Office Flooring

Today, office flooring must comply with the requirements set by The Building Code Australia (BCA). High-rise commercial buildings, medical centres, fitness centres, warehouses and aged care facilities must have fire rated flooring.

The BCA requires that all floor coverings are tested against AS ISO 9239 which includes carpet, underlay, glues and substrate. There are a number of tests involved that floor coverings must pass to comply with the BCA.

Listed below is a variety of floor coverings that our Fitout Builders experts will be happy to assist you with and advise you on the best flooring solutions for your office fit out.

Carpet Tiles

Otherwise known as carpet tiles or carpet squares, modular carpeting is the latest thing in modern office fitouts. Designed for flexibility and malleability, the infinite array of customisable styles is endless. Easy to install and maintain, much like a traditional floor tile, carpet tiles are the perfect choice if you want to transform a space and create a comfortable but strong floor.

Advantages of carpet tiles are:

  • Design flexibility - Available in a range of sizes, shapes, colours and textures for greater design flexibility.
  • Easily replaced - A damaged carpet tile can be easily replaced without affecting the remaining flooring.
  • Acoustics - The acoustic benefits of a cushioned back carpet tile are highly appealing. Carpet tiles absorb the noise generated by foot-traffic and chairs.
  • Durable and long-lasting.
  • Less wastage - There is less wastage with carpet tile installations.
  • Unique - Customised carpet tiles allow for office floor designs to be individual while delivering unique aesthetic appeal.
  • Mixed and matched - Carpet tiles can be mixed and matched to create a pattern.

All carpet tiles created for commercial interiors must be fire rated and are suitable for use in:

  • Offices
  • Meeting rooms
  • Gyms and fitness centres
  • Medical centres
  • Reception and waiting areas
Boardroom with carpet tiles

Broadloom Carpets

As the name implies, broadloom carpet is carpet woven on a very wide loom. Most commonly installed in 12-foot wide large rolls, it is most often used for wall-to-wall carpeting in both commercial and residential settings. Made of wool, wool blend or nylon, broadloom carpet is specifically suited to offices, retail stores, training centres, showrooms and large open spaces attracting high foot traffic.

Here are some of its advantages:

  • Value for money – broadloom carpet is often sold by the metre (1m x 3.67m) while other products are sold in square metres (1m x 1m). So, you are getting approximately 3.5 times more carpet than the comparable square metre price.
  • Design and flexibility – Available in a range of styles, colours and textures, broadloom carpet can be used for unique design flexibility such as visual cues and wayfinding, increasing the overall aesthetic of the office.
  • Comfort – carpet delivers a feeling of well-being and creates a sense of warmth even if the temperature is slightly lower in a non-carpeted room.
  • Ergonomics – compared to a hard floor, carpet provides underfoot comfort and can reduce walking and standing leg fatigue.
  • Slip resistance – Compared to hard non-impact absorbing surfaces, carpet reduces the risk of slips and falls and decreases the severity of injuries if an accident does occur.
  • Acoustics – carpet is the best floor covering for reducing impact and reverberation noise compared to any other flooring surface.
  • Thermal insulation – Carpet is an exceptionally good insulating material and can reduce energy costs in heating and cooling.
Boardroom with broadloom carpet

Timber Look Vinyl Planks

Elegantly designed, timber look vinyl flooring is suitable for any commercial interior, from apartments, hotels and restaurants through to education, retail, office and medical centres.

They come with all the added benefits of vinyl plank which include:

  • Water resistance
  • Hard wearing and durable
  • Acoustically beneficial
  • Scratch resistance
  • Matte finish
  • A wide array of installation options to suit your office
boardroom with timber look vinyl planks

Polished Concrete

No longer limited to basements and garages, polished concrete flooring is a modern trend for homes, shops and offices. Its wide range of advantages include:

  • Durability and longevity - It is almost near impossible to damage, scratch or chip offering longevity and increased lifespan over other floor coverings.
  • Maintenance is minimal – It only requires a sweep or mop daily to remove dirt and dust accumulation, and a weekly mop to restore shine.
  • Design options are limitless – Polished concrete comes in a variety of colours and textured effects. You can even include stencilling and engraving for complete customisation.
office amenities area with polished concrete

Porcelain or Ceramic Floor Tiles

With the vast array of different types of tiles available, the most commonly used for office fitouts is ceramic and porcelain tiles. Here are their advantages:

  • Resistant to the elements – These tiles are resistant to moisture, temperature and chemicals and do not corrode when exposed to extreme weather and temperatures. They are perfect for wet areas like amenities, showers and kitchenettes.
  • Durability and longevity – Porcelain and ceramic tiles are extremely durable and tough. If one tile does fall victim to extreme impact or a tile cracks, it is easy to replace that one tile as opposed to the whole floor.
office amenities area with tiles

Vinyl Flooring

If you are looking for eco-friendly flooring that is easy maintain and appeals aesthetically, vinyl flooring is the way to go. It is becoming quite trendy and affordable due to its clean and modern look and is suitable for medical centres, amenities areas and consultant suites.

Below are some advantages.

  • Warmth and comfort – Vinyl flooring delivers a warm and comfortable feel.
  • Noise reduction.
  • Provides insulation.
  • Water and stain resistant.
  • Scuff and scratch resistant.
  • Durability – it withstands heavy foot traffic.
  • Resistant to mould, mildew and bacteria.
  • Low maintenance – it requires only basic cleaning such a sweep or a mop.
  • It is a popular alternative to timber flooring.
  • Large variety of modern designs including timber trends and wood effects.
office amenities area with vinyl

Raised Server Room Flooring

Your server room is a crucial part of your office. Its main job is to distribute power to racks, data cables and cooling agents. So, it requires technology that assists in making this happen without interference. This is where raised server room flooring comes in. It is designed in a way that it creates a floor on top of the original structured floor already in place using pedestals, stringers and floor panels. Hence, the name – raised flooring.

Its benefits include:

  • It encompasses a distribution system for conditioned cold air.
  • It has passageways for power cabling.
  • It contains location to run chilled water and piping.
  • The ground grid is copper for grounding of equipment.
  • It includes tracks and conduits to support data cabling.

You have a big variety of flooring types available to you and our Fitout Builders consultants can advise you on the best flooring solution for you. Contact us today on 1800 FITOUTS (348688) or email admin@fitoutbuilders.com to discuss the type of flooring best suited for your office fitout.