Floor slip resistance testing is an essential process for ensuring safety in public spaces, workplaces, and homes. It helps to identify the level of slip resistance (or COF) of a floor surface, which is crucial in preventing injuries resulting from avoidable slips and falls. The most common floor slip resistance testing technique around the world […]
Tag Archives: dcof rating
America’s Floor Slip Resistance Testing Experts
We’ve tested flooring for the dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF) and slip resistance all over North America and beyond for around 1,000 individual clients so far as America’s leading independent third-party certified floor friction test lab. We don’t lie in court for slip and fall lawyers (like those who mainly use the Brungraber Mark IIIB, […]
ASTM E303-22 Revolutionizes Floor Slip Resistance Testing in the USA
Floor slip resistance tests in the USA have historically been written by the members of the ASTM F13 committee. Comprised mostly of expert “liars for hire” that exclusively work for slip and fall attorneys, and representatives of the flooring industry, these tests have been based on either no science, or very little shady science. The […]
ADA Slip Resistance Requirements
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires that floors accessible to disabled persons be “slip-resistant”, but does not define what that means. Apparently it’s up to property owners and the courts to decide. But there is a reliable way of assessing slip resistance that is recognized the world over to help comply with ADA slip […]
2022 Revised ANSI A326.3 Has Five Situation-Specific DCOF Minimums — And Crucial Caveats
In February of 2022, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) issued a revised version of their “Test Method for Measuring Dynamic Coefficient of Friction of Hard Surface Flooring Materials.” The test method is called ANSI A326.3, and it sets a very low bar for DCOF in various flooring areas. Slip and fall accidents will likely […]
Maximum Coefficient of Friction is not Limited to 1.00
It’s sometimes assumed that coefficient of friction (COF) has a maximum theoretical and practical value of 1.00. This isn’t true; there is no maximum. It is true that values exceeding 1.00 are so slip-resistant that their actual value is often of little interest. Some COF measuring instruments, such as BOT-3000E and English XL, are not […]
Germany’s DIN 51130 Slip Test: What’s it Good For?
In Europe, a slip resistance test for flooring is prescribed by German Institute for Normalization (DIN) standard DIN 51130. A person wearing industrial-type treaded shoes walks, facing down slope, on a variable-angle ramp which has the flooring to be tested on it. The flooring is coated with motor oil. The walker (without holding the handrails) […]
Many Polished Concrete Floors are Slippery when Wet
Can polished concrete floors be slippery when wet? Several web sites say yes, but others (mostly polished concrete vendors) say no, it only looks that way. A study of polished concrete published by the American Society of Concrete Contractors (ASCC) in Concrete International shows wet dynamic coefficients of friction (DCOF) as measured by ANSI A137.1 […]
A Review of Standards for Pedestrian Slip Resistance Testing
There are a number of floor slip test methods established by standards-setting organizations that assess pedestrian slip resistance. Here we’ll review the most widely known and current ones. They are distinguished by the devices used in the testing. Terms such as DCOF rating, coefficient of friction, slip coefficient, slip resistance rating, and friction coefficient all […]
Surveillance to Detect Slip and Fall Hazards on Commercial Floors
Surveillance of floors to detect spills, dropped produce, and other hazards is an important part of many safety plans, particularly on floors that have poor wet slip resistance. This includes most floors in customer areas of supermarkets. In one supermarket slip and fall case, a court ruled that inspections every 12 minutes were necessary in […]