2023 Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest Inclusive Design Winner: Morgan's Inspiration Island

In 2023, we hosted our fourth annual Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest to award two deserving organizations in the United States an all-expenses-paid splash pad surface. One award was for a facility that exemplified inclusive design principles, and the other was need-based for a deserving community that met specific benchmark criteria.

We received some incredible applications and out of many impactful entries, one rose to the front. Today, we’re proud to showcase the Inclusive Design Award winner’s installation: Morgan’s Wonderland for Will’s Hang 10 Harbor located at Morgan’s Inspiration Island in San Antonio, Texas.

What stood out most to our team was the thoughtful and holistic approach to inclusivity. Their Ultra-Accessible™ waterpark considers all abilities so that entire families can play and be together for the whole experience from start to finish.

“Morgan’s Wonderland is a magical place for those with special needs and disabilities and those without to come together in environments that promote Ultra-Accessibility™ and inclusion. It became the world’s first Ultra-Accessible™, fully-inclusive theme park in 2010. Our entirely wheelchair-accessible park features more than 25 elements, including rides, playgrounds, and other attractions. Among the most popular are our colorful carousel, the Whirling Wonder Ferris Wheel, the Sensory Village of storefronts encouraging imaginative play, the Wonderland Express train that travels for almost a mile around our 8-acres, catch-and-release fishing lake, and playscapes with multiple types of swings, including out exceedingly popular wheelchair swings. While we recognize the exceptional qualities of these one-of-a-kind features, it is the outcome of priceless memories and a feeling of belonging that we are most proud of. Families of individuals with special needs interviewed during the creation of Morgan’s Wonderland Park shared that not only would a park be fun and exciting, but most importantly, they wanted a space to enjoy TOGETHER.

The tremendous success of nonprofit Morgan’s Wonderland led to the addition of Ultra-Accessible™ Morgan’s Inspiration Island splash park in 2017. Morgan’s Inspiration Island at Morgan’s Wonderland is the one and only Ultra-Accessible™ Splash Park located in San Antonio, Texas. In keeping with Morgan’s Wonderland’s mission of inclusion and the desire to enable everyone to play, Morgan’s Inspiration Island is like a tropical paradise with five colorful splash pads, a River Boat Adventure Ride, and revolutionary waterproof wheelchairs. Morgan’s Wonderland and Morgan’s Inspiration Island Splash Park has welcomed over 2 million guests form 122 countries. Today, Morgan’s Inspiration Island splash park continues to welcome the most guests compared to the rest of the season.””

— Brooke Kearney, Special Project Officer, Morgan's Wonderland

When asked what winning this grant would mean to their facility, Brooke Kearney who serves as the Special Project Officer at Morgan’s Wonderland said,

“Winning this grant would maintain our mission to provide a fun, clean, and beautiful environment free of physical and economic barriers that all individuals can come to an enjoy regardless of age or ability. Unfortunately, countless children and adults with special needs do not have access to facilities that enable them to enjoy outdoor recreation fully. Nonprofit Morgan’s Wonderland is changing that everyday. Since its inception in 2010, anyone with a special need has been admitted free of charge, no questions asked. Hence, the majority of funding support received from the community underwrites the cost to admit our target population of individuals with special needs and disabilities for free, leaving limited funding to support major capital improvement projects. By winning this grant, Life Floor will contribute to impacting over 100,000 individuals annually through inclusive and Ultra-Accessible™ play.”

— Brooke Kearney, Special Project Officer, Morgan's Wonderland

Our 2023 entrants chose from 6 pre-designed themes that would be tailored to fit their project scope, but we were so moved by this story that we decided to do something more. Our Design Studio created a themed beach motif with a custom Murals element, life-sized custom surfboard Inlays, and other standard Inlays from our Marine set to complement the narrative at the splash pad.

Designed and Copyrighted by Life Floor Studio.

Before: Pour-in-Place Bonded Rubber

After: Life Floor

We can’t wait to hear the stories of how this project will continue to uplift the ways people with all abilities play at Will’s Hang 10 Harbor in San Antonio, Texas. Thank you to Morgan’s Wonderland for entering our contest and for trusting us to surface your Ultra-Accessible™ splash pad!

