Background:
The independent Bryanston School, in Dorset, UK has a proud tradition in sport. It counts as alumni, a number of top athletes – including a number of professional rugby players, cricketers and even a double-Olympic champion, German eventer Heinrich Romeike. As part of the school’s efforts to train the next generation of elite athletes it has developed a wide range of outdoor and indoor sporting facilities.
These include a 25m indoor pool, a huge equestrian centre, 37 tennis courts, two all-weather playing pitches, four indoor squash courts and a large fitness club. In 2017, Bryanston School invested in a new extension to its indoor sports centre.
The Challenge:
The aim was to create three new elite performance areas – this included a 40m-sprint track conforming to IAAF standards; an EN14904 (the European standard for sports floors) compliant sports hall; and an elite-level strength and conditioning area. The school appointed UK-based sports and fitness flooring specialist TVS Group for this project, which was able to provide a full solution for all three areas.
According to Andy Roberts, Sales Director at TVS, the most intricate aspect of the project was the installation of the 40m-sprint track. “The three-lane athletics track presented a unique challenge,” he says. “The system had to conform to IAAF standards and take a running spike, as well as, meet the strength and conditioning flooring at the same floor height and match the colour scheme of the sports hall. Force plates were also to be installed at a point below the track and this added another level of complexity to the project”.
“We decided to use our TVS SW 1200 sandwich system, which conforms to IAAF standards. This system is installed using our TVS prefabricated elastic layer, poured in polyurethane binder and an EPDM granulate spread over the top. As part of the works the school constructed the concrete slab work in order to ensure the athletics track, hallways and strength and conditioning areas all meet at the exact same height”.
TVS Solution:
From the outset, it was evident that the original floor system was not robust enough to withstand the high impact collisions in the free weights area of the gym. The floor was too rigid. After some on-site testing and further explorative work, a decision was made to completely remove approximately 400m2 of the original flooring materials. Once removed, the structural slab was levelled using a self-levelling compound. TVS then installed 70mm-thick, impact protection tiles throughout the free weights area. On top of these, TVS T40 heavy-duty rubber tiles were installed and interconnected together with plastic dowels. The open edge of the free weights area was then finished to provide a safe transition to the other areas of the gym.
In the strength and conditioning area TVS installed T40 Sportec Style Tiles, a 40mm-thick, interlocking, heavy-duty rubber gym tile. These tiles are manufactured specifically to cater to heavy weight-lifting activities. Despite the irregular shaped room – and the IAAF track running in at an acute angle – the tiles were all installed in a single day to create a large open plan free weights area. The sports facilities at the school are first-class!
Result:
For the sports hall, TVS utilised a seamless, polyurethane, point elastic system, incorporating a four-layer build to ensure a level surface with performance characteristics suitable for multi-sport use. TVS also identified and rectified damp and level issues in the structural sub-base by installing a damp proof membrane, as well as, a self-leveling screed to the sporting areas.
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