High-Performance Flooring


bamboo wood floor over the sort of cushioned wood floor system that you’d typically find in a gymnasium or group-exercise room,” notes Kee. “But,” she cautions, “not all bamboo floors are created equal.” For exam- ple, in applications such as the latter, it would make sense to specify a denser type of bamboo.


W


Vinyl variety by Fabiano Designs


64 Club Business Internat ional | JANUARY 2011 |


Synthetics step up Wood may come in a finite number of forms, but that’s not true with synthetic flooring materials. Chemis- try, engineering, and technology continue to work their wonders, serving up a seemingly endless series of sophisticated options. “Sci- ence is offering us synthetic products that, whether they’re rubber, vinyl, or laminate, look like wood or aged tile,” reports Cynthia Maxion, a prin- cipal at Maxion Design in La Mesa, California. “There’s also multilevel flooring construction that’s rein- forced with fiberglass, providing bet- ter shock-absorption, as well as new foam cushion backing that helps reduce fatigue.”


Tile is the treatment of choice for the lobby of the Treehouse Athletic Club in Draper, Utah


Products that make use of recycled


rubber offer much in the way of effi- ciency, cost-effectiveness, durability, and, increasingly, visual appeal. “Today, members are looking for high-quality facilities at an affordable price, so clubs, in turn—recognizing that the floor is a principal feature and focal point—are looking for color and design impact,” notes John P.


Bolon and Chilewich, is being put to good use in a growing number of club areas. It provides a modern, clean look for spaces where, generally, you might expect to find carpet, and it’s easy to clean, durable, and quiet under foot. But, because it’s a newer flooring solution, prices remain fairly high, so it may not be right for a project with a modest budget.


“The primary driving force in selecting a flooring product is always aesthetics.”


Aten, the vice president of sales for Regupol America, based in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. As a result, Regupol, a pioneer in


the category of recycled rubber floor- ing, finds itself moving away from black and low-color flooring. “The old standards of black with a little bit of color are still available, but we wanted to offer options with higher color and better design that, at the same time, were still budget-minded.” Some of the company’s newest lines, he explains, combine “the look of a com- mercial carpet with the durability of rubber and high recycled content—all at a fraction of the cost of high-color, virgin rubber flooring.” Vinyl, in particular, has come a


long way. For example, woven vinyl flooring, such as that produced by


www. ihrsa.org Kee points out that luxury vinyl tile,


or LVT, has also made great strides in terms of club applications. The new photo-imagery and embossing tech- niques that manufacturers use do an excellent job of evoking a wide spec- trum of impressions, replicating asphalt, porcelain tile, stained con- crete, patinaed metals, exotic woods, and other surfaces. LVT sizes and formats have also expanded. LVT now comes in a plank form that duplicates the shape of real wood. And the square pieces have grown to 24" x 24", or larger, in response to the trend toward larger-size tiles. “To deliver a high-end appearance


on a limited budget, we’ve specified LVT in a variety of club spaces—from the main circulation areas, to yoga and Pilates studios, to group-cycling


© Fabiano Designs


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