The primary function of playground safety surfacing is to provide long-term, consistent protection from serious head injuries in the event of a fall. As simple as this concept may sound, wading through the safety requirements and ensuring that your installed surface performs the way it was intended can be a confusing and daunting process.
By following a few basic principles, you can arm yourself with the tools needed to identify the most important concepts associated with the provision of fall protection and under- stand how those concepts can be used to ensure that the children using your playground are protected. Regardless of what kind of surfacing you choose, these universal concepts will apply.
KEY CONCEPT 1: Playground standards in North America require that playground surfacing pass only a minimum level of safety perfor-
mance (1000 HIC). HIC is the acronym for Head Injury Criteria. HIC is determined by dropping an instrument similar in function to a crash
test dummy onto a surface which then calculates the severity of the impact force and the associated risk of brain injury to the user.
An impact score over 1000 HIC, at any point during the playgrounds service life, indicates the potential for serious head injury and the
playground must be taken out of service. Because playground surfaces will harden over time, an initial HIC rating (at the time of installation)
that approaches the 1000 threshold is an indication that the surface is unlikely to remain compliant with safety standards over the long term.
OUR ADVICE: Ask your supplier for laboratory test reports illustrating the HIC rating of their surfacing at your specified fall height. The HIC
rating should be better than the minimum requirements of the standard by at least 40%. The lower the HIC score, the safer the surface
and the higher the probability that it will remain safe for many years. If the HIC rating for your fall height is higher than 600, or the supplier
cannot provide test data, find a new supplier.
KEY CONCEPT 2: Playground surfaces protect from falls at various heights based on a combination of product composition, design, and
thickness. Since each product is unique in design, many manufacturers offer different thickness for different fall height requirements. This
can sometimes cause confusion if one manufacturer is offering a 3 inch thickness for a particular fall height and another is offering a 4 inch
thickness for the same fall height.
OUR ADVICE: Always ask for surface quotes based on required fall height, not surface thickness.
KEY CONCEPT 3: Use laboratory test data only as a starting point. All playground surfacing manufacturers must provide a test report from
an independent lab confirming that their surface has been tested for the recommended fall height. This information can be valuable in
making initial determinations as to how various manufacturers surfaces compare with regards to HIC ratings. However, there are serious
shortcomings in relying solely on laboratory reports.
be representative of the installed surface.
• The performance of some playground surfacing (especially poured-in-place surfaces) is largely influenced by raw materials, the skill
and methods used by the installer, and the prevailing weather conditions at the time of installation. Materials are often sourced from
different suppliers, manufacturers use a large number of different installation crews, and the weather conditions vary from day to day.
All of these factors can result in a significant difference between laboratory test reports and installed surface test reports.
• Great care is often taken to prepare the samples submitted by manufacturers to laboratories for testing. These samples are often made
under ideal conditions and to precise specifications in order to produce optimal results. Samples submitted to labs are generally made
in very small representative samples of not more than 2 feet square. Conversely, when installing a field applied system over thousands
of square feet, the margin for error is significant in creating precise thicknesses and in maintaining precise specifications.
OUR ADVICE: Always include a requirement for field testing of your installed surface as part of your purchasing contract. Always send an
owners representative to witness the test before payment is issued. Field testing of your installed surface is the only way to demonstrate that
the surface is performing to the claims of the manufacturer. The “feel” of the surface, (hardness vs. softness) can have very little correlation
with the impact attenuation performance of a system. If a supplier is unwilling, or unable to provide this service, find a new supplier.
WHAT CAN SofTILE OFFER YOU?
SAFETY VALUES: SofTILE has been engineered to provide HIC ratings under 570 HIC. The 570 HIC
threshold was chosen based upon the most recent research within the automotive industry. 570 HIC is the
threshold adopted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in order to be considered safe for
children in an automobile crash. In view of this, it stands to reason that children deserve the same level of
protection when at play as they do when travelling in a motor vehicle. 570 HIC will also provide significant
safety margin to ensure that your surface will remain compliant to the standard for the life of the playground.
ENGINEERED DESIGN: SofTILE utilizes a hollow-core impact pedestal design that has been engineered
to reduce the impact force associated with a fall. The hollow-core impact pedestal is a series of 64 inter-
connected shock absorbers molded into the underside of the tile design.
RELIABILITY & CONSISTENCY: After manufacturing, every single SofTILE undergoes a strict quality
control review by way of computerized quality assurance systems. Each tile is weighed, the temperature
recorded, and the thickness and dimensions measured. Most importantly, each of the 64 hollow-core
impact pedestals are individually tested for performance and structural integrity through a sophisticated
series of load cells and compression movements. Upon successful inspection, each tile is assigned a
serial number for future tracking. All test data and formulation data is tied to the serial number and stored
in a data base.
ASSURANCE: SofSURFACES has partnered will all of our local representatives to offer free fall height
testing of your installed surface. We are proud of our systems performance and we believe that you deserve
to know exactly how your surface is performing before you pay for it.
PEACE OF MIND: SofSURFACES offers a 10 year warranty that includes performance to the ASTM
F1292 safety standards.