Breaking the taboo of shiny & new!

14 August 2020

The wonderful world of CAT-A poses many potential obstacles for both clients, designers and contractors alike. In years gone by a CAT-A fit out would include a standard carpet overlay on the raised flooring to give an indicative finish for the prospective clients to view during the letting process. However more often than not the new tenant would decide that the carpet currently installed was not to their tastes and the carpet would be ripped up and scrapped. Fortunately the industry has realised how wasteful this is and decided to leave the raised floor uncovered. However this raises two new issues, firstly the raised floor is and has never been intended to be a finished product and secondly the great ‘shiny new’ debate.

So what is the great ‘shiny new’ debate? The market has evolved with the desire for a raised floor in a CAT-A finish to be shiny, new and consistent in finish, however this is impossible. A raised floor panel consists of a chipboard core encased in galvanised steel, the steel arrives at the point of manufacture in huge coils, the colour of the steel can even change in the same coil so even having panels made from the same coil does not prevent the potential for a slight variation in tone per panel. With reference to the finish of the panels being ‘unmarked’ the machinery in the factory producing and stacking the panels can scratch them. On site manual handling can leave fingerprints and light scratches are not considered damage and regardless of the company producing and installing the raised flooring it is impossible to guarantee a floor free of mild blemishes.

A raised floor panel that is punctured or pierced would be considered damaged and anything that could compromise the structure of the panel would mean it was not fit for use or installation. At RMF we ensure that all panels remain free of significant damage and are always installed as per the manufacturers guidance.

As much as we endevour to install a shiny and beautiful floor we, like all of our competitors, are unable to guarantee a perfect and completely uniform finish on colour and blemish free floor. We pride ourselves on our honesty and transparency with our clients and we never make false promises. To work with a team with integrity and experience then get in touch with us.

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