Office towers have changed dramatically over the years. Many new skyscrapers in Canada have emerged with beautiful elevations of expansive glass facades, appointed with revolving doors at street level. The revolving doors provide a great streetscape and manage air flow well, but they create new challenges with man doors adjacent to each and no vestibule to reduce sand and gravel from entering the building.
Vestibule or not, we recommend to firstly introduce an outside scraper. Scrapers work, and they save wear on lobby mats. When you factor in a premature replacement of a lobby mat, scrapers will save you money. Most importantly, the scraper will reduce soil and improve the look of your building. Whether or not you have a vestibule, a revolving door or man door should be preceded by an outdoor scraper.
Scrape
The scraper should be aggressive like our Biome. Or, if you’re in a parkade, small gas station or convenience store, then use a Fingertip mat. Either way, you need to remove gravel from shoes, and these products do a great job.
Stomp
After the outside scraper, the best option is to provide an opportunity to stomp with a grate. Some revolving doors come with a grate already installed, which helps drop some debris. However, people don’t typically stomp inside a revolving door. This is where the vestibule shines, as it provides more distance to remove soil from shoes and boots, prolonging the life of the lobby mat.
Grates are typically placed for stomping, using a rigid product with a duckboard design. This allows sand and small gravel to come off. Grates come in both metal and PVC in varying thicknesses (to be flush with the surrounding tile). Our Gateway is a PVC for shallow wells, and is the quietest grate option that’s easy to roll up for cleaning. Metal grates such as the Pedimat and Pedigrid also come in many finishes, which can also add varying degrees of scrape-ability. Pricing varies widely on these products and often require installation, so contact us for a site assessment.
Scrape/Dry
Sometimes a grate doesn’t make budget, or the owners prefer something familiar and fast. Consider a combination product like a heavily variegated or hobnail design carpet in a vestibule. Carpet provides a combination of scraping and drying, is a thinner profile (to fit in shallow wells), and can be used as a mat on the surface. Carpets such as our Waterhog come in both tile and mat format. Both have an aggressive texture to remove debris. Another great option is our Chinook mat. While the hobnail design of Chinook isn’t as aggressive as Waterhog, it isn’t near the cost, either. With carpet in a vestibule, you need an aggressive cleaning program to keep entrances looking good through winter.
After implementing more scraping and stomping – or some scraping/drying before entering the building – look for a nice lobby mat to further scrape and dry your feet.
Remember… Scrape – Stomp – Scrape/Dry to improve the look of your building.
GATEWAY 10mm
GATEWAY 10mm
Gateway is the best solution for keeping buildings clean from dirt being brought in on shoes, especially in areas of high volume pedestrian traffic.
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WATERHOG ECO PREMEIRE 1/4"
WATERHOG ECO PREMEIRE 1/4"
Perfect for most floor mat applications inside or out.
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TIRE TILE
TIRE TILE
Highly durable and resilient, a perfect fit for high-traffic zones.
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BIOME
BIOME
Unbacked vinyl-loop outdoor mat that removes dirt and moisture from shoes allowing it to pass through the mat.
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SUPER GRIP
SUPER GRIP
Effectively scrapes away dirt and snow off footware
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Fingertip
FINGERTIP
Outstanding cleaning action and anti-slip performance
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