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About the Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest

The Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest is one of our team’s favorite annual events. We love giving back to our communities across the United States and seeing the difference our surfaces make. Through this grant contest, our goal is to uplift communities across the country each year with beautiful and accessible splash pad surfaces that enhance positive memories for years to come.

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THE 5TH ANNUAL MAKE A SPLASH! GRANT CONTEST IS
OPEN FOR ENTRIES

Don’t miss these two opportunities to win free Life Floor surfacing for your splash pad!

How Does Life Floor withstand Extreme Climates?

With over 2,500 installations worldwide, Life Floor is trusted by leading brands and is the recommended surface for WhiteWater, Waterplay, and Rain Drop Products among others. From the bitter cold of Minnesota to the sweltering heat of Dubai, Life Floor tiles are engineered to perform in a vast range of climates.

COLD CLIMATES

Life Floor is designed to flex with the freeze and thaw cycles of seasons. The top of Life Floor tiles may expand and contract with high and low temperatures. In winter months, contraction creates wider joints. In the summer months during operation, expansion creates tighter joints.

Rapid temperature changes and/or wide swings have negligible impact on tile performance after installation. Our approved contact cement adhesives keep the bases of the tiles firmly secured to the underlayment or substrate.

Cedarcrest Splash Pad - Bloomington, MN, USA

Since June 2017, the Life Floor installation at Cedarcrest Splash Pad has experienced multiple freeze-thaw cycles. This public, outdoor splash pad is exposed to ice, snow, and hail throughout the long winter season. To date, Life Floor tiles remain adhered, the surface can be easily cleaned, colors appear vibrant, and our slip-resistant texture is just as effective as the first summer season.

While there are many beautiful splash pads across the Twin Cities, the Cedarcrest Park Splash Pad is unique in that the splash pad is unfenced. Bikes ride over it, shoes run across it, and trees line the outer perimeter with a dry playground nearby. This means that the splash pad is covered with leaves, sticks, dirt, sand, gravel, and wood chips on a regular basis. Given the environment, the modularity of Life Floor has allowed for any damaged tiles to be easily replaced without sacrificing the aesthetic of the splash pad.

Wilderness Resort - Wisconsin Dells, WI, USA

Wilderness Resort in Wisconsin Dells installed one of the very first custom outdoor Life Floor installations. The intricate, larger-than-life inlays of bear paw prints are a testament to our tile's ability to flex with the harsh freeze/thaw cycles of Wisconsin winters.

Since installation in May 2013, Wilderness Resort has reopened the splash pad each season with minimal maintenance. The tiles are easily cleaned and vibrant. Some delamination may occur with installations of this type, which maintenance staff can easily address by following our Replacement Guide in the Owner's Manual.

To prevent delamination from occurring, we recommend using a Certified Installer. Our installation partners typically recommend installing Life Floor in cooler weather (between 60-70 degrees F) which results in tighter joints during the summer seasons.

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HOT CLIMATES

UV exposure is a primary concern for hot climates in regions such as the Middle East.

As part of Life Floor’s NSF/ANSI/CAN 50 Certification, our products have been tested under extreme UV exposure. This is defined by the World Health Organization UV Index as more than 90 days (2,160 hours) of daytime exposure in the 10+ UV Index category within a 365-day period. During testing, erosion is not acceptable if it compromises the surface's traction, cushioning, or color clarity.

Atlantis the Palm - Dubai, UAE

Life Floor's UV resistance exceeds the NSF/ANSI/CAN 50 criteria, which is why internationally renowned brands such as Atlantis the Palm, Dubai choose our products for outdoor aquatic spaces. This iconic triangle gradient paired with Waterplay spray fixtures combines durability with design at Splasher’s Kids Play Area. Together they have created lasting memories for guests of all ages and abilities since it was installed in 2018.

The Atlantis resort brand is internationally known for spectacular thrills, unique attractions, and high-quality entertainment with guest satisfaction in mind. We partnered with Raymond Sport, LLC. to create the iconic surface design for this luxury destination that contributes enhanced safety paired with beautiful aesthetics.

The Beach Jumeirah - Dubai, UAE

The Beach splash pad delights as an amenity to individuals in the Jumeirah Beach Residence area. Life Floor was installed in 2018 and has provided a comfortable and slip-resistant surface for families looking to cool off in the hot climate of Dubai. Unlike concrete, our foam-rubber tiles serve as a good solution for facilities in search of a product that dissipates heat quickly since it will not burn skin and stays comfortable underfoot in intense sun and heat.

