Sustainably safer Tarkett

SUSTAINABLY SAFER

For 140 years Tarkett has set the standards in industrial flooring design. It is the global leader in the manufacture of innovative flooring systems and sports surface solutions. Today Tarkett continues to enjoy strong global growth thanks to its sustainable, eco-friendly products and built-in high safety profiles. Recent major UK contracts further confirm Tarkett’s position as the world leader in its class, as Philip Yorke reports.

Tarkett was founded in France 140 years ago and today employs almost 14,000 people worldwide. The company serves over 100 countries through its key brands that include Tarkett, Desso, Johnsonite, Tandus Centiva, FieldTurf and Beynon. As an indicator of its dominant role in the global marketplace, Tarkett sells over 1.5 million square metres of flooring every single day. Market applications include flooring products for hospitals, schools, housing, hotels, offices, stores and sports fields.

Closing the loop

As the world’s population grows, the pressure on natural resources and the environment is set to increase. Tarkett is closing the loop and helping customers to manage their flooring waste products while contributing to safeguarding the world’s natural resources and protecting the environment.

Tarkett turns flooring waste and secondary materials into new, high-quality products. The company has transformed its business operations in order to accelerate its commitment to establish a more regenerative, ecologically conscious economy, known as the circular economy, by eliminating waste throughout its products’ life cycles.

Tarkett helps its customers to manage their flooring waste through its unique ReStart® take-back programme.

Tarkett also partners with other industries, for example, with Aquafil to recycle discarded netting components in its carpets. It also partnered with local water companies in the Netherlands to recover chalk residues from the water treatment process into its carpet backing materials.

It is well known that for many years Tarkett has been committed to the cause of sustainability and the circular economy. It has done this by applying cradle-to-cradle principles across all its activities. The company’s ReStart® collection and recycling programme is one of the cornerstones of its commitment to closing the material loop. Furthermore, a new strategic partnership with Veolia has enabled it to offer clients a better collection and recycling service, whilst increasing volumes and the quality of recycled input in its flooring. It also illustrates the capacity of the private sector to offer solutions that support sustainable, economic growth.

Sustainable safety flooring

Slips, trips and falls are the main causes of injury in the workplace and equates to over 37 million accidents worldwide every year. These accidents represent over 40% of all reported major injuries according to the global Health and Safety Executive.

Tarkett Safety Flooring with its increased embossing features can prevent accidents, and ensure overall safety for all areas, and significantly reduce risks, thus making it the perfect choice for commercial applications.

Tarkett’s Safety Flooring is sustainable. This also means that its slip resistance will last the entire lifetime of the product and not just until the surface layer wears away. Heavy duty, and even easier to clean and maintain thanks to Tarkett’s new ‘Smart Particle’ Technology, Tarkett offers R10 and R11 Safety floors in classes A, B and C. This guarantees that even when wet, they offer increased slip resistance to the user.

Tarkett’s Safetred ION Contrast, Safetred ION Linen, Safetred Naturals and NEW Safetred Wood collections all offer a modern, contemporary twist on traditional safety flooring designs and colour palates. This means that it is now possible to achieve the desired domestic feel to any public or private institution project.

Pole position

When it comes to rankings in the field of sports and leisure surfaces, Tarkett is firmly in pole position. The company recently took the chequered flag with its superb finish at Donington Park Race Circuit. As the

oldest UK motor racing venue still in operation, Donington Park has been at the centre of high-octane Grand Prix action since 1931. Throughout its long history, this popular venue has seen a number of refurbishments and renovations to maintain its leading position amongst the top racetracks in Britain and across the world.

Now owned and operated by the prestigious MotorSport Vision (MSV) Group, Donington Park has benefited tremendously from huge investment in recent months to update and enhance the venue in line with MSV’s other circuits. Having previously worked with Tarkett on other projects, MSV was keen to rekindle its partnership when it came to choosing a high quality flooring solution for its new restaurant at Donington Park.

Giles Butterfield, Group Operations & Engineering Manager at MotorSport Vision, commented, “We needed a hard-wearing surface that could cope with high-volume footfall in all weathers whilst complementing the overall look and feel of the new restaurant. Tarkett has taken our brief and delivered with an installation that completely fits the bill.”

Working closely with award-winning Kinnersely Kent Design, who oversaw the site refurbishment process, and professional flooring specialist, Alex Bugler (APA Contracts), Tarkett created a smart and eye-catching design using a combination of safety flooring and luxury vinyl tiles to superb effect. Tarkett provided 144 square metres of Safetred ION Linen in Sky Blue for the preparation areas and behind the counters, also 62 square metres of Safetred Natural in Rock Steel for the serving areas.

These products were selected to provide a hardwearing yet attractive flooring option, incorporating superior particle enhanced R10 slip resistance, that offer both safety and practicality. For the higher spec areas, they selected Tarkett’s latest innovation in modular vinyl tiles - iD Supernature - a new collection using advanced in-house digital printing technology. n

For further details of Tarkett’s latest innovative flooring products and customer services visit www.tarkett.com.