Because falls on stairs can cause especially severe injuries and even deaths, building codes for stairs are very stringent. When we use stairs that are properly constructed, we can walk with ease and converse at the same time, nearly unaware that our feet are performing a rather complex operation. Ease and safety depend on each … Continue reading “The Five-Second Check of Stair Rise and Run”
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New Study Shows Sotter Engineering to be one of World’s Most Accurate Pendulum Floor Slip Test Labs
A recent global interlaboratory program “Slip Resistance Proficiency Testing — Pendulum Friction Tester,” showed Sotter Engineering Corporation’s Safety Direct America (SDA) floor slip resistance testing laboratory to be one of the world’s most accurate in use of the pendulum skid tester. The pendulum is a national standard for pedestrian floor and tile slip resistance testing … Continue reading “New Study Shows Sotter Engineering to be one of World’s Most Accurate Pendulum Floor Slip Test Labs”
Financial losses from slip and fall accidents
Slip and fall accidents are the #1 reason Americans show up at emergency rooms, according to data from the CDC. Slippery floors are a silent epidemic in America, and lawsuits are filed daily across the nation involving major injuries and deaths from slippery floors. Unless the negligent party is the victim’s employer, the victim of … Continue reading “Financial losses from slip and fall accidents”
Roughness and Wet Floor Slip Resistance
We all know intuitively that roughness has a lot to do with floor slip resistance. Very smooth floors tend to have low wet slip resistance, and to some types of shoe solings (as on some dancing shoes) can have low dry slip resistance too. However, “rough” appearing floors aren’t always slip-resistant, and this has to … Continue reading “Roughness and Wet Floor Slip Resistance”
Floor Slip Rating: SCOF vs. DCOF
Static coefficient of friction (SCOF) was formerly used to measure the slip resistance of a wet floor in the USA, but the test method (ASTM C1028) was withdrawn by the ASTM in 2014. Experts in the USA now know to use dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF), as the rest of the world has been using … Continue reading “Floor Slip Rating: SCOF vs. DCOF”
ANSI A326.3 Acutest Does Not Predict Likelihood of Slip
A widely used floor friction test, American National Standards Institute A326.3, states in its introduction that “it can provide a useful comparison of surfaces, but it does not predict the likelihood a person will or will not slip on a hard surface flooring material.” The test assesses wet dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF) using the … Continue reading “ANSI A326.3 Acutest Does Not Predict Likelihood of Slip”
What Makes a Good Safety Floor?
No matter the type of facility you operate, safety is important, and one of the more universal safety concerns is slips and falls. This can be a problem around entrances where people track in water from outside, or in areas of food preparations that are slick from frequent cleaning. The best way to mitigate these … Continue reading “What Makes a Good Safety Floor?”
How does ANSI DCOF compare with Pendulum Test Value?
The most recent American National Standards Institute (ANSI) dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF) test method, ANSI A326.3, states that “hard surface flooring materials suitable for level interior spaces expected to be walked upon when wet with water shall have a wet DCOF of 0.42 or greater when tested … as per this standard.” The older … Continue reading “How does ANSI DCOF compare with Pendulum Test Value?”
Slip Prevention in Commercial Kitchens
Commercial kitchens are food production kitchens for businesses such as hotels, cruise ships, and restaurants. Unlike your home kitchen, there are more specialized pieces of equipment such as Sous vide machines, Ice cream makers, and industrial-grade deep fryers, grills and ovens. Another important difference is that these kitchens usually have more than one person involved … Continue reading “Slip Prevention in Commercial Kitchens”
Preventing Slip and Fall Accidents
There may be a lot of funny videos swirling around the internet showing people slipping and falling. But in truth, it’s not funny at all! In fact, falling from the “same level” and falling to “lower level” were the second and third highest injury causes of disabling workplace injuries in 2011. Naturally, you’d want to … Continue reading “Preventing Slip and Fall Accidents”