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The Importance of EN Standards
In 2006, the EN-14904 athletic floor performance standard was adopted by the European Union through the European Committee for Standardization. This marked the end of more than 20 years of DIN criteria having been the performance benchmark in Europe and North America. The EN 14904 standard, which supersedes DIN 18032 part 2, creates a wider spectrum of performance criteria with many of the familiar DIN criteria. This approach allows specific use floors such as basketball and volleyball courts to be designed with performance criteria that are more suitable for their intended use. Under DIN standards, the criteria had very narrow performance standards that eliminated known high-performance floor systems from the selection process. As an example DIN’s minimum deformation value is 2.3mm. A floor with 2.2mm deformation would not pass DIN. The .1mm difference equals .0039”….less than the thickness of a sheet of paper.
As EN and ASTM standards continue to develop in the marketplace, Action Floor Systems will continue to incorporate DIN standards only as a reference to performance standards while striving to adhere to the most current and relevant testing procedures.
There is only one EN standard ensuring uniform testing for athletic floors. This will result in less confusion and a set of criteria that can evaluate floor performance in a more uniform manner and creates a larger selection of floors in the marketplace.
EN TESTS
Please see the chart below for specific EN 14904 requirements.
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Requirements |
| Force Reduction (min) |
25 % < FR <75%
(Range +/- 5% of Average) |
| Ball Rebound (min) |
90% < BR
(Range +/- 3% of Average)
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| Vertical Deformation (mm) |
StVv < 5 mm |
| Rolling Load |
1500 N |
 Slip Resistance |
80 < SR < 110 |
Northern hard maple is inherently resilient …its fibers and air pockets provide natural shock-absorbing qualities. Action Floor Systems is committed to providing the highest quality athletic floors on the market. For further clarification or discussion about EN or DIN criteria please contact Action Floor Systems at 800.746.3512.
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