Specifying commercial tiling: slip ratings, grout and programme

Slip resistance: R ratings and PTV

R ratings come from a ramp test with oil and are what manufacturers publish. PTV (pendulum test value) is what UK enforcement bodies actually use, and 36 or above is the practical benchmark for a floor that may get wet.

In practice: R10 for dry internal circulation, R11 for entrances and food service areas, R11–R12 for commercial kitchens and wet changing areas. Remember that entrance matting does more for slip safety than any tile — most slips happen in the first few metres inside the door.

Grout and coving in food environments

Epoxy grout is effectively mandatory in a commercial kitchen. Cement grout erodes under steam cleaning and food acids, and the eroded joint becomes a bacteria trap that environmental health will pick up. Coved skirting tiles at every wall junction remove the 90° corner that cannot be cleaned.

Falls to a gully, a bonded drain flange and a fully tanked floor complete the specification. Do it once at fit-out and it lasts the lease.

Front of house: brick slips, slabs and feature walls

Brick slips need a properly fixed backing — board or render, never bare plasterboard — a decided corner return strategy, and an approved sample panel for pointing colour. Large-format slabs on bar fronts and columns need suction handling, rail cutting and mechanical support on anything vertical above a certain size.

We build a sample panel on every commercial job so the designer signs off the real material under the real lighting, not a photograph.

Programme, RAMS and handover

Night and weekend working, phased zones, dust and noise control, a named site contact and RAMS submitted before mobilisation. Handback should be clean and usable at the end of every shift, not just at the end of the job.

At completion you should receive an O&M pack: tile, adhesive, grout and sealant data sheets, slip test data for your file, maintenance and cleaning instructions, and the workmanship guarantee.

How to get a comparable price

Issue drawings and a schedule of finishes if you have them. Ask every contractor to price preparation, movement joints, coving, trims and out-of-hours working as separate line items. Without that, the cheapest quote is usually just the one that left the most out.