USA (Austin, TX) | Education | norament^® grano™

Eanes Independent School District Works to Standardize Resilient Floor

Eanes Independent School District (ISD) was looking for a long-range flooring solution to use in classrooms, hallways, cafeterias and gyms that would eliminate the issues the district was experiencing with its current flooring.

“It’s a paradigm shift for the district. It’s always been about VCT or carpet tile,” says Bob Cervi, director of facilities, maintenance & operations. “We’re finding where we can use nora^®, and we’re doing it. It’s a long-range solution. It’s not a fix; it’s a solution,” Cervi continues. “What I also like is that there is now 10,000 square feet of flooring that we’re not stripping and waxing.”

...read more

Eanes Independent School District (ISD) recently completed three projects, including the gymnasium at Valley View Elementary, corridors at Hill Country Middle School and the cafeteria at Eanes Elementary. Replacing VCT and carpet tile, nora was selected for its ease of maintenance, durability and hygienic properties.

Explaining the benefits to the district, Bob Cervi, director of facilities, maintenance & operations, says, “It takes two custodians four days to strip and wax a cafeteria. Since nora is a waxless floor, that means we just gained two custodians and eight days of work to do something else. The other kicker – that’s four days we are not running the HVAC during the summer when there’s no one in the building, just to make sure the wax cures out. Anytime we can gain man-hours and reduce energy consumption, we’ve saved a job as a district.” Cervi continues, “Additionally, we no longer have a slip, trip or fall issue, because someone always does [fall] on that slick stripper. So we can reduce my workers comp concerns.”

In addition to saving time and money on maintenance, Eanes ISD also appreciates improved indoor air quality. “The PE teacher was having indoor air quality issues in the gymnasium, which was carpeted. Spills would happen and would sit for hours. You can only steam clean so many times. We no longer have that issue with nora,” says Cervi.

Being a former teacher himself, Cervi explains, “I understand both sides of the desk, so I see the direct correlation of how what we do on the maintenance side affects the educational process.” When it comes to enhancing staff and student experience, Cervi says, “I’m a big fan of nora’s compaction rating that reduces leg fatigue at the end of the day for teachers.”

Students are also able to better focus, as unwanted noise is attenuated. “The principal at Hill Country Middle School couldn’t believe how much quieter the halls were,” says Cervi. Over the upcoming holiday break, Eanes ISD will be installing nora in 16 more classrooms, with additional renovation projects in the works for next summer.