In high UV climate areas, facilities often opt for shade structures to protect the longevity of both spray fixtures and the Life Floor. It should be noted that shade is not a requirement since our surfaces have been tested to last at least 5 years in high UV climates with low to moderate traffic.

With constant pedestrian traffic from nearby shops and coffee houses, the splash pad continues to be a focal attraction for cooling off and enjoying mid-day splashes.

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To learn more about how Life Floor can help solve your surfacing challenges, especially in extreme climates, we’d love to set up a tailored meeting for you with one of our product experts.

Is Concrete Surfacing the Right Choice for Splash Pads?

Using concrete as the surface for an aquatic play area is like building a house, putting down plywood and calling it a home. Sure, it functions, but it’s not going to be comfortable or add any design value. And that’s the reality of concrete. It functions fine as a foundation, but is that all we want out of surfacing?

Life Floor Activates the Entire Splash Pad

At Life Floor, we believe safety surfacing dramatically improves the user experience. It completes the immersive experience you’ve planned and budgeted for, combining safety, playfulness, and utility all in one. In fact, because of the way Life Floor performs with water, it’s actually an additional play feature that activates the entire splash pad.

The Surface is a Canvas for Play

Life Floor is a feature because it encourages different kinds of play. The entire splash zone is energized when Life Floor is the surface. Kids cartwheel, jump, somersault, crawl, and tumble their way through spray features. In other words, users play in more ways with Life Floor. By equipping the surface for play, designers can engage 90% more of the aquatic facility.

Investing in Safety and Play Value

The added safety and play benefits of Life Floor are a worthwhile investment. Explore some of the ways we’ve transformed facilities and see what our customers have to say about Life Floor.

Historically, aquatic surfacing has been disastrous. Everything has failed. But with Life Floor, that’s all changed. You can now specify durable surfacing that doubles as a feature. Life Floor's performance and durability have been third-party tested through NSF, which is why we can confidently say we are the only aquatic safety surface that does exactly what it should do.

Want to learn about how our tiles are third-party tested for durability?
Read about how we met the criteria for NSF Standard 50:26 here.

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HAVE A PROJECT THAT NEEDS LIFE FLOOR?

Contact us below and tell us about your project. Our Studio Team provides custom design concepts free of charge. We look forward to designing with you soon!

Safety Drives Fun at Handy Park Splash Pad

In 2020, we co-hosted our first ever Make a SPLASH! Contest with Inside Edge Safety Surfaces to award grants to municipalities in the U.S. for upgrading their splash pad surfaces. We initiated this contest to be able to uplift communities across the country with beautiful splash pad surfacing designs that add increased safety for residents. Redford Township, Michigan was one of our winners, earning our 3rd place prize, a 25% grant towards tiles and installation. 

“Redford Township’s splash pad is coming up on our 15th year of operation and continues to remain one of the most popular spring and summer destinations here in our community… This destination is free and open to the public regardless of what community they live in. Many of our families and surrounding community are low to moderate income so this provides an affordable fun option for summertime fun. Back when the project was completed, options for flooring for our system, budget and for sustainability was the brushed concrete. Over time and the high volume of usage, the concrete surfacing has worn down and has become very slippery over the past couple of years. We have tried several options through local contractors to find a solution, but unfortunately we made the decision to close the splash pad at the end of the 2019 season in order to find a safe, cost effective, long term solution. Since this time, we have been looking at options to re-open this popular summertime activity and maintain a safe flooring which is essential. Due to COVID this past year, Recreation Departments have been hit hard and unfortunately we had to put the project on hold. If Redford Township won the Make A Splash Contest this would help restore this amenity for the residents of not only our community but those around us and enable us to operate for many more years to come.”

— Theresa Burgess, Redford Township Leisure Services Director

Before: Painted Concrete

After: Life Floor

The safety issues Redford Township experienced with their surfacing at Handy Park really resonated with our team. We know how important splash pads can be to provide accessible water play to communities across the country so we were happy to award this municipality a prize to make their surfacing safer. Our Studio Team designed a High Tide Theme in a 401 Pattern for the 2000 sq ft installation to brighten up the splash pad while providing a budget-friendly option along with the 25% grant. 

