Flooring contractor: A J Floorcraft Ltd
Type of works: Polyflor XL PU and Polyflor Mystique PUR used in children's emergency department.

Cheery seagulls, giant starfish, seahorses, dolphins and colourful circular waves are among the seaside themed designs inset into flooring from commercial floorings specialist Polyflor at the new emergency department for children at the Derby City General Hospital.

The creation of the new children’s emergency department is the latest development for the £334 million hospital that opened to patients in 2006 and it will bring together for the first time the children’s and adult’s emergency departments.

Senior Matron Anne Denness said: “The aim of making the whole area more child friendly and introducing an element of fun to the unit was at the heart of the work. The flooring has created a warm, friendly and welcoming environment which will appeal to youngsters of all ages and from all backgrounds. Many of the unit’s patients have conditions which may necessitate regular visits to the CED making it all the more important that they are as comfortable as possible in their surroundings.”

The Derby based architectural practice, Matthew Montague Architects, was commissioned by Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to enhance the newly-built children’s emergency department.

Jane Montague, interior designer within the practice, said: “We aimed to make the visiting experience more relaxed and friendly, so after working alongside a team at the hospital, focus groups were held with teenagers and younger children to ascertain their views and ideas.

“This resulted in a seaside theme using uplifting pastel colours and the colour choices available from Polyflor provided the perfect complement to the contemporary theme used throughout the whole scheme.”

A detailed flooring design on computer was then created by the Polyflor Expressions Design Service that accurately interprets the shapes and dimensions of every element of the designs, transforming them into a precise flooring ‘jigsaw’.

A variety of shades from the Polyflor XL PU and Polyflor Mystique PUR low maintenance heavy duty sheet vinyl ranges were selected, and were installed by local flooring contractor A J Floorcraft Ltd.

Polyflor XL PU and Polyflor Mystique PUR both achieve the highest possible “A” rating under the BRE Green Guide to Specification scheme. Both have also been independently tested and the results demonstrate that they inhibit the growth of MRSA on the flooring. An effective cleaning regime is, however, the most important defence against infection.

In addition, and in common with all Polyflor sheet vinyl floorcoverings, the products can be welded at the seams and to coved skirtings to create continuous, impervious surfaces which offer no sanctuary to dirt and bacteria.

Polyflor XL PU features a specially formulated polyurethane surface treatment - reducing maintenance costs by up to 24% by improving the soil resistance and cleanability of the floor - and offers a choice of 24 attractive colourways and of 1.5mm and 2mm gauges to suit differing traffic levels.

Non-directionally patterned Polyflor Mystique PUR is available in 16 decorative shades and features a high quality polyurethane reinforcement which, combined with a superior closed surface finish, facilitates a low cost, polish-free maintenance regime for the lifetime of the flooring, achieving savings of up to 48% compared with untreated vinyl flooring.

The floorcoverings meet the performance requirements of EN 649 and, fully tested to fire safety standard EN 13501-1, are certified as Class Bfl-S1, achieving the criteria EN ISO 9239-1 ≥8 kw/m² and the mandatory requirement of EN ISO 11925-2 pass.