How to choose the best mat solution for your business
A mat solution plays several important roles in different spaces, from workplaces and offices to public buildings and venues. As such, the choice you make should be informed and well-considered.
Perhaps you are setting up your first physical workspace and need help with the details of what to buy. Maybe you’re expanding to bigger premises and have a lot of new demands to address. Here we present our recommendation of what to consider when choosing your mat service partner.
Analyse your needs
The first step in choosing the right floor mats for your premises or place of work is to assess what are the day-to-day activities of your business. Typical things to consider include: are you operating in a heavy industrial sector? Is hygiene a prominent issue in your line of work? Does your premises welcome many customers or is it a slower-paced environment with less foot traffic? Below is a quick guide to this type of analysis. But don’t worry – Lindström’s mat service team helps carry out this assessment, so you don’t have to!
Here are some key questions to answer when thinking about your needs:
- Do you expect to remain on your current premises for more than a few years?
- Have you considered the climate conditions of your various locations? Will snow, slush, dirt or sand enter your premises?
- Who are your customers, what are their expectations and what are the different ways they interact with your workspaces?
- Is your brand identity established and is it something that should be a part of your workplace design?
- Who are your employees and what are their needs and expectations of the work environment?
- Are there other people who use or enter your workspace and will they impact your choices?
- Is there a current workplace culture and/or behaviours that you would like to change?
- What are the attributes of your current workplace that sustain or inhibit productivity?
- If people aren’t regularly coming to the office, do we understand why not?
When our team at Lindström helps customers make an assessment of their needs, our process has 5 clear focus areas that we go through to generate a best-fit recommendation. Below are what we focus on and why:
1. Cleanliness
Dust and pollutants are carried in from outside on shoes or clothing, or wheeled in via trolleys. Pollutants can contain toxic chemicals or at the very least dust that impacts the air quality. The flooring is the most likely resting spot but the pollutants can easily be dispersed into the air. This can spread germs, allergens, and even toxic contaminants that make people sick.
As many people can be sensitive to dust and allergens, keeping communal spaces clean can help reduce absences related to allergies and illness, something which in Finland alone was estimated to cost between €760-970 million in reduced working capacity. Regardless of whether the activities at your premises make this a priority, use of mats will impact the process efficiency of any regular cleaning and maintenance regime.
2. Welfare and Safety
One of the first steps to creating safe and clean spaces for business activities and public use is to encourage basic housekeeping practices. For many spaces, a well-organised walking area helps reduce the number of potential tripping and slipping hazards on the floor and pathways. Mats can serve both anti-slip as well as anti-trip functions. They allow you to conceal and protect any temporary cables you might have on the floor, for example.
Mats can also serve as safety signage or be placed appropriately to call out potential hazards. Obviously, repairing flooring is important for a safe place of work. However, mats can also be a quick and efficient solution to temporarily cover any defects or cracks.
3. Sustainability
Carbon footprint is becoming an increasing priority for customers, especially for more long-term or impactful decisions. Companies that commit themselves to sustainable business practices can enjoy an increase in customer loyalty. Recycled mats can be a great addition to your portfolio of sustainable actions. The yarn used in Lindström’s standard mats is 75% recycled, and the yarn in our design mats is 100% recycled.
In a report from NielsenIQ on the spending behaviour of Generation Z, “products with multiple (two or more) sustainability attributes saw a 2.5 times higher sales lift than products that carried only a single sustainability claim.” In the same report, it stated that 81 percent of global respondents felt organisations need to be working to improve the environment.” So mats can be a subtle but no less significant demonstration of your ecological commitments.
4. Marketing and Communications
Mats designed with a specific communications purpose create a sense of professionalism and lasting impact. When a customer steps into your space and is greeted with your logo mat or branded personal welcome, it delivers a much more natural and less intrusive message than a synthetic sales pitch. Custom mats are versatile and can be taken beyond the physical business space. They can be used in various promotional activities like hosting events or trade shows. Strategic placement of custom floor mats (such as at the entrance to your place of work) can maximise their impact on brand exposure.
Mats can also help guide customers through your store or around your premises, creating a seamless and branded customer journey. They can also be used to delineate different areas such as entrances, reception areas, lobbies, payment zones, meeting rooms, and collaborative spaces. By identifying specific zones with custom mats, businesses can create a cohesive and branded environment for employees and visitors alike.
5. Atmosphere and Design
All businesses want to create a visual impact on the clients who walk through their doors. However, interior design can be costly, especially if you have multiple purposes for the office space. Luckily, floor mats are an inexpensive way to offer versatile design. Generally speaking, office floors should be a little darker than the walls to provide balance. Mats offer a fast and cost-effective solution to this design recommendation.
A customised mat solution can provide colour and a focal point to attract attention. They give life to a space or bring inside a sense of the outside world. In addition, design mats can differentiate reception seating and other specific spaces, such as areas for communication, with a bolder and more distinctive design element.
What kind of mat solution is available?
After a considered analysis of your business requirements, it’s time to find the best partner for your needs. Lindström’s full mat service covers everything from changing seasonal requirements to cleaning, maintenance, storage and disposal.
If we look at the mats offered by Lindström, there are four general categories. They include: standard (indoor) mats, entrance mats, design mats, and ergonomic mats.
Entrance Mats
An entrance mat should cover plenty of floor space and provide a safe, welcoming entry into your premises as the first barrier to dirt being dragged in from outside. Mats are effective at preventing the more damaging coarse dirt (sand, gravel, snow, etc.) from entering buildings. Lindström’s mat service provides adjustable replacement interval for mats, so they are always kept in the best work condition.
For the best results, the rubber scraper comes before the standard textile mat surface, draining away excess water before soaking up what remains.
Mats with rubber scrapers are a cost-effective and time-saving strategy for keeping a property free of contaminants and preventing long-term damage to flooring.
Standard Mats
Standard mats are the most widely utilised type of mat, so it’s especially important therefore to ensure it meets your expectations. A standard mat serves many functions, from preventing dirt, moisture, and contaminants from getting into your premises, to decreasing risks of slips and falls, as well as improving the overall appearance of your workspace.
Lindström mats are constructed using sustainable and durable materials. Consequently, they can withstand frequent washing and drying cycles without compromising functionality or appearance.
For the best performance, Lindström provides thicker mats with rubber backings that offer greater longevity as well as anti-slip properties.
Design Mats
Once the rubber scraper and standard mats have done their work, it’s the perfect place to install a design mat with the logo and/or the welcome message of your brand. Suitable for lobbies or other areas exposed to customers, their colour and vibrancy will be preserved as your other mats have removed heavier dirt at the entrance.
Take advantage of the free floor space to advertise your company and set a strong, confident, yet subtle image of your brand with the attention to detail that a design mat can provide.
Lindström’s design mat solution offers almost endless customised possibilities as interior design elements. The entire product range is produced from 100% recycled yarn, and all design mats trap fine sand and moisture the same way standard mats do.
Ergonomic Anti-Fatigue Mats
Ergonomic mats are designed with a special core that is layered to allow for responsive compression. They are ideal for workstations where workers need to stand for long periods of time. The mat decreases the strain on the lower limbs, improving both the well-being and potential productivity of employees.
Lindström’s ergonomic mat solution provide antistatic properties making them suitable for welding workstations.
They also drain away spillages from liquids and come with antimicrobial treatment. These benefits are of particular relevance in the food and medical industries.
More advice and support on choosing the best mat solution
Now that you know the key elements to choosing the best mat solution for you and your business, you may benefit from some more tailored support. Get in touch with one of our experts in your area, who can answer your questions and talk you through what might be even more relevant to your particular industry.
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