When the local community hospital in the coastal town of Whitby, Yorkshire commissioned a complete re-development and refurbishment of the existing location and buildings, the flooring and finishing throughout the site would need to be of the very highest standards to complete this auspicious project to its full potential. International flooring specialist Gerflor would bring their weight to bear by supplying over 7000m2 of high-quality flooring, together with a selection of Gradus handrails and corner guards for this Procure 22 project.
Gerflor has over 80 years’ credible healthcare experience, as a manufacturer of innovative and high-performance flooring and interior finishing solutions. These hygienic innovations are treated with patented surface treatments that provide an unrivalled level of chemical and stain resistance. The world class vinyl and linoleum collections are perfectly suited for hardworking spaces, including the intensive movement of beds, trolleys, wheelchairs, and heavy medical equipment on a twenty-four-hour basis.
Gradus is a manufacturer of comprehensive contract interior solutions, including stair edgings, floor trims, barrier matting and wall protection. Gradus innovations help to create attractive and functional environments, as well as enhance and protect healthcare interiors. Gradus solutions are proven to enhance the longevity of a building whilst reducing long term maintenance costs. Gradus works in partnership with the healthcare sector to ensure buildings are safe and accessible for all users.
Whitby Hospital is a Community Hospital providing inpatient, outpatient, and community services. Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust provides community and out of hours services to Whitby and surrounding areas. Whitby itself is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. It was the home of Captain Cook, but is more famous as the place where Bram Stoker’s Dracula landed in England and currently has a population of around 14,000 residents. This high-profile redevelopment project would need to be the responsibility of a dedicated architecture team who could deliver innovation, vision and ultimately quality throughout the new environment that was to be created. The task would fall to healthcare architecture specialists Medical Architecture.
Descending from the Medical Architecture Research Unit, Medical Architecture are born from research, innovation, and industry firsts. Their thinking defines industry best practices, creating better outcomes for patients, carers, and medical professionals. The newly configured community hospital which Medical Architecture designed bridges the gap between home and specialist hospital care, through the delivery of both outpatient and inpatient services in Whitby.
The existing Hospital ‘tower’ has been comprehensively refurbished and modernised to provide 21st century healthcare accommodation with a 19-bed inpatient ward. A purpose-built extension to the tower provides a new entrance to the consolidated Hospital, with better accessibility for those using the steeply sloping site.
The redevelopment of Whitby Hospital by the team at Medical Architecture has created a modern health and social care hub which supports the integrated delivery of primary care, secondary care, and community services. The under-utilised site has now been rationalised and rejuvenated, taking advantage of the hospital’s elevated location, which overlooks the historic coastal town of Whitby.
On specification and design Louise Drew, Senior Architect, Medical Architecture commented, “As well as being on the P22 supply chain, Gerflor had a wide selection of products to suit the different performance needs of the flooring in the varying spaces of the hospital, and the colours and patterns available allowed us to create a more domestic feel, especially in the inpatient ward. We are all delighted with the final finish and are pleased to say that our healthcare facility is future proofed for years to come.”
Andy Gordon, Gerflor Key Account Manager, Healthcare North said, “I began work on this with Louise Drew at Medical Architecture back in 2020 with the project being completed 2021. We discussed floor finishes, and she appreciated the colours and ranges that Gerflor were able to offer. This was also a Procure 22 scheme of which we had just become part of the framework. “Andy Gordon also added, “There was approx. 7000m2 of Gerflor product specified to all areas of the building along with a number of Gradus Wall Protection solutions for the corridors, clinical areas, stairways, wet areas, toilets, together with storage rooms and X-Ray areas. Overall, it was a significant project that would require innovative solutions.”
Dr Charles Parker – Clinical Chair, NHS North Yorkshire CCG said, “There is increased quality of very modern facilities now, and it has allowed us to not only secure these services but actually maintain some of the ethos of the building and retain that memorial that was built by the people of Whitby back in 1925.”
Doff Pollard, Whitby Governor, Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust added,” This development means a huge amount to the people of Whitby. It means they’re going to have a 21st century hospital facility, close to home, fit for purpose for the next thirty years.”
Louise Drew, Senior Architect, Medical Architecture went onto further say “We chose to specify Gerflor for their outstanding world class flooring products and were pleased that they could also assist us with the wall protection surface needs for the healthcare facility. It was refreshing to know that we could work with both businesses for this iconic refurbishment. We specified the Gradus wall protection solutions, thanks to the innovative products that would enhance the building interiors”.
Gerflor are always on hand for customers to offer advice on solutions specifically suited to healthcare environments. Working in partnership with Virhealth, an independent laboratory, experts in virology, it appears that the durability of viruses on surfaces can vary from a few hours to a few days depending on the type of material. Gerflor surfaces have been evaluated according to the ISO 21702 standard with incredibly positive results.
As a leading supplier of floor and wall surfaces for healthcare or cleanroom applications Gerflor has always worked in partnership with ultra-cleanliness and hygiene specialists.
Summary of Gerflor products specified for Whitby Hospital
Taralay Premium
Gerflor’s Taralay Premium range is totally unique in delivering a mass-coloured design flooring which offers outstanding performance for extremely high pedestrian traffic areas where high footfall is expected, providing a 100% pure homogenous wear layer that provides superior abrasion and traffic resistance along with long-lasting colours. The Taralay Premium is still today the best and unique product for healthcare environments, offering outstanding performances especially for high traffic areas providing outstanding durability with no abrasion or scratching impact.
