Hotel Case Study: Replacing the Carpet Inserts of an Aluminium Entrance Mat

Introduction / Overview

Aluminium entrance mats are designed to keep your facility clean and safe by reducing the amount of dirt and debris entering your building. Alukraft supplies and renovates aluminium entrance mats for a wide range of businesses, including hotels.

Project

Replacement of the carpet inserts of an existing entrance mat in a suburban hotel.

Entrance mat details

• Product: Alukraft Standard 19/30 MM
• Size: various
• Carpet insert: needle felt carpet
• Surface finish: Rips
• Frame: aluminium angle frame 21 mm

The mat selected for the installation in the hotel was the STANDARD 19/30, chosen for its practical roll-up design, its dirt-trapping capacity and its suitability for heavy wheel loads of up to 300 kg.

This luxury hotel is located in a busy area and features 225 guest rooms and 2 event spaces, with the largest room accommodating up to 400 people per event. It also has a full-service restaurant that is open to the public. On average, the property records over 2,500 customers per week, with both foot and wheeled traffic, including luggage carts and hotel trolleys.

The STANDARD 19/30 aluminium entrance mat was first installed in this hotel in 2012; following a hotel renovation, the client decided 10 years later, in 2022, to replace the inserts. The original colour of the entrance mat was brown; the newly selected mat inserts are in anthracite, matching the hotel's new aesthetic.

Insert replacement process

Estimated time for installation and replacement of the inserts: 8 hours with 2 people. It is recommended to replace the inserts or carry out maintenance work on the entrance mats when the hotel is not fully booked and outside peak hours.

The insert replacement begins by rolling up and removing the existing (brown) entrance mat. In this project, only half of the mat was removed at a time in order to keep the entrance open for hotel guests. The sliding doors were switched off and pedestrian traffic was redirected using barrier tape and signs.

The recess was cleaned with a broom and scrapers to remove dirt and debris from underneath the mats. The concrete was inspected for damage such as spalling, holes and cracks.

The existing mat was then transported to the front of the hotel, where the current brown carpet inserts were removed. The rivets at the ends of the mat were broken open with a chisel and hammer, and the carpet inserts were pulled out of the groove by hand.

Removing the existing carpet inserts after loosening the rivets.

After all the existing (brown) carpet inserts had been removed, the empty profiles were cleaned with a pressure washer to remove salt and dirt residues.

Profiles being cleaned with a pressure washer after removal of the old carpet inserts.

The new (anthracite) carpet inserts were fitted into the existing profiles. Approximately 1,500 linear metres of material were required for this project. We recommend allowing for 5% waste of the carpet material during installation, so that 3-5 cm of carpet overhang remains at the ends, making it easier to pull the carpet material into the profiles.

New replacement inserts being slid into the profiles of the existing entrance mat system.

Once the new inserts were in place, they were secured with rivets. The excess material was cut off with a carpet knife so that the carpet finished flush with the ends of the individual profiles. The carpet offcuts were then disposed of.

The renewed mats with the new inserts were brought back to the hotel and installed on site. The entire process was then repeated for the remaining mats still in the hotel.

Hotel entrance with the original brown carpet inserts on the right and the new anthracite carpet inserts on the left.

The result

The new carpet inserts for this complex were selected to maximise slip resistance. The colour chosen for the inserts at this location is 90% black and 10% mottled grey, in order to conceal accumulated dirt, debris and road salt carried in from outside, and to match the renovated design of the building.

Our carpet inserts are made of a blend of nylon and polypropylene with monofilament fibres. They provide a strong scraping action that removes dirt from shoe soles while simultaneously absorbing moisture. Thanks to the optimised profile spacing in our entrance mat systems, dirt deposits and moisture can collect in the recesses and be easily cleaned out later.

Approximately 9 kg of dirt accumulated annually in the recesses underneath the mats. The cleaning interval was one year before the carpet inserts were replaced.

We recommend professional cleaning once per quarter. We are confident that with more frequent maintenance of the mats, the amount of dirt collected annually would have been many times higher.

Refurbishing an aluminium entrance mat is an alternative to purchasing a completely new entrance mat system. In this hotel, the entrance mat was still functioning perfectly thanks to regular care and maintenance, so the inserts were replaced purely for aesthetic reasons. However, if the entrance mat is worn, bare, covered with dirt and road salt residues and no longer able to effectively retain dirt and debris, replacing the inserts can renew the mat and restore it to full working condition.

Product recommendations for this industry

The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) states that an entrance mat reduces the amount of dirt carried into a building by 75% to 90% once the mat reaches a size of 4.5 to 7.5 m². The International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA) estimates the maintenance cost savings at around 600 US dollars per pound of dirt and debris kept out of the building. This corresponds to a savings potential of approx. 1,250 euros per kg.

Completed entrance area after replacement and installation of the carpet inserts on site. Installed product: STANDARD 19/30 MM.