Against a backdrop of a potential £30 bn shortfall in NHS funding by 2020/ 2021, long-term value, durability, and flexibility, are paramount when specifying products for refurbishment.
When University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust required flooring for the main entrance of Southampton General Hospital as part of a renovation, it needed to be cost-effective without compromising on quality; the Trust specified Tarkett’s iQ Optima and iQ Eminent. Over 10 years on, and 30 million footsteps later, the supplier says the flooring is still ‘going strong’.
A decisive factor in its original selection was what the company dubs ‘iQ Optima and iQ Eminent’s best lifecycle cost on the market’ features. Stewart Drake, the Trust’s head of Project Services, said: “It was essential that the selected flooring was extremely durable, and offered outstanding flexibility, particularly in applications like this, where it was used at C-level, the main entrance. iQ Optima and iQ Eminent had the credentials to provide peace of mind. A decade later, and the flooring’s excellent condition speaks for itself. It was a sound investment.”
iQ Optima, in a neutral grey, was selected for the main flooring due to its linear design, with iQ Eminent providing the border and inlay to offer a contrasting design and further colour options, ensuring ‘a visual break-up’.
Tarkett’s iQ collection does not require wax or polish for life, is ‘100 per cent recyclable’, and features VOC emissions ‘below quantifiable level’, providing less than 10 g/m3 TVOC after 28 days.
