Healthcare flooring has come a long way. Today, facility owners and managers realize that there are many important factors to consider, when it comes to selecting a floor covering.

The Geisinger Health System delivers quality health care to more than two million people across Pennsylvania. Headquartered in Danville, Pa., the medical system includes more than 60 facilities that encompass over three million square feet of flooring. Al Neuner, associate vice president of facilities operation at Geisinger, has the ultimate responsibility for maintaining that flooring and replacing it, as necessary, overseeing approximately 40 flooring installations each year.

Like other facilities managers, Neuner has and continues to be confronted with many flooring choices. However, after reviewing all of his options, Neuner is now specifying rubber, because it’s attractive, comfortable, environmentally friendly and easy to clean.

Aesthetics

Products, such as norament grano, appear in the main lobby of the Geisinger Health System, located in Danville, and in other facilities throughout Pennsylvania.

Neuner first turned to nora rubber flooring, manufactured by Freudenberg Building Systems, Inc., when he replaced tile in the lobby of a Geisinger facility in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. “At the time, the nora product was the only floor covering I could find that offered matching stairtreads to give us a unified look,” said Neuner.

The nora portfolio of products includes a selection of more than 275 colors and textures that appeals to Neuner and designers who work with Geisinger Health System. Hailey Driscoll, designer with Francis Cauffman Foley Hoffmann Architects, Ltd., has specified nora products in Geisinger projects for more than two years. “The people at nora have worked hard to introduce lots of different textures and colors,” said Driscoll. “Taken together, these options provide designers with plenty of variation and opportunities to deliver creative designs that meet the performance requirements of their clients.”

Comfortable Under Foot

Since installing rubber flooring in the lobby of the Geisinger facility in Wilkes-Barre, Neuner has managed hundreds of installations that feature nora products in patient units, surgical suites, emergency rooms, ob-gyn suites, stair towers and elevators. “In almost every case,” said Neuner, “the first comment I get from staff members is ‘This feels really good on my feet.’ I find that particularly interesting, because in many cases, we’re replacing carpet.”

Although the comfort of staff was important to Neuner, it’s not his only consideration when he selects a floor covering. He also wanted a product that was environmentally friendly.

Green and Easy to Clean

The Geisinger Health System, headquartered in Danville, Pa., delivers quality health care to more than two million people across Pennsylvania.

“Our real motivation for switching to rubber floors is the promise of longer product life – something that continues to look nice years after it is installed – and ease of maintenance,” Neuner explained. “We operate in a high-traffic environment where rooms are always full and access to strip, wax and burnish floors is limited. “

“The good news is, nora floors don’t require those processes,” Neuner continued. “They actually save us time and eliminate the presence of harsh chemicals found in stripping and waxing products.

In addition to being relatively easy to maintain, nora floor coverings promote good Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), since the products emit very low levels of volatile organic chemicals (VOCs). These features, as well as others, enable nora products to be GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified/GREENGUARD Certified for Children & Schools and also meet the IAQ requirements of the State of California’s Department of Health Services Standard Practice (CA Section 01350) for testing chemical emissions from building products.

Neuner, like many facilities managers, is faced with multiple flooring contracts every day. And, even though he has selected other flooring types in the past, he is most impressed with rubber. “We’re laying rubber just about every day somewhere in this system,” said Neuner. “nora products offer durability, ease of maintenance, design options and a number of performance features important to a healthcare environment.” Consequently, these features also support sustainability, making nora flooring a leading choice for a healthy, environmentally friendly project.

GREENGUARD Certification Helps Protect Sensitive Environments

By Laura Anne Spriggs, Communications Manager, GREENGUARD Environmental Institute


Developed as an enhancement to the established GREENGUARD Product Certification Program, the GREENGUARD Children & Schools Certification Program is the most stringent product emissions criteria in the industry, evaluating a broader range of contaminants and requiring the toughest levels of acceptable volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

VOCs can be emitted from sources such as cigarette smoke, cleaning agents, solvents, furnishings, paint, flooring products, building materials, and personal hygiene products. Many products also contain known carcinogens (i.e. formaldehyde, benzene, and radon) and other strong respiratory irritants or reproductive toxins, which can significantly affect indoor air. Health problems that may result from poor indoor air quality include headaches; nasal congestion; breathing problems; eyes, nose and throat irritation; coughing; and rashes. Chemicals also have been linked to asthma, developmental effects, learning disabilities, autism, and cancer. Because hospital patients can have weakened immune systems, which make them more susceptible to pollutants, it is especially important to reduce their exposure to environmental pollutants in the healthcare setting.

GEI designed the GREENGUARD Children & Schools Program to be the most stringent product emission criteria in the market - it meets the State of California’s Department of Health Services Standard Practice (CA Section 01350) for testing chemical emissions from building products. When used in the healthcare setting, GREENGUARD Certified products can help protect patients from exposure to high levels of potentially harmful chemicals. To further prevent indoor air quality problems, building professionals should establish an indoor air quality operations and maintenance program, to track and respond to complaints; to train appropriate staff in early detection of problems as well as prevention and corrective measures; and to establish good communications channels, including staff, administration, and providers.

Green Guide for Health Care

By Laura Anne Spriggs, Communications Manager, GREENGUARD Environmental Institute


GREENGUARD Certified products are specified in the Green Guide for Health Care, an industry-recognized best practices guide developed specifically for the healthcare industry. The GGHC provides a sustainable design toolkit that integrates enhanced environmental and health principles and practices into the planning, design, construction, operations and maintenance of healthcare facilities. The following credits specify GREENGUARD as a potential strategy for achieving points.

• EQ Credit 4.1 - Interior Adhesives & Sealants - This credit specifically references the GREENGUARD Certification as a potential strategy to achieve this credit.
• EQ Credit 4.2 - Wall & Ceiling Finishes - This credit specifies that ceiling tiles and wall coverings must meet or exceed emissions requirements, such as GREENGUARD Children & Schools.
• EQ Credit 4.3 – Flooring Systems - This credit specifies that resilient flooring systems shall meet or exceed emissions requirements, such as GREENGUARD Children & Schools.
• EQ Credit 4.5 - Furniture & Medical Furnishings - This credit specifically references that all applicable materials, including mattresses, foams, panel fabrics, and other textiles shall not contain specific chemicals and must meet emissions requirements, such as GREENGUARD Children & Schools.