Overview

Paddington is one of London’s main railway stations and is therefore a busy  hub with local, regional and international passengers traveling both by train and underground.  Transport for London runs the day to day operation of London’s public transport network. Creating a safe environment for passengers and staff by implementing safety regulations and improvements is one of the most important goals set by this government organisation.  

The maintenance of Paddington underground station is managed by London Underground. There are four lines at this station, Bakerloo, Circle and District, Cercle and Hammersmith & City and Elizabeth line. One of the challenges was finding a sustainable, easy to clean, long term solution to prevent slippery floors. Such improvements contribute to a more comfortable, safe and pleasant journey for passengers visiting at the station. 

Challenge

In intensively used places like Paddington station, especially in the rainy season, slip accidents can occur for example when passengers enter the ticketing hall with wet shoes. Creating a safe, well-maintained Anti-Slip floor, which offers lasting slip resistance, is therefore of vital importance. Because applications are also necessary in underground areas, London Underground has implemented the strictest health and safety testing regime in the business for coatings, with regard to fire, smoke and toxicity.  

Solution

Recoat’s partner AGS One proposed the application of the Recoat Anti-Slip system for a project at Hammersmith & City line station at Paddington. The floor is covered with Terrazzo tiles. After a number of years the tiles had become smooth, resulting in a slip resistance below the minimum requirement of 36 in the wet. Which in turn resulted in various slip accidents. 

Procedure

The application on hard stone floors, such as Terrazzo consists of the following steps: 

1. Cleaning with Recoat Floor Cleaner for initial deep cleaning and removing all dirt from the grout in the seams. 
2. Applying Recoat Bonding Cleaner with a mop to ensure optimal adhesion to the Terrazzo tiles without abrading. 
3. Applying the Recoat Multi Primer Clear, universal, waterborne clear primer which adheres exceptionally well to most substrates. Application with a microfibre roller. 
4. Applying the Recoat Floor, extremely hard wearing Anti-Slip coating.  

Marc Coppes, Business Development Manager Specialist Coatings at AGS One says: ‘AGS One carries out a lot of maintenance and cleaning work for London Underground and other transport related companies. We have worked together with the Recoat team and applied their Anti-Slip floor coating system at a couple of challenging locations so far, and I must say that I am impressed with the results. For this project our team applied the Recoat Floor system in the ticketing hall of the Hammersmith & City line station at Paddington within a short time frame. As a result, the floor improved dramatically in appearance, and test results show a significant improvement in slip resistance level. Now, passengers can walk safer due to the increased Anti-Slip performance. I am pleased that the management of Paddington station offered the opportunity to apply this hardwearing, sustainable coating to evaluate its performance over time’.

Purpose

Recoat Floor is specifically developed for maintenance and repair of various types of floors. The coating extends the design life of the treated surfaces and is invisible due to the extremely matt finish. Recoat Floor has unique Anti-Slip properties on both dry and wet floors, without the floor becoming rough. This keeps the floor easy to clean. In addition, the coating is resistant to chewing gum: it prevents gum from adhering to the surface which solves a lot of annoyance for both passengers and cleaning staff.  

Specific benefits of the Recoat Floor system for Paddington station are:

• Offers optimal slip resistance
• Dry to walk on shortly after application
•  Has all international fire ratings required for airports and London Underground 
• Easy to clean, reduces cleaning time and frequency. No harmful chemicals required
• Can be applied to Vinyl, linoleum as well as hard surfaces such as concrete, natural stone and tiles 
• Chewing gum does not adhere on Recoat Floor
• Long lasting performance
• Easy to maintain, damages can be repaired without a problem

Result

Measuring the slip resistance of the newly installed Recoat Floor Anti-Slip system. The slip resistance of the system lies in general between 45 to 55 wet. Independent test report available upon request.

Step 1: The first step of the application process is deep cleaning the floor with Recoat Floor Cleaner.

Step 2: Application of the Recoat Bonding Cleaner to ensure optimal adhesion to the terrazzo tiles without abrading.

Step 3: Application Recoat Multi Primer Clear, universal, waterborne, clear primer which adheres exceptionally well to most substrates.

Step 4: Application of the Recoat Floor, extremely hard wearing Anti-Slip Coating.

Figure 5: Hammersmith & City underground station at Paddington back in operation for the public on Monday morning.