Bolidtop® 700 College: specifically developed for educational buildings

Bolidt News

KRIMPENERWAARD COLLEGe

Flooring that is walked on by thousands of pupils each day needs to be wear resistant and easy to maintain. A high standard of hygiene must also be ensured. The Bolidtop^® 700 College has it all. The flooring system was specifically developed for the educational sector. This is why Krimpenerwaard College in Krimpen aan den IJssel decided to engage Bolidt for its new building.

Building a new school often involves a long process. The first thing required before construction can start, is political backing. After that it will take a lot of time to prepare a comprehensive programme of requirements. In the case of the new building for the Krimpenerwaard College in Krimpen aan den IJssel (1,050 pupils) this was not any different, says Rob Schemkes, deputy headmaster of the school. “We took all the time we needed to think about the school we had in mind. The new building had to reflect the character and identity of our school. We wanted to offer our pupils a safe environment. It also had to be a durable, transparent and low-maintenance building. And, first and foremost, we wanted it to be a pleasant school to be in of course.”

School’s vision translated into new building

According to Richelle de Jong, partner at architectural practice DP6, which is responsible for the design of Krimpenerwaard College, the school’s vision has been translated into the new building. “Krimpenerwaard College stands for ‘providing support, allowing space and learning together’. This has been incorporated in the design of the building by locating the class rooms in wings that embrace the media centre and the auditorium. The different sections of the school, first class and the following three levels of general secondary education, each have their own common room. These can be used by pupils to quietly read a book or study during free hours. The spaciousness and transparency of the building encourage interaction between pupils and teachers.”

An important element in the interior of the new school is its flooring: it must be able to stand up to rough treatment and be easy to clean. During the development phase, building consultant Hevo told Schemkes that a Bolidt flooring system would be a good option. A Bolidtop^® 700 College system, to be exact. Schemkes: “We were definitely interested, because it is low maintenance and also much more wear resistant than other flooring.

We visited another school to have a look and were immediately taken with the flooring. I think that it has been one of the best choices we have made to actually choose Bolidt in the end. I have high expectations regarding the wear resistance and low maintenance of the floor. We have discussed this with Bolidt as well by the way. We have been assured that the floor will not require any major maintenance work within the next ten to fifteen years.”

Flooring maintains its appearance

Architectural practice DP6 has been working with Bolidt for some time and has used the Bolidtop^® 700 College before in various schools. “Our experience has been that the Bolidtop^® 700 College is extremely wear resistant and maintains its appearance for a very long time. And you can see it at Krimpenerwaard College: the school has been in use for a while now, but the floor still looks like new. Bolidt has extensive experience in developing heavy-duty flooring for industrial environments. Based on this know-how and experience, they conceived a flooring range for the educational sector. Over time, this high-strength flooring option has become available in more and more colours.”

Krimpenerwaard College selected a light colour, which brings a sense of freshness to the building. The media centre, literally at the heart of the school, was fitted with a green rectangle in its floor surface. According to De Jong it serves as “a kind of rug” to create a separate area.

No seams for dirt to collect in

Rutger van den Bosch, facilities manager at Krimpenerwaard College, is “very pleased” with the floor. “It is a great floor. Even with thousands of feet walking across it every day it is as good as maintenance free and easy to keep clean. Whereas the floor in our old building needed to be stripped and rewaxed each year, our new flooring will not need major maintenance for some time. We are also seeing an improvement in terms of hygiene in our new building.

Dirt shows a bit more on the light colour we have selected, but that made us adopt a regular cleaning regime for the floor, which benefits hygiene. A big advantage is that the Bolidt floor has no seams for dirt to collect in. We also chose to have seamless floor to wall transitions installed in the changing rooms and sanitary spaces. As a result, these spaces take very little time to clean and dirt cannot disappear into cracks. Bolidt created the transitions by hand and did an excellent job. We no longer have dirty corners in our school.”

Floor does not get slippery

Another advantage of the Bolidtop^® 700 College is that it has a non-slip surface. For their art and technical rooms, Krimpenerwaard College chose an even more slip-resistant version. Van den Bosch: “Saws are used in our handicraft lessons, so sawdust falls onto the floor. But the floor does not get slippery and the pupils can move around safely. Despite its textured surface, the floor is easy to clean with a soft broom.”

According to Van den Bosch, the Bolidtop^® 700 College’s wear resistance is also up to scratch. “My first impression is that the floor is very suitable for heavy foot traffic. This flooring can absolutely take a beating.”