TEMPORARY FLOORING

Stadiums are great venues for concerts, sporting events, fairs, and crowd-gathering events. One downfall is high traffic from pedestrians and machinery, which can cost venues thousands in damage to grass and walkways. Temporary flooring offers a workable solution to protecting grounds while providing a safe, ADA-friendly pathway for people to walk and drive on.

A leader in event flooring solutions approached Synectic to improve their interlocking pedestrian walkway panels. The existing model was prone to breakage at the connection points during transportation to events and installation. They requested a new locking mechanism that would not require tools or additional parts, enabling quicker and easier setup. The panels needed to endure heavy use while allowing for breathability and sunlight to reach the grass underneath, keeping it viable. Additionally, they sought cost-saving design features, all while increasing the maximum load capacity by 50 psi. Synectic approached the project by assembling an interdisciplinary team of mechanical and manufacturing engineers who:

• Performed a failure modes assessment on the current design to determine weak points
• Developed a hinge pin design for installation that addressed failure modes
• Incorporated a snap-in twisting lock mechanism that allows for easy installation
• Included a visual indicator on the locking mechanism so the installer would know if it was locked or unlocked
• Researched materials to find one that could withstand up to 300psi, allowed for sunlight penetration, and inhibited UV, fire, smoke, and electrostatic discharge
• Decreased the number of parts from three to two and designed them for injection molding to save cost.
• Created and tested the prototypes before releasing them for manufacturing

The final result was an interlocking and modular grass protection panel that enhanced the current walkway system, addressed common failure points, and simplified the setup without sacrificing strength.