This automobile-themed splash pad showcases a unique car wash spray feature to inspire kids to use their imagination as they drive through the jets and sprays. With a variety of elements from very small jets to larger dumping devices, there are water play activities available to engage guests of all ages, abilities, and comfort levels.

When Kelsi Goss, our Vice President of Design, visited the splash pad one weekend this summer, she remarked at how many community members and families were enjoying this feature together.

“It was great to see such a wide age range of kids having fun in the water and how many families chose to set up picnics and tents adjacent to the splash pad at Handy Park. I watched a few kids take a tumble but they bounced right up again to resume playing. This wouldn’t have been the case if they had fallen on concrete.”

— Kelsi Goss, Life Floor Vice President of Design

Having Life Floor on the surface enables a variety of activities and types of risky play. Babies can crawl across the soft surface and begin to explore water play with smaller jets. Children can be found sprinting around the splash pad playing tag, hiding under the water umbrella, “driving” through the car wash, and even doing cartwheels. We’re happy to have helped improve this community feature so residents can fully enjoy all this splash pad has to offer! 

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Thank you to Inside Edge Safety Surfaces for installing Life Floor at Handy Park Splash Pad and for partnering with us in the contest.

SEEING IS BELIEVING: HOW LIFE FLOOR TRANSFORMS AQUATIC FACILITIES

Since 2011, we’ve repeatedly seen the noticeable visual transformation that Life Floor can make at facilities. Brilliant pops of color have surfaced over drab, grey concrete and gorgeous, interactive themed designs have replaced failing pour-in-place products. Paired with the promise of safer surfaces, Life Floor makes all the difference. 

In honor of National Park and Recreation Month we’ve featured some of our favorite before and after photos of municipal projects below. 

CEDARCREST SPLASH PAD - BLOOMINGTON, MN

Cedarcrest Splash Pad in Bloomington, MN is located near our Minneapolis office and is often shown to new hires and visitors as a classic example of a Life Floor installation. Before resurfacing with our foam-rubber tiles, Cedarcrest had grey concrete that was indistinguishable from the adjacent playground. This was a major issue for the facility because kids would often come running from the playground onto the splash pad only to fall because of the hard, slippery surface. Not to mention, the park lacked color and whimsy. By choosing Life Floor to increase safety and add design, a bright blue triangle gradient pattern now serves as a visual cue to visitors that the environment is changing as they enter the water play area. This resurfacing effort was so transformative on the look of the park that residents thought an entirely new splash pad had been installed! 

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Before: Concrete

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After: Life Floor

TRAILHEAD PARK SPLASH PAD - WINTER HAVEN, FL

The City of Winter Haven, FL originally built this splash pad in 2016 with a grey concrete finish. They resurfaced it with different products about 3-4 times over the years as they tried to reduce slip-and-fall accidents since they realized concrete was ultimately unsafe on its own. The aquatics division performed a significant amount of research as they searched for the best solution when they were finally introduced to Life Floor. The committee at Winter Haven ultimately opted for our safety surfacing, pleased with the fact that our tiles could reduce injuries while also being certified to NSF/ANSI/CAN Standard 50. This benefit of increased safety was paired with the vibrant blue square patterning that the city selected, visually enhancing the entire facility. 

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Before: Concrete

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After: Life Floor

PARR PARK SPLASH PAD - GRAPEVINE, TX

With concrete slabs on splash pads heating up to dangerous temperatures in hot climates like Texas, the City of Grapevine resorted to a concrete coating. Unfortunately, the coating increased the number of slip and fall injuries. The city approached Life Floor knowing our products feel cooler than concrete and remain slip-resistant when wet from their experience at the Pleasant Glade pool. The city also wanted a completely new and unique design to stand out from other splash pads in the community. Using a mottled effect across the splash pad with our hexagon shape, Life Floor was installed in a bright, modern color palette to create an elevated experience for visitors. 

