MAKING PLAYGROUNDS SAFER

When kids take their inevitable tumbles, life-threatening injuries can be significantly reduced by using shock absorbent safety surfacing. This is where resilient surface products that meet accepted standards, at both the time of installation and over time, are now playing a major role as a safe, attractive and effective playground surfacing material.

It has been estimated that more than 70 percent of playground injuries are due to falls.  So it comes as no surprise that national standards for playground surfaces have become the subject of a considerable amount of attention.

Most traditional playground surface materials [such as sand, pea gravel and wood chips] do not measure up to the ASTM standard for accessibility or ADA requirements. In addition, sand and pea gravel do not measure up to the ASTM standard for impact attenuation without significant and regular maintenance. These materials are rapidly giving way to manufactured systems using more reliable and durable impact-absorbing materials. In particular, designers are increasingly selecting synthetic surface products for playgrounds such as interlocking systems, mats, and poured-in-place products.

Active Compliance Testing

Synthetic surfacing materials can be manufactured to meet safety requirements. The test procedure and pass/fail criteria are stipulated in the ASTM F1292 Standard Specification for Impact Attenuation of Surface Systems Under and Around Playground Equipment. Included is the requirement that all playground systems must be tested under laboratory conditions at three temperatures (30, 72, 120 F). The purpose of the testing is to determine the critical height for a given playground amenity in relation to a specified surface system. The critical height is the maximum height [in the event of a fall] that a surface system would prevent a life-threatening injury.

These impact attentuating tiles from Surface America can drastically reduce the potential injuries that can occur from common playground accidents.

ASTM Standards

The ASTM F1292 includes a Free Fall Test procedure that allows determination of the compliance of a surface system with the fall height specified at the time of installation and during its service life. The drop height for the field test is usually identified to be a location from which an active child could fall. [Failure of the surface system requires that the surface be taken out of service until it is brought into compliance.] The ability of synthetic surfaces to remain in place and not need loosening, redistribution or topping up helps to predict system performance.

Soft Surface Systems

Not surprisingly, this has become an extremely competitive field, with manufacturers working hard to improve existing product lines and develop new ones. Advances in manufacturing technologies are fueling the process, providing opportunities for better products to be developed efficiently and, more to the point, economically.  The use of recycled tires by some manufacturers, for example, has had a significant impact on the industry. The tires are converted into a granular or shredded material and then blended with special polymer binders to make surfacing materials.

Interlocking and mat systems are manufactured using special presses in a controlled factory environment. The installer has only to follow the manufacturer's instructions to ensure compliance of the installed system and ASTM F1292.

The poured-in-place system, on the other hand, has its rubber particles and polymer binders mixed at the playground on-site according to a formulation and installation procedure that is generally exclusive to the installer. This approach requires highly skilled labor to ensure that the surface is consistently installed. It is also important that it corresponds with samples that have been laboratory-tested. As a result, the field-testing of the installed surface is of critical importance to the specifier, owner and operator.

Safety surfacing not only reduces the risk of serious injury, but it can also provide an attractive play environment with bright colors and sharp designs. These mats also resist wear and do not fade with age.

System Features

The end result of ongoing manufacturing developments is a greater variety of choice for designers of playground facilities. Some suppliers, for example, allow clients to customize designs to be embedded in surfaces and to select and formulate any color they wish for their installations. Technical advances have also enabled greater ease and precision of installation, the elimination of expansion and contraction problems and product durability over time. (Long-term performance also depends on the chemistry of the polymer binders and their ability to withstand the rigors of ultraviolet light, ozone and temperature fluctuations. All can have a significant effect on the long-term performance of surfacing systems in relation to standards.)

In addition to their ability to absorb impact, synthetic surface products have numerous other benefits:

1. Requires little maintenance, needing only the removal of fine particles. They don't trap debris, while broken glass and needles stay on the surface and are easily identified.

2. Helps make the playground experience a more pleasant one, coming in a variety of colors and providing good traction.

3. Reasonably inexpensive, especially when the costs of maintenance and the replacement of traditional surfaces are considered.

4. Highly resistant to vandalism. 

5. Adaptable to irregular surfaces, providing a virtually monolithic

covering that eliminates gaps, prevents separation and allows for easy drainage.

6. Allows grade changes and irregularly shaped perimeters to provide a monolithic surface with excellent drainage.

The makers of synthetic surface materials are making significant strides in developing a variety of products that are both attractive and impact absorbing. The markets for these products and systems are expanding rapidly and include not only playgrounds, but also other outdoor and indoor recreational facilities. LASN