They may be overlooked, but well-chosen walls and floors have a significant impact on safety, hygiene, and overall operational efficiency.
Details such as slip-resistant flooring and easy-to-clean walls can provide food service operations with a more comfortable and safe back-of-house environment, while also promoting post-pandemic cleanliness standards and minimizing the risk of slip-and-fall injuries.
“When it comes to safety, we’re not going to compromise,” said Kevin Bourassa, Market Segment Manager for Hospitality at Altro. Established in 1919, family owned Altro has been providing top-notch flooring and wall solutions for businesses of all sorts, including commercial kitchens, all across the world.
Since Altro’s invention of the safety floor sixty years ago, the concept has morphed into a wide variety of all-encompassing, safety-forward flooring and wall panel solutions.
One of the most important developments Altro has made is its’ slip-resistant floor, which provides operators with the peace of mind regarding slip-and-fall accidents. “Epoxy painted floor textures wear out,” said Richard Finnegan, Altro’s Marketing Manager. “But with Altro floors, the slip resistance remains throughout the product even as it wears over the years.”
This is possible by using vinyl and advanced composite materials. Vinyl is an incredibly durable and water-resistant material, making it optimal for the wet back-of-house environment.
Additionally, Altro’s composite materials feature hygienic properties that are resistant to bacteria and mold growth, which is advantageous in healthcare, hospitality, and food service alike.
Cleanliness is important for Altro’s products, in particular, because of their longevity. “Once we get a properly installed floor, that floor is going to last you 10-15 years,” Bourassa said, explaining the benefits of investing in Altro.
One of their customers has had the same floor for over 20 years, he continued, and it continues to be both clean and slip-resistant.
Some may think that it’s unlikely for a high-quality, slip-resistant floor to match the aesthetics of a particular business. However, Altro works closely with architects and designers in order to balance the two and provide customers with various options that are ageless and long-lasting.
Part of their process of balancing both includes a user testing stage in which feedback is gathered from users, architects, and designers to ensure both appealing aesthetic aspects and effectiveness of safety features.
While the company’s benefits are plentiful, switching to Altro may not be a simple decision for many businesses because of the inconvenience new floors may be for those that can’t shut down for long periods of time while flooring is installed.
This issue has been addressed in their adhesive-free flooring line, which holds both the safety and the efficiency standards Altro is passionate about achieving.
“We invented the adhesive-free safety sheet vinyl flooring over 10 years ago and it has come a long way,” said Finnegan.
“You don’t need to glue anything down. Instead, it’s secured down on perimeters with tape. You can walk on the floor immediately after installation, no more waiting for adhesive to cure. This allows for much faster installation time, allows for rebuilds, and is a problem-solver for light-to-medium kitchens that can continue operating during installation.”
Slip-resistant adhesive-free flooring is also available, providing both efficiency and safety simultaneously.
In addition to the array of thoughtfully engineered flooring solutions, Altro also provides businesses with wall material. Their Altro Tegulis wall panel solution offers endless possibilities for their wall’s design, including subway tile, mosaic tile, and custom branding logo or images.
The wall panels are made of a smooth PVC and a durable vinyl material, making them impact resistant and extremely easy to clean. They are non-porous, too, meaning they don’t harbor any bacteria buildup as regular tile would.
For both floor and wall solutions, Altro offers its customers with brief cleaning guides instructing users how to keep up with cleanliness.
“In them, we have some specialized cleaning products for floors that we recommend, because they take on heavy abuse in kitchens,” Bourassa said.
In terms of installment, Altro works with recommended installers who know the ins-and-outs of the company’s products. “Kitchens are heavy duty,” Bourassa said.
“But we know a lot of these installers who are qualified. They know what they are doing.” They also have a technical support team for customers with questions or doubts about their product.
Altro emphasizes “the devil’s in the details,” and their line of products highlight just that: even the smallest of details, such as floor and wall materials, can be problematic if not chosen efficiently and thoughtfully.
Though their product line has options for aesthetically pleasing solutions, at the core of each is safety and cleanliness, making it an optimal choice for a safe and hygienic food service environment.
For more information about Altro’s floor and wall solutions, contact Kevin Bourassa at kbourassa@altro.com, or visit Altro’s website.
