Citation

Manning DP, Jones C. Safety Sci. 1994; 18(1): 45-60.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1994, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Research over a period of fifteen years consistently revealed that a microcellular polyurethane soling known as T66/103 (T66) is the most slip-resistant soling for use on oily floor surfaces. Many experiments have indicated that T66 is also the most slip-resistant soling available for water contaminated (wet) floors. The walking traction test and a new mobile version of the rig were used in eight new experiments designed to obtain further evidence for the superior slip-resistance of T66 especially on wet floors. The surface roughness of T66 after abrasion is believed to be an important contributor to slip-resistance and this hypothesis led to the examination of some microcellular rubbers (MR) which also become rough when abraded. The T66 soling was compared with five MR samples, a dense Polyurethane (PU) and two dense rubbers and in all the experiments the mean coefficient of friction (cof) of the T66 soling was ranked higher than all other solings on surfaces lubricated with water, or by water and a wetting agent (p less than 0.001) and the authors believe that the trend in footwear design towards an outer layer of dense PU is retrograde. It is concluded that T66 is the safest commercial soling found for both oily and wet floors and that the more general use of this soling would reduce the enormous number of injuries caused by slipping accidents. Compound T66 should be used as a standard for the assessment of other solings.