It has a 1mm pure PVC wear layer and handles rolling heavy loads with ease. Taralay Premium has a Very High-Density foam backing and a double fibreglass grid reinforcement. Taralay Premium also has unique stain resistance (for aggressive chemicals used in healthcare) and comes with Protecsol® 2 technology and also delivers an Eco-responsible solution: Higher indoor air quality => TVOC <10µg/m3 (under the detection levels). The Taralay Premium range offers 135 references across 6 designs providing trendy colours and designs. The Gerflor Design Department collaborates with a host of designers, architects, and colourists from around the globe to anticipate new decoration trends, and to develop new designs and colours. The range of exhilarating designs choices offered by Gerflor provides healthcare designers and specifiers with an unsurpassed spectrum of choices and effects.
Taralay Impression Control
Taralay Impression Control from Gerflor is a safety sheet flooring suitable for medium to high traffic areas. For healthcare specifiers, the range offers 18 references and the collection is ideal for hardworking healthcare environments. Taralay Impression Control offers Safety in Numbers. It has an HSE 36+ pendulum test value, ≥ 20 μm surface roughness and a R11 wet slip resistance rating. It has a Group T wear rating, and it also offers a hygienic solution, thanks to a revolutionary UV cured Protecsol® control treatment for easy cleaning and maintenance.
Taralay Impression Compact
The Taralay Impression Compact range from Gerflor is the ideal solution for heavy traffic areas as it comes with a 0.70mm PVC wear layer and Group T wear rating. This vinyl flooring is safe and reliable with improved R10 slip resistance. Treated with Protecsol® 2 surface treatment to ensure no polish is needed for the entire lifetime of the product. The Taralay Impression Compact collection also delivers a range of eye-catching innovative designs in a wide array of stunning colour choices. It’s the perfect flooring choice for specifiers and designers who are seeking safety and durability, together with having the ability to access a range of sophisticated modern designs for healthcare projects.
Taraflex Evolution
Taraflex® sports flooring has been fitted at every Olympic Games since 1976. Approved by many National and International governing bodies as a world class sports surface. Taraflex® is ideal for new build projects and refurbishments and is extremely durable and cost effective to maintain.
Taraflex® is treated with Protecsol®, which renders polish redundant and is triple action meaning no polish is ever required, it contributes to easy maintenance and is anti-friction burn and slide/grip. Meanwhile, surface reinforcement which delivers durability and abrasion resistance is provided by a D-Max fibreglass grid. The improved Taraflex® Evolution product is now safer and better performing. The greater protection has been obtained thanks to a total re-engineering of the CXP-HD™ foam technology that provides cushioning for exercise and sports play. Gerflor’s Taraflex® Evolution continues to be the market benchmark in sports floors with outstanding durability, improved comfort and protection offering a P1 category shock absorbency (25% to 35% – compliance with 14904) and a 7.5mm thickness.
Mipolam Affinity EL7
The Mipolam collections from Gerflor already have an outstanding reputation for their performance in healthcare buildings and settings. The collections include Mipolam Symbioz and new to family, Mipolam Planet™ and Mipolam Affinity where healthcare professionals can choose from a wide colour and design palette, they can also mix and match to create a unique floor scheme. The Mipolam ranges come with a unique surface treatment called Evercare™, that delivers an unrivalled level of chemical and stain resistance The combination of its patented Evercare™ and anti-bacterial and fungicidal treatments ensures that stains such as blood and iodine can be safely and hygienically removed with a minimum amount of water and detergent.
Mipolam ESD-EL7 is a permanent dissipative flooring => 10^6 < R < 10^9 providing a palette of 9 directional design available in rolls and tiles and delivers TVOC after 28 days < 10µg/m3 => indoor air quality. Mipolam ESD EL7 flooring guarantees the highest level of protection against ESD risk due to its low generation of charges.
Tarasafe Standard
Tarasafe is a range of slip resistant sheet flooring that meets HSE guidelines. It is constructed from vinyl with deeply inlaid mineral crystal particles (patent pending) and coloured chips for a decorative design. Contains no Carborundum. Tarasafe Standard PUR is reinforced with a glass fibre grid and is suitable for use in all areas of heavy traffic where slip-resistance, durability and hygienic conditions are required. The Tarasafe Standard range comes with a unique UV cured PUR surface treatment which maximises its hygiene properties. This product also comes with a 12-year warranty and is 100% recyclable, when the product is at the end of its’ life.
Summary of Gradus products specified for Whitby Hospital
Gradus Wall Protection
Gradus is the largest UK manufacturer of wall protection profiles and controls with the design of profiles from initial concept through to finished product, including specialist CAD design and the manufacture of tooling. This ensures that quality is maintained and provides customers with an efficient, flexible, and fast service. The products are built to stand the test of time and are perfect for hardworking locations.
The Gradus CHR160 combination rail combines a handrail and a wall guard element in a single profile providing protection against impact from wheeled traffic whilst offering a comfortable grip to give reassuring pedestrian support and guidance.
The CHR160 combination rail is suitable for use in a wide range of environments including healthcare, education and transport. The easy-to-clean PVC-u covers and accessories are through-coloured and textured to conceal the effects of impact and abrasion and can be replaced in the event of damage caused by impact.
Gradus Standard PVC-u corner guards provide a cost-effective solution for protecting corners from damage caused by pedestrian and wheeled traffic and are ideal for use in environments such as hotels, leisure clubs, schools, offices and nursing homes. It is available in 5 standard heights* and 34 colours to either contrast or blend with the surrounding wall surfaces.
Learn more about Gerflor solutions, ask for a free sample or contact us to speak to a specialist today by calling 01625 428 922, emailing contractuk@gerflor.com, or visiting gerflor.co.uk for the latest innovations. To learn more about Gradus solutions, visit gradus.com.