Aug 1, 2008 12:00 PM

Club owners can slash energy expenses by investing in high-performance, low-maintenance flooring.

When Ed Steele received a letter from his utility company notifying him of a 38 percent hike in electricity prices, he was glad he had already found one way to save money — low-maintenance flooring. A few years ago, administrators at The Cecil F. Gilkerson Community Activities Center in Harrisonburg, VA, invested $50,000 in a new gym floor, says Steele, the community center director of the Harrisonburg Parks and Recreation Department, which includes the 30-year-old Cecil F. Gilkerson Community Activities Center.

Unlike some types of flooring materials, the layered polyvinyl chloride (PVC) material doesn't need to be sanded, resurfaced or waxed, and it can be maintained with a daily dust mopping and a periodic deep cleaning with a $4,500 scrubbing machine.

Over the years, flooring manufacturers have introduced high-performance, low-maintenance flooring options for every area of a fitness facility. By selecting the right type of flooring during new construction or a renovation project, fitness facility operators have been able to lessen the amount of labor and supplies required to keep floors in top condition, which translates to money savings.

Before installing the new gym floor at the 40,000-square-foot Cecil F. Gilkerson Community Activities Center, administrators considered different types of flooring, including snap-together tiles and traditional hardwood. They decided to go with the vinyl sports flooring because it required less maintenance on an annual and daily basis, says Steele. The new flooring covers 800 square feet in a dance studio and 8,000 square feet in the gym, which is used for gymnastics, basketball, volleyball and children's recreation programs.

Mike Revere, executive director of Sentara Center for Health and Fitness in Hampton, VA, considered ease of maintenance, durability and high performance when selecting flooring materials for his 34,000-square-foot club, which opened in January.

Rather than using small ceramic tiles, Revere selected lower-maintenance larger tiles with fewer grout lines in the lobby, café and wet areas of the locker rooms. Carpet squares, rather than rolled carpet, were installed in the offices, locker rooms and children's area, so damaged or stained carpet tiles could be quickly replaced. Revere also selected rolled vinyl flooring for the indoor track and group fitness rooms because the initial installation cost and ongoing maintenance costs are less than a traditional suspended wooden system for his club, he says. Selecting the proper flooring was important in maximizing profitability and minimizing expenses, Revere says.

“I believe that good decisions on the front end allow for fewer maintenance problems in the future,” he says.

The Southside Family YMCA in Farmville, VA, also looked for flooring that was durable and easily maintained, says Keith Scott, partner of Rosney Co. Architects, Charlottesville, VA. He specified ceramic tile for the Y's lobby, carpet in the offices and multipurpose rooms, and synthetic flooring in the main wellness center, corridors and group fitness rooms.

“Long-term and day-to-day maintenance were some of the big factors for us,” Scott says. “Also, because of all of the sports activities that happen at the Y, durability and performance were important.”

On the Floor

When trying to decide on which flooring material to invest in for their facilities, club owners now have more choices than ever. They can choose from two organic flooring materials — wood or stone — or opt for synthetic flooring materials, says Stan Hulin, president and CEO of Future Flooring Technology, a Portland, OR-based flooring consulting firm.

Hulin says more health club owners are investing in rubber flooring for their weight rooms, due to its impact resistance, and hardwood flooring and carpet in other areas of the club. Hard, easily cleaned material, such as ceramic tiles, are also becoming popular, as are engineered wood floors and rolled vinyl.

Club owners also can invest in modular tiles that snap together. These tiles are less expensive than a traditional wood floor option, but they don't have the same aesthetic appeal of a real wood floor, says a representative from one flooring manufacturer. The vendor also carries some vinyl flooring material but doesn't sell much of it, except in high-abuse areas, such as community recreation and school fitness centers.

The latest technology in flooring allows architects to accommodate both the functional and aesthetic needs of a fitness facility, Revere says.

Despite differing opinions on the type of hardwood options to use, many club owners still invest in hardwood flooring in some area of their facility, whether it's in their basketball gym, aerobics studio or racquetball court.

Traditional hardwood flooring requires minimal daily maintenance, but it must be periodically sanded, sealed and refinished, which simply isn't possible at some fitness facilities, such as the Gilkerson recreation center.

“We run a year-round child care center for school-aged children, and we don't have the luxury of closing down our gym,” Steele says. “We also can't operate with the fumes from refinishing the floors.”

By investing in vinyl flooring, Steele's facility now has year-round operability, he says. He also can raise the building's temperature by a few degrees without worrying that the vinyl flooring might warp, as is the case with types of flooring that need a constant temperature and controlled humidity.

Maintenance Matters

Temperature and humidity control are just two aspects of proper floor maintenance. All too often, Hulin says, health club owners don't invest the proper resources into taking care of their flooring.

“If clubs hire the high school kid down the street to mop their floors, it will cost them more money in the long run,” says Hulin, who started his training, consulting and education firm four years ago. “Flooring maintenance is a known craft, and it takes training and education.”

Although many health club owners and managers are familiar with how to maintain carpet, many times, they simply don't know how to take care of hard flooring surfaces, he says. For that reason, some club owners view maintenance as a cost they want to reduce, and as a result, they end up turning off customers with dirty and worn flooring.

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