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Before: Concrete Coating

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After: Life Floor

Veterans Park Splash Pad - Monroe Township, NJ

Veterans Park Splash Pad in Monroe Township, NJ was originally surfaced with a blue fleck pour-in-place product that was failing. It had needed to be patched multiple times and was getting into the facility’s filtration systems. It was difficult to clean and keep clean despite best efforts and the township was ready to replace the substrate with a more durable and easily cleanable surface. This is an issue our team has encountered on a countless number of refurbishments. Products designed for dry play simply don’t hold up in wet environments especially when paired with UV or chemical degradation over time. Inside Edge Safety Surfaces recommended Life Floor to the city and installed a beautiful 301 Pattern design at the splash pad. 

Before: Pour-in-Place

After: Life Floor

ANDREW BELLE SPLASH PAD - DOTHAN, AL

Prior to winning our 2020 Make a Splash! Grant Contest, Andrew Belle Splash Pad featured a concrete surface, similar to many other splash pads across the country. The community had a need to improve safety at this facility and a desire to brighten up the area with a vibrant design. With the addition of Life Floor, the Andrew Belle Splash Pad is now cushioned and slip-resistant while featuring a bold mix of square tiles, which have completely transformed the location. This upgrade was a welcome improvement for the local community who has already started enjoying their new surface this summer.

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Before: Concrete

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After: Life Floor

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If you’re looking to transform a facility with Life Floor, we’d love to help you get started on your project. Please fill out the contact form here and one of our representatives will be in touch with you shortly!

Themed Aquatic Safety Surfacing at Texas Tech University

Life Floor’s new Glacier Theme is featured at the pool and splash pad at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX with a custom logo showcasing the school’s Red Raiders pride. This project was initiated when Texas Tech approached our Preferred Installation Partner in North America, Inside Edge Safety Surfaces, to determine a solution for their aquatics facility. After experiencing issues with maintaining and repairing the previous worn concrete surface, they were in search of a new surfacing option. Life Floor ended up being the right solution due to its custom design capabilities and safety features of impact cushioning and slip-resistance.

The Texas Tech logo on the splash pad is a strong feature of this project that everyone sees when entering the facility and sparks school spirit by association alone. Custom logos and theming to match a facility’s design are two of our favorite things. Logos like this one are a great way for universities and colleges to showcase school pride since they are so unique to each institution. Integrating a logo into the aquatics deck can create a prominent feature that can also serve as advertising during swim events similar to basketball courts that showcase the home team’s logo.

In this tiered design, a triangle gradient in a slight variation of our 302 Pattern replicates sweeping waves into the deeper zone of the gradated sun deck. Students, staff, and guests can now relax in this area in the hot summer sun on the cushioned and non-abrasive Life Floor.

Thank you to Inside Edge Safety Surfaces and Texas Tech University for the collaboration on this project. If you’re interested in specifying Life Floor at a University or College aquatics facility, contact us today.

Our Top 5 Life Floor Design Tips

While our Studio Team is happy to create design renderings for our clients, many customers and partnering designers have expressed interest in creating their own flooring designs. For anyone looking to get started with their own Life Floor projects, we’ve put together five of our top design tips to help guide the process! 

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Include Three or More Colors in Designs 

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We’ve found that designs containing three or more colors look best after installation. As an added benefit, they minimize visibility of debris or regular wear over time. This concept is similar to how complex carpet designs are applied in high traffic areas like casinos. An intricate or varied pattern will hide most imperfections. In contrast, any debris or marking on a solid field of color will be very apparent. We know it’s impossible to keep pool decks and splash pads absolutely spotless all day so this technique helps aquatic facilities continue to look their best. Multi-color designs also enhance spaces where they’re installed by creating vibrant and interesting patterns at the surface level. These designs are vast improvements to drab fields of grey concrete! They lend themselves to great theming opportunities as well.

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Design within Project Budgets

While the sky's the limit for some customers, most are looking to stick within a specific budget. With a wide range of design and pricing needs in mind, we’ve created a variety of shape and color options to accommodate an array of project types.  

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Our tiles are available in four shapes - squares, triangles, rectangles, and hexagons. Our square tiles are the most cost-effective option both in terms of material and installation costs. Triangles and rectangles have very similar material costs (since they’re just half squares). It’s important to note that they are slightly more expensive to install since more pieces are involved and the designs are typically a bit more complex. Of all of our shapes, hexagons are the most expensive.

