mats. Regular laundering ensures that both indoor and outdoor mats continue to be a reliable ally in creating a clean, safe, and attractive work setting.