Colours and signage of increasing importance in the food industry

Booster Blog

Fifty shades of every color

Seamless, antibacterial and extremely hygienic: these are the main reasons why the food industry opts for Bolidt floors. But colours and signage also play an increasingly important role in their choice, because of their functionality – and appearance. Production departments must look super sleek.

Of course, you can have a Bolidt floor applied in gray. It is - in many shades by the way - still the most widely sold colour. But more and more managers, production heads and plant managers in the food industry realise that with other colours they can create an even safer and more hygienic working environment, says Ton van Wijnen, food specialist at Bolidt.

“In the fish processing industry, and in slaughterhouses and hatcheries, for example, hygiene is extremely important. In these fields of work, a company floor is cleaned daily with a high-pressure washer. The right colour in such cases, can be very helpful in making dirt clearly visible. The same applies to bakeries. They work with dairy products and meat, among other things; ingredients that are very sensitive to bacteria. These types of company also have an intensive cleaning procedure and therefore want to see where the dirt is. But colour can also have a different function in bakeries. Pastry is produced in wet rooms, bread in dry. Bakeries use colours to distinguish the different departments."

According to Van Wijnen, colours can be very effective in creating greater personal and food safety. “Let me give two examples. In the food factory of Inproba, a specialist in oriental foods, Bolidt has installed blue floors. But the route for visitors is indicated in red. This is safer for pedestrians and employees who, for example,  might be driving forklifts. With regards to food safety; Danone's powdered milk factory has floors in two colours, namely dark blue in the high care area where strict hygiene requirements apply and light gray in the medium care area where the regulations are less strict. Employees do not have to look at signs to know which area they are in. They see that directly in the colour of the floor. As a result, they immediately know which protocols they must adhere to."

A wealth of sector-specific knowledge

Although some clients have explicit wishes with regard to colours, most of them are happy to be advised by Bolidt in this area. Van Wijnen: “By focusing on the food industry, we have built up a lot of sector-specific knowledge over the years. Not only about food safety and hygiene, but also about what colour use can mean for the industry. What are suitable colours for the production department? Which ones perform well in a showroom? We use the knowledge we gain from one project for the next assignment. We also like to invite customers to the Bolidt Innovation Center to see how we can realize their wishes in terms of colours. ”

Uninterrupted production process

More and more clients in the food industry are opting for Bolidt floors. Bolidt floors ensure a hygienic environment in which food safety is guaranteed. A safe workplace is also created with the non-slip floor systems. In addition, the floors contribute to a continuous production process. With the prevention of bacterial outbreaks, production does not have to be interrupted.

According to Van Wijnen, it regularly happens that a client reaches a different decision because of Bolidt's advice. “An owner of a confectionery factory wanted to have a light-coloured floor installed throughout his company premises. Also in the goods loading department where forklifts drive in and out all day long. We advised him to choose a different, dark colour here to indicate the roughness of the floor. That roughness is very important. If a forklift truck is unloading a wet truck, it often gets wet inside too. A rough floor prevents employees from slipping. By indicating this surface with a dark colour they also see straight away where the rough section ends, which is also of benefit to their safety. An additional advantage is that the floor also looks cleaner in a dark colour."

In addition to floors, Bolidt also makes wall finishes. Both connect seamlessly with each other and thus form an extremely hygienic working environment. For these walls, too, the use of colour can greatly increase personal and food safety in a company. Van Wijnen: “The spaces where strict requirements in terms of hygiene and safety apply can not only be indicated with the floor, but also with the walls. If you see white walls with a red stripe at Danone, then you know: I am in the high care zone. Regarding personal safety, not only the colour, but also signage can make a lot of things clear. For example, where employees have to place pallets, indicating that it is important to leave enough room for transport movements. Icons, arrows and numbering are useful for indicating, among other things, fire prevention, factory routes, pedestrian areas and dangerous zones. We can show clients various reference projects in this area. Then it becomes clear how effective colours and signage are."

Available in all colours

The synthetic floors and walls are available in all colours. Bolidt uses sixteen powdered pigments that can be mixed in different proportions. This is done at the Bolidt R&D center where Erthan Elbir, colour specialist at Bolidt, has an eye that is trained in creating exactly the colour the client wants. "The most complex are the fluorescent colours," says the colour specialist. “But also for these  we have developed special pigments. We can handle any colour challenge. It is always nice to see when a project is delivered in the exact colour that the customer had in mind."

Nice and fresh

Colours and signage are chosen mainly for their functionality, though design also plays an increasingly important role. After all, the eye wants something too. Van Wijnen: “In recent years, clients have placed more value on the image of their company and colours play an important role in this. Offices and showrooms that belong to a factory often feature a design floor. But clients increasingly want the floors of their factory to have beautiful colours. A company that works with stainless steel machines, for example, opts for a bright blue floor because the equipment pops out and the whole looks nice and fresh. Clients are often very proud of their company and are happy to show their customers around. Conversely, their customers also want to see the company. So, as well as the offices, the production department and the warehouse must also look perfect nowadays. Our floors are ideally suited to giving a company a sleek look."