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Beyond these standard tile shapes, we can also custom cut our tiles into just about anything - curves, logos, games, images, you name it! These unique designs look great but use more material, require more factory preparation, and take more time to install so they’re generally the most expensive. 

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Choosing an area as an accent piece can also enhance facilities within budget. This focal point can add visual interest to an entire project while also keeping the overall cost lower by using a simpler design throughout.

There are many ways to mix and match our tile shapes and colors to achieve a great project look. Hopefully these basics help inform some of the best opportunities to create some stellar designs that are also affordable at any price point!

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Use a Staggered Grid for Tile Layouts

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Staggered Grid

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Standard (Checkerboard) Grid

While most people generally assume that our square tiles are best arranged in a standard (or checkerboard) grid, we actually recommend designing with our tiles on a staggered grid. We’ve found that this layout is ideal for ease of installation and maximum durability over time. Layouts that use standard grids are still a beautiful option; however, we generally recommend designing with them only for smaller applications or for designs that really rely on the checkerboard tile layout for a distinct pattern or look. 

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Accent Designs with Theming and Play Options 

Are you looking to add some sea creatures to your splash pad design? No problem! We have several pre-designed thematic inlays, like fish and crabs, that fit within single square tiles. We can also cut larger creatures, whales or dolphins for instance, across several tiles. 

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Want to add a game into the surface? We can custom cut nearly anything into Life Floor. Some popular choices have included hopscotch and checkerboards.

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For branding opportunities or to include a facility’s logo within a design, we can precision cut all of the parts in advance at our factory. They arrive ready to install to ensure brand accuracy and a smooth installation process on site. A great example of a large-scale logo we’ve created recently was one that we produced for the Fun Spot splash pad in Orlando, FL. The finished product and a diagram showing all of the precut parts are pictured above. 

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Take Advantage of Our Online Resources

Did you know that there are helpful resources on the Design Studio page of our website related to creating designs with Life Floor tiles?

For design inspiration, our Portfolio and past Lookbooks are great places to start!

One of the most popular resources we have posted is a chart that shows color equivalents for all of our tile colors. If you design in Adobe Illustrator (like we do), the Hex codes are very helpful to get the colors in your layouts as accurate as possible. 

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Our pre-established color palettes and tile patterns have been popular options for our customers. Head to the Themes and Patterns pages to explore these designs. We even have downloadable templates that can be used in Adobe Illustrator for anyone looking to cut and paste these options into their projects. Use one of these as designed or vary it slightly to cater it to your project!

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To get started with a scaled tile grid to represent Life Floor in AutoCAD, we have templates that include hatches for both Metric and Imperial designs. 

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Looking for technical details to better understand how our tiles integrate during installation? Those are available on our Specs + Resources page as well! 

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While the tips above cover our major suggestions, these are only some of the best practices we’ve established over the years! Want to learn more or have questions for our Studio Team? Feel free to email us at design@lifefloor.com. We love partnering with designers and take great joy in seeing what other great projects are dreamed up by other companies around the world!

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Interested in our upcoming Designing with Life Floor Guide?

Sign up below to receive access in advance of it going live! 

Anaheim Courtyard by Marriott: Families Focused on Fun

“Before, it used to be concrete so there wasn’t a day that we wouldn’t get an injury. So when we’d get injuries we’d give our injury reports every day even if it’s a band-aid or something like that… ever since we had Life Floor we haven’t had one.”

— Ari Padila Waterpark Supervisor

Excited vacationers looking to experience the best of Southern California look to the Anaheim Courtyard by Marriott whether it’s an annual seasonal visit, or a once-in-a-lifetime trip. 

In addition to spacious accommodations and wonderful staff, the hotel is proud to offer guests their Surfside Waterpark, a 20,000 sq ft waterpark for families to bond and kids to play off a day of excited energy. They first approached Life Floor in 2017 for their kiddie pool and stairs, and after two years of reduced injuries, they came back with ideas to expand the surfacing. 

This 4,300 sq ft concrete splash park that sat underneath a WhiteWater West multi-level play structure had been a significant pain point and continued to stain and deteriorate. The splash park’s concrete surfacing got extremely hot in the Southern California sun and the kids would be so excited to play and get off the slides that they would slip and fall on the abrasive surface.

