Stamford Endowed School — Subflex AE underpadding beneath a Taraflex Evolution SL surface

A sports floor is a build-up, not a covering. What the players feel is the top surface; what decides how it performs is everything beneath it.

At Stamford the stack went in as follows:

• The old flooring was removed back to the substrate
• A moisture-resistant membrane was laid to stop moisture rising out of the slab into the system above
• Cushioning foam went down as the resilient layer
• Precision-cut boards were laid over the foam to spread load across it
• The Taraflex Evolution SL surface was installed on top

The foam and board layers together are what Subflex AE does. The foam gives the floor its give; the boards stop that give turning into sponginess by distributing load across the foam rather than letting it compress in one spot.

That combination is why the finished floor achieves over 40% force reduction and meets EN 14904 Category A3. In practice it means a landing is absorbed by the floor instead of by a player’s knees and ankles — across a school timetable, session after session, that is a meaningful difference to injury risk.

It also improves foothold and slide characteristics. A floor with the right amount of grip lets players change direction confidently; too much and they catch, too little and they go over. Getting that balance is a property of the whole system rather than of the top sheet alone.

The system carries Gerflor’s Protecsol treatment, which reduces heat build-up in the surface and simplifies upkeep — the floor is a no-polish-for-life specification.

For a school estates team that is the headline. No annual polishing programme, no contractor booked in every summer, and no floor gradually degrading because the maintenance regime slipped. The Taraflex Evolution SL surface also carries 81% bio-based content.

Nine courts were marked onto the floor: five badminton, one basketball, one netball, one volleyball and one hockey court with skirting. Floor sockets and four cricket creases were added.

That is a hall genuinely doing everything, which is what the Evolution SL surface over Subflex AE is specified for — comfort and shock absorption for the sports that need it, durability for the volume of use that comes with nine courts.

“Our students and staff look forward to playing on this new surface. Shout out to Durant Sports for the issue-free, speedy installation.”

Mark Nasey, Director of Sport & Performance, Stamford Endowed School

“Thanks for sorting for us ahead of schedule too.”

Stewart Dorey, Director of Estates & Facilities, Stamford Endowed School

You can specify your own Gerflor sports floor online with our floor builder, and see the system and colour options before you speak to anyone: gerflorfloorbuilder.durantsports.co.uk

Every installation we have completed is plotted on our map. Tick Gerflor to see the rest: installations.durantcricket.co.uk