How to specify entrance matting for education

Why do schools need entrance matting?

From pre-schools up to universities, when there is a large amount of footfall in and out of a building, it’s important to specify the right entrance matting that can not only handle and endure the constant footfall of student’s feet but also be safe and prevent hazards such as slipping.

Not all educational buildings require the same sort of matting, but there are some traits required for entrance matting across all schools. We have products that cater to different types of educational environments and have completed a wide range of entrance matting projects in the education sector.

What are the three key roles of entrance matting for universities, colleges, and schools?

1. Increase underfoot safety

• • Safety within the education sector is paramount. Entrance matting in schools, colleges, and universities plays a safety-critical function in helping to reduce the risk when walking on to smooth internal floor coverings.
  • The longer the entrance matted area, the more moisture it will trap. Specifying the correct length of entrance matting for schools is essential.

2. Dirt & Moisture Control

• • The obvious function of entrance matting is to remove moisture and dirt, and to protect internal floor coverings and surfaces from contamination.

3. Appearance

• • Entrance matting is often one of the last considerations within an educational facilities specification, but the burning question is ‘Why?’ when it is one of the first ‘floor finishes’ that a prospective student or visitor sees (and touches) on entry. The entrance of a building forms first impressions which can be good or bad.

What are the suitability and accessibility considerations when specifying entrance matting for education?

See our entrance matting specification tips for schools, college, and universities relating to suitability and accessibility:

1. Foot traffic

• For each entrance at a school, it’s important to consider the type of entrance matting to cope with specific type of foot traffic. Muddy trainers or football boots will require a more heavy-duty ‘scraper’ type mat than perhaps the average school shoe accessing the main entrance.

2. Disabled Access – The Equality Act 2010

• Where matwells are present the surface of the entrance matting should also be level with the adjacent floor finish. One wheelchair revolution requires a minimum of 2.5m length of matting.

What type of entrance matting is ideal for school entrances?

Safety is a huge factor for schools irrespective of the age of the student. Nurseries and primary schools (those with younger children) need even greater care – after all, children are notoriously accident-prone, especially as they enter or leave a building. See our recent projects for examples of how our entrance matting products have been specified in the education sector.

An effective entrance matting system can help to make floors safer and reduce internal flooring cleaning costs. Sometimes schools shy away from custom-made systems as they are used to seeing aluminium entrance matting and those with younger children, sometimes feel that a softer surface is preferable.

At COBA Flooring, we have several entrance matting systems that can combat this dilemma. We have the Premier range of vinyl entrance tiles for example. One option within this range is Premier Rib. The vinyl base tile is made from 100% recycled PVC and it has ribbed rubber inserts for slip-resistance – it can be used at the point of entry and is slip-resistant, making it ideal for schools with younger children. Of course, this can be supplemented by other carpet surface mats such as Premier Plus Tiles.

Tips for specifying entrance matting for education

See our tips for specifying entrance matting for different education environments:

Specifying Entrance matting for universities

Universities mainly have large entrances with constant traffic. Plan.a is designed to cope with these types of entrances. If it is a sports University, we recommend looking at the entrances that are used near sports fields to ensure studs are compatible with the matting. Lancaster University recently used our Plan.a with black brush inserts to remove the dirt off studded boots externally and then Plan.a with Alba inserts to remove excess moisture.

Product: Plan.a

Specifying Entrance matting for primary schools

Primary Schools may require a medium to heavy-duty entrance matting system. Premier Track, Premier Plus, or Premier FastTrack are ideal solutions. The modular tiles are hard-wearing, they will trap dirt within the tiles eliminating dirt from being brought into the building. For smaller areas that may experience less foot traffic, Alba or Needlepunch carpet entrance mating could be suitable.

Products: Premier Track, Premier Plus, Premier FastTrack, Alba, Needlepunch

Specifying Entrance matting for secondary schools

Main entrances will require a heavy-duty barrier mat such as Plan.a, Plan.e or entrance tiles from our Premier Range. Other entrances, perhaps individual classrooms would withstand a less heavy-duty type of matting such as Alba.

Products: Plan.a, Plan.e, Premier Range, Alba

Specifying Entrance matting for nurseries

Depending on the size of the nursery and the foot traffic which occurs every day, our Precision logo mat range could be suitable, Premier Plus or Alba entrance matting.

Products: Precision Nib, Precision Loop, Premier Plus, Alba

Specifying Entrance matting for schools

The type of entrance matting specified for each school is dependent on the level of pedestrians entering the building and other traffic such as wheelchairs and trolleys etc. Plan.a and Plan.e are the most heavy-duty options as they are manufactured from aluminium.

Products: Plan.a, Plan.e, Premier range, Precision Nib & Precision Loop.

Is entrance matting easy to install, clean, and maintain?

With busy buildings such as schools, colleges, and universities, it’s important to be able to specify entrance matting that is easy to clean and maintain. Closed construction entrance matting is ideal for easy cleaning, debris can easily be vacuumed from the surface of the mat. See our cleaning and maintenance guide for tips and advice.

It should also be taken into account that the bigger the school, the larger the entrance matting will have to be in terms of floor coverage. It also needs to be sufficiently durable to cope with the level of traffic.

Dudley College took advantage of our Premier Track tiles, see the project. With the ability to link together to cover all floor sizes, the tile system helps to make floors safer through increased slip resistance and makes for easy installation, cleaning, moving, or replacing individual tiles.

We also offer a supply and install service for added peace of mind that the right product has been chosen and installed correctly the first time. Upon request, we’re also able to offer quicker turnaround times when you need it. We also have a collection of easy-to-follow installation guides available for download.

How to specify professional and attractive entrance matting?

It is also important for the entrance matting to look professional, attractive, and suit the appearance of the rest of the school, college or university.

Here at COBA Flooring, we can provide a number of different entrance matting styles. These include the versatile Plan.a, which is available with numerous surface options, such as Alba and Needlepunch inserts or a PVC scraper. Manchester Metropolitan University opted for Plan.a entrance matting with Alba and PVC inserts.

Entrance matting doesn’t have to just be in dark colours such as black, blue, or grey. We offer a range of matting that can come in all sorts of colours.

Is there the option to incorporate school logos within entrance matting?

While logomats are attractive and can prove to add a professional look to any building, standard loose lay logomats are generally more suited to medium-duty use.  However, we do also offer Logomat Precision, a heavy-duty option for entrances subjected to more rigorous wear and tear, which is a premium custom-made to order entrance mat product.

It is important that educational buildings also have the right entrance matting to not only effectively remove dirt and moisture from entering the building, but to also prevent health and safety hazards such as slipping and tripping.

The City of Glasgow College ordered our Plan.a entrance matting which is ideal for heavy amounts of traffic, the college also took advantage of COBA’s ability to integrate an inlaid, custom-printed Logomat into the system. The result was an entrance that was both practical and professional.

From pre-schools up to universities, educational buildings are very busy environments that maintain a stream of heavy footfall each day, so it is important to choose entrance matting that is not only professional and attractive but also safe and easy to install and maintain. COBA Flooring has a number of entrance matting systems that are ideal for the education sector.