The WhiteWater design team wanted to create a surface that combined safety, comfort, and play elements, like hopscotch, surfboards, a Twister-like game, and inlaid sea creatures, in order to enhance the guest experience with both passive and active play value.

Going from daily injuries to injury-free days was a huge relief for the Courtyard by Marriott staff, and the guests immediately enjoyed the more comfortable flooring. While we were filming the splash pad, one guest remarked, “The colors are really vibrant. It’s not slippery at all. We’ve actually been to this hotel before, so it’s nice to see sort of the new, updated look and feel. And the kids really enjoyed it and had a lot of fun, and no one fell and everyone seemed to have a blast.”

The difference between concrete and Life Floor is more than just a reduction of injuries. The way families and kids played completely changed with the new surface. Parents started sitting down on the splash park with their kids, and toddlers flocked to this open and free play area without worry about bumps, bruises, or hot concrete.  

“The kids love it. The kids play differently out here with Life Floor. It’s a really funny thing - parents are out here sitting down with their kids. It’s hard to explain, but they play differently and they have more fun and it looks beautiful.”

— Brian Schinski, Operations Manager

NSF/ANSI 50 Passes Surfacing Standard for Interactive Waterplay Areas

This summer, after years of research, testing and careful evaluation, the Standard for Safety Surfacing in Interactive Water Play Areas has been added to NSF-50. And Life Floor is proud to be the first aquatic safety surface in the world certified to this standard. 

Looking Back Through History: Playground Safety Surfacing 

On October 17th, 1903 the first permanent municipal-built playground, Seward Park, was opened to a crowd of 20,000 children [x]). The adoption of these public play spaces was rapid. By 1907 there were 90 municipalities with playgrounds. In just three years that number grew to 531.[x] 

With this rapid growth of playgrounds, so too did the injury reports, emergency room visits, and critical head injuries. Parents and experts across the country recognized the growing injury trend, and worked to eliminate the largest and most prevalent hazards. 

In 1981, the Consumer Product Safety Commission published the Handbook for Public Playground Safety and parks were retrofitted to eliminate hard surfaces and high falls.

Splash Pads = Playgrounds + Water

Splash pads, like playgrounds, also have had a monumental and rapid adoption across the world. Splash pads were developed in response to providing kids with a play area to cool off without the drowning risk of pools or the sanitation problems associated with public fountains. In the rush to meet the demand, the role of finding safety solutions has been left to each individual operator, with mixed and inconsistent results. Every year, splash pads all over North America have closed to replace or retrofit their surfacing due to complaints, injuries and maintenance.  

Operators have especially struggled with surfacing options due to the playful and interactive nature of splash pads. Kids interact with each other by jumping and running from spray feature to spray feature without the protection of clothing or shoes. The combination of bare feet and concrete has left users with burned feet, bumps, bruises, broken bones and head injuries.  

To try to solve these issues, operators have been using playground safety surfaces like poured-in-place rubber. These surfaces, while great for dry applications, are simply not developed to interact with treated water. When the adhesive inevitably breaks down, particles clog filtration systems, patchy floors create tripping hazards and microbes grow inside trapped water.

For a lack of a functional surfacing system, many cities have resorted to hiring splash pad attendants to remind kids not to run. 

Unfortunately, these individual stop-gaps have not solved the world-wide problem facing splash pad operators. According to the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database, in 2014 alone, there were an estimated 20,000 injuries on pool decks, splash pads and water parks resulting in an emergency room visit.  

The safety revolution that transformed dry playgrounds is long overdue for splash pads. With the new NSF/ANSI 50 standard in place, operators will be able to reduce injuries and keep splash pads open, providing fun for their communities all summer long. 

After nearly a decade of designing, testing, and building aquatic surfaces, we have been proud to contribute to the process of creating these new safety requirements. The surface is an indispensable part of the play value, and overall experience of the splash pad. And that’s why we’re committed to designing the safest, most beautiful splash pad surfaces using only products engineered exclusively for aquatic play. We believe the best surface allows kids to play just as they should. Together, we’re creating a safer future for aquatic recreation, for our families, and for our communities.

Our tiles meet six unique performance based standards to meet certification: slip-resistance, impact attenuation, chemical resistance, UV resistance, cleanability, and impermeability. To learn more about our tile’s performance results, visit our NSF/ANSI 50 page.