Commercial Architecture July 2018 - 51

PROJECT

interiors

Resilient
Flooring Wins
Design Challenge
Senior living
community solves
acoustic concerns
with flooring
choice.

Ecore's Forest Rx surface in European Oak is in the hallways of four resident wings at Silver Bluff Village senior
community. The flooring uses a composition rubber fusion-bonded to the back of a heterogeneous vinyl layer,
providing sound control and comfort underfoot.

estled in the mountains on the banks of the

and refuse barrels up and down the halls continuously 24

vinyl layer. This combination creates a surface that may

Pigeon River in western North Carolina,

hours a day, and that can create a lot of noise," said Leath-

possibly reduce the risk of injury associated with falls

Canton-based Silver Bluff Village is a fami-

erwood.

while offering sound control and comfort underfoot.

ly-owned-and-operated senior living community offering

In response to the feedback, she decided to forgo in-

"We installed the flooring in one wing at a time, start-

short-term rehabilitation, long-term care, independent liv-

stalling a hard surface and instead opted for a high-end

ing with our most alert residents, so we could determine

ing, and social activities for residents

carpeting product that was 40% more expensive than reg-

right away if noise would be an issue and if we received

ular carpeting.

any resident complaints," said Leatherwood.

Lisa Leatherwood, MSN, RN, and the facility administrator, sought to refresh the design of the corridors and

"We were told the higher-end carpet would clean up

It didn't take long for Silver Bluff residents and staff to

nurses' station in the main skilled-nursing building, a

fine, that we wouldn't have any issues, and that it would

realize the positive results of the flooring installation. "No

long-term care facility serving more than 120 patients.

last for a long time," said Leatherwood. "That turned out

one noticed a difference in noise between the carpet and

Her design challenges: replace the carpet without creating

to be completely wrong."

the Ecore flooring, and we didn't receive a single com-

a louder environment and specify a surface that was easier
for the staff to clean and maintain.
"Our main building was built in 1984, and it originally
featured luxury vinyl tiles throughout," said Leather-

As a result, she began searching for an alternative to

plaint," reported Leatherwood. Staff also noted that it was

carpet and learned about Ecore (Ecore International, Lan-

easier to roll carts and move residents around, as well as

caster, PA, ecoreintl.com) flooring after attending a skilled

clean the surface.

nursing convention.

"A damp mop and you're done cleaning the floor,"

wood, a third-generation family owner of Silver Bluff.

"I was immediately interested in Ecore's rubber-backed

"Nurses, staff, patients, and families all use the halls, and

resilient flooring products, specifically the Rx line," she

noise was a major issue."

said. "We also researched a less costly LVT brand engi-

In the first renovation, Leatherwood chose to replace

neered for sound control from a different manufacturer.

the tiles with carpeting. "It didn't take long for the carpet-

However, when we followed up with that company, they

ing to get dirty," she explained. "It ended up looking terri-

couldn't provide us with any resources or a customer refer-

ble and was difficult to clean."

ral to discuss noise levels. At that point, I just wasn't con-

For the next major remodeling, in 2009, Leatherwood
considered re-installing a hard flooring surface in the

vinced that LVT would be as effective as Ecore's Rx line in
sound absorption."

said Leatherwood. "It's really easy to clean and it looks
great." CA

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halls, but was met with opposition. "Everyone said if I had

Leatherwood made the decision to install Ecore's For-

never had carpet before, installing a hard surface would be

est Rx surface in European Oak in the hallways of all four

fine; but, now that I had it, I would probably receive mu-

resident wings, a busines-office area, and in a short wing

Watch a product video.

tiny from the residents because the increase in noise

that leads to the assisted-living building attached to the

Download a flooring information sheet.

would be terrible," Leatherwood detailed.

long-term care building.

Acoustics is a major issue in senior living communi-

Forest Rx features 5 mm of the company's composi-

ties. "We have staff rolling patients, linen carts, food carts,

tion rubber fusion-bonded to the back of a heterogeneous

Get information on Ecore Forest Rx.

Find out more about Silver Bluff Village.

commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

JULY 2018

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

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