The National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI) Certification and How It Helps Make Flooring Safer

The National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI) was founded in 1997 as a non-profit trade organization whose mission is “to aid in the prevention of slips, trips, and falls through education, research and standards development.” NFSI created a traction scale to help people and manufacturers determine the level of traction that their flooring provides. The higher a flooring’s traction rating is, the more protection from slips and falls it provides. Wearwell has participated in the NSFI certification program since 2020. They display the NSFI logo on specific products to give consumers confidence, knowing that Wearwell products materially contribute to a safer, healthier workplace.

About the Certification

Manufacturers can apply for NFSI Certification for their products. There are two main phases of the Product Certification Process that NFSI conducts to decide if a product meets the criteria to receive certification as a High-Traction product. NFSI testing is conducted to determine a product’s traction levels and if it meets their required flooring standards.

The NFSI standards consist of a series of procedures and tests that are designed to measure a product’s components, such as its friction levels (static and dynamic) in different environments, durability, installation criteria, maintenance criteria, practices to prevent slips, trips, and falls, hazards, and more. Once the product has successfully met these requirements, it will be deemed NFSI Certified.

Promoting Safety – Essential to a Healthy Work Environment

Workers in commercial or industrial settings are constantly on their feet. The National Floor Safety Institute cites that, “Over 8 million people a year seek emergency treatment for accidental falls.” Slip and fall prevention in work environments is a vital strategy that companies can practice, improving the overall health and safety of their standing workers. Plus, a safe work environment, avoiding costly insurance claims, pays healthy dividends to the bottom line.

Everyone knows a myriad of factors can lead to an injury causing a slip, trip, or fall. That’s why the NFSI certification is important. It means that these products can be trusted to perform, reducing hazards and making the workplace safer. Products that are NFSI Certified have already been evaluated by third-party testing to ensure that they are High-Traction products.

Wearwell sells several products that meet and exceed the NFSI certification standards. Look for the NFSI logo on select ergonomic flooring and anti-fatigue matting solutions, all designed to keep workers safe and protected, healthier and more productive.

Previously Featured on Wearwell's blog.