Services We Offer
Scientific Testing Technologies (STT) offers slip and fall prevention programs that help businesses take the necessary steps to develop and implement plans that help reduce their exposure for slip and fall incidents.
Slips and falls can happen anywhere, any time and to anyone. Whether it is a visitor, a customer or your own employee, slips and falls are a danger that visitors to your building are exposed to everyday.
According to the National Floor Safety Institute (NSFI) falls account for over 8 million hospital emergency room visits, representing the leading cause of visits (21.3%). Slips and falls account for over 1 million visits, or 12% of total falls.
In addition, slips and falls are the leading cause of workers’ compensation claims and are the leading cause of occupational injury for people aged 55 years and older. Whereas, slips and falls do not constitute a primary cause of fatal occupational injuries, they do represent the primary cause of lost days from work.
Our floor validation services include
Slip Resistance Testing
Maintenance Protocols
Expert Witness
Floor Safety Validation
Scientific Testing Technologies (STT) are experts at floor safety validation testing and uses multiple methods to assess your floor’s slip resistance which result in the most useful and accurate reporting available. Floor testing plans are available on quarterly, semi-annually or annual basis.
Floor safety validation helps verify your public access slipperiness, establish floor standards of performance, monitor and verify third party vendor performance and comply with public access standards (ADA/OSHA.) Find out more about the multiple methods we use to measure slip resistance below.
Expert Witness
With over 30 years of experience, STT can provide expert witness testimony regarding slip, trip, and fall accidents and injuries. We have consulted on issues involving coefficient of friction testing, slippery conditions, slip and fall accidents, and slip and fall injuries.
STT provides its clients with a Preventive Testing Program that helps mitigate any circumstances arising from a slip and fall. If a potential slip and fall lawsuit occurs, we can assist in the review of your buildings historical data, reconstruction, analysis, and testify on behalf of your case.
Measuring Slip Resistance
Scientific Testing Technologies (STT) uses multiple methods to assess your floor’s slip resistance which result in the most useful and accurate reporting available.
Slipping incidents result from one or more factors. These factors include: walking and working surfaces, environmental contamination, type of footwear, as well as, work and pedestrian activity.
All of these elements are combined to determine whether traction or slip-resistance is adequate in preventing a slip from occurring.
1. Walking and Working Surfaces
Slip resistance can be divided into static friction tests, applicable to stationary shoe and dynamic tests, which applies when the shoe is moving. Testing the parameters for a stationary shoe and a moving shoe provide information required to assess whether surface traction is adequate for the work and pedestrian from environmental contaminates.
2. Measuring the Stationary Shoe
The Static Coefficient of Friction (SCOF) test is used for the stationary shoe and is performed only as baseline information. This test is measured using the BOT 3000.
3. Measuring Roughness
There are four basic kinds of roughness (flat, bumps, suction cups, and teeth) relevant to pedestrian and employee traction.
Different surfaces having the same peak-to-valley mean can have appreciable different wet slip resistance depending on the character of the roughness.
The Taylor Hobson Sutronic 10 measures peak- to-valley mean micro roughness. This information combined with static friction will interpret the effects of wet surfaces when a shoe hydroplanes.
4. Measuring the Moving Shoe
The Dynamic Coefficient of Friction (DCOF) test is used for the moving shoe.
The BOT 3000 and Tortus II tests are the “back-bone” systems for investigating the outcome of floor care cleaning and restoration programs.
STT’s slip resistant test reports gathered from these machines are used for preventive assessments.
These preventive assessments provide real-time dynamic coefficient of friction data, which verifying the condition of traction and reveal how daily contamination can affect slip resistance on all flooring surfaces. This allows management the opportunity for correction as warranted.