Anti Fatigue Mat Considerations
Which Anti Fatigue Mats and Anti Fatigue Flooring are the best choices for your particular application?
Already Know What You Want? If So, VISIT OUR ONLINE STORE - Need Help? Call 800-685-1144
The answer to this questions is not as simple as it first appears. For clarification purposes it may be helpful to define some terms and establish some premises with which many suppliers of anti fatigue matting may not agree.
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), November 12, 2003 - Volume 290, No. 18 states the following: "Lost productive time from common pain conditions among active workers costs an estimated $61.2 billion per year [in the U.S.] . . . while at work and not work absence." That said, good ergonomics is just good business. The use of the proper anti fatigue flooring is considerd a critical means to alleviate the pain associated with standing work and also to reduce the exposure to Liability & Insurance claims AND increase productivity.
How should one go about evaluating a fatigue mat or anti fatigue flooring so that the "best" working surface offering the "best" health and safety benefits can be achieved as well as finding a product that offers the "best" value?
Much of the scientific research in this area indicates that an optimal standing work surface is achieved when a combination of critical elements working together in concert achieve certain parameters. Until recently, a common misconception regarding anti fatigue matting and ergonomic flooring was that "The softer the product, the better the anti fatigue properties." This perception is not only wrong, but also, anti fatigue matting and ergonomic flooring that is too soft will actually force the muscles of the worker to work harder and thus result in an increase in worker fatigue.
TERM 1 - The Elastic Modulus (compressibility) of a material is a global measure of flooring firmness and is one of the most important test results in evaluating an anti fatigue matting or ergonomic flooring's performance. Elastic Modulus is measured in Mega Pascals (MPa) which is a measurement of pressure. Research points that the optimal range of firmness to reduce fatigue ranges between .6 MPa and .9 MPa.
Many of the fatigue mats offered today as "ergonomic flooring" or "anti-fatigue flooring" offer as a primary feature that their product is "The Softest" or "The Plushest" on the market. FACT- Most of these fatigue mats fall well outside of the optimal parameters of compressibility (.6 to .9 MPa) for reducing fatigue. Furthermore,the use of these fatigue mats may actually increase fatigue and the likelihood of injury due to surface instability that causes excessive body sway or lower extremity shifting over time. Softer is not necessarily better when it comes to reducing fatigue and injury.
Term 2 - Optimal Surface Stability. Another critical element that must be present for a flooring surface to offer ideal anti fatigue properties involves stability. The standing surface must offer enough instability to encourage small changes in posture that will in turn facilitate blood flow to and from working muscles. However, the instability should not be such that it requires the muscles to work too hard causing fatigue.
Standing surfaces that are "Too Soft" can cause extreme levels of instability and increase the risks of:
Loss of Balance
Increased muscular activity as the body works to retain balance - thus increasing fatigue levels
Altering Posture too drastically thus causing muscles of the legs, feet and back to overwork and tire.
This in turn may lead to increased risk of slip and falls and workplace accidents when the worker
becomes tired or experiences discomfort.
Too much instability in a standing work surface can cause or worsen musculo-skeletal conditions in the
back, hips, knees ankles and feet and make painful conditions like plantar fasciitis even more
debilitating.
On the other hand, extreme levels of stability are often found in surfaces that are "too hard". Surfaces that are too hard do not promote the small changes in posture that helps blood circulation. When blood flow is not optimal, the muscles served do not receive the proper amount of oxygen and nutrients to perform at their best. Also, waste products from muscular activity like lactic acid tend to build up causing an increase in fatigue and the possibility of cramping. The lack of circulation causes blood to pool in the lower extremities which can lead to or exacerbate debilitiating conditions like varicose veins. Hard standing surfaces also create pressure points that cause discomfort and the over fatigue of certain muscles. The optimal balance of instability and stability is critical and works in concert with optimal compressibility (elastus modulus).
Term 3 - Densification Strain- The bottoming out point as a percentage of thickness.
Another critical element for an anti fatigue mat or ergonomic flooring to possess is that it must possess an appropriate thickness. A surface that is too soft easily "bottoms out" and begins to act like a surface that is too hard because the cushioning material becomes fully compressed (loss of compressibility).
Current data suggests that anti fatigue flooring should have a bottoming out depth greater than 5mm and a thickness greater than 10mm. This "Densification Strain" percentage must exceed 50% to produce the best results to combat fatigue - UNLESS THE SURFACE IS TOO SOFT. In another words, a surface may have an appropriate ratio: thickness/bottoming out depth, but if it is too soft, this value becomes unimportant due to the overriding problems associated with surfaces that are too soft (i.e., loss of balance, increased muscular activity to maintain balance causing fatigue, etc.). Again, achieving an optimal bottoming out depth works in concert with an optimal balance of stability and instability, and with optimal compressibility.
Term 4 - Responsiveness or Rebound - The time an fatigue mat or ergonomic flooring takes to return to its original shape as weight is shifted or moved.
If an anti fatigue flooring surface has a delayed "Rebound" it will likely already be partially compressed as a load is repeatedly placed upon it, thus negatively affecting the fatigue mats range of compressibility. Also, a surface that is slow to respond is more prone to bottoming out. If the product's return to it's natural state is immediate, it is actually "in-phase" with the movements of the worker. When a product possesses this trait, less energy may be expended by the worker as the flooring "assists" with movement, much as a spring would assist. Once again, adequate responsiveness works in concert with optimal bottoming out depth, optimal balances of stability and instability and optimal compressibility.
Term 5 - Balance of Shock Attenuation and Resilience - Shock Attenuation is the ability to "absorb energy" while Resilience is the ability to "return energy".
The ability to absorb shock without bottoming out ensures that the impact of falls and sudden movements on an ergonomic flooring are cushioned adequately without causing injury. Too much absorption, however, may create the same sensation as standing in sand or on a mattress, which may absorb shock, but would be very uncomfortable as a standing work surface. When balanced with the right amount of elasticity (resilience), there is a reduction in discomfort to the standing worker.
When all of these factors work in concert with each other and each factor achieves it's optimal range, we posit that there is a measurable way to rate anti fatigue matting and ergonomic flooring surfaces that label themselves as "anti-fatigue". There are few products that possess acceptable ranges for all or even a few of the criteria we have put forth.
In fact many use the criteria of softness only as their criteria for an anti fatigue matting or ergonomic flooring. There appears to be a popular yet faulty logic that reasons that if a hard surface is bad to stand on, then a soft surface is good. Using this logic, many products that call themselves anti fatigue matting or ergonomic flooring are constructed from various foam materials. FACT: All foam gets harder as it is compressed. So, if the objective is to provide a softer surface, it does not seem logical to utilize a product that gets harder as it is used. Foams do offer the advantage of compressibility, however this criteria is not the only criteria needed to achieve an optimal standing work surface.
In our opinion, we believe that The Best Anti Fatigue Mats and Ergonomic Flooring Products will be products that achieve as many of the properties discussed above. There may be other factors as well for your particular situation that may alter what is "The Best Fatigue Mat for You". We would welcome the opportunity to discuss these factors with you at your convenience.
VISIT OUR ONLINE STORE
Call Now So We Can Serve You 800-685-1144