RAISED ACCESS FLOOR FAQ

Raised access floor systems are used in a great variety of areas in which a large amount of installations are required. Some examples are:

• Banking, insurance, governmental, corporative and administrative offices companies with high level of computer and/or telecommunication equipment.
• Call centers. Big spacious offices that require a large number of working posts to accomplish with computer and telemetric purposes.
• Data processing centers. Rooms for data storing and processing. They have a large amount of installations, even acclimatization, channeled under the raised access flooring.
• Cultural and educational centers. Raised access floors are used in these sorts of areas which are specifically designed for cultural and learning activities.

See more at areas of use.

Raised access floor systems have a plenum where is possible to channel the following installations and services: electric power, data net, telecommunications net, air conditioning and acclimatization, fire detection and extinguishing, security net and water and drain nets.

Using a raised access floor allows having quick access to these services for maintenance without the need for disturbing and expensive works. One of the most important technology is the underfloor air distribution “UFAD” see more.

The key parts of raised access flooring are:

• Panels: raised access floor horizontal element to step on of 600×600 mm standard measure although it is possible to order other measures. There are different sort of panels according to their core, which will make their technical characteristics different. The system panels can be delivered with or without factory made floor coverings. Learn more.
• Pedestals: vertical component of the structure with an adjustable height from 70 mm to 1500 mm. Learn more.
• Stringers: steel bars screwed or clipped to the pedestal head are used for structural bracing in a horizontal way in modules of 600×600 mm to support the raised access floor tiles. 

The access floor panels more frequently employed in the market are:

• Steel core injected panel: it consists of two steel sheets electro-welded that are later injected with lightened cement. It holds heavy loads, it is fire-resistant and fully damp-proof and it provides the best acoustic absorption. Learn more in GAMAFLOR FULL STEEL system.
• Chipboard and steel core panel: it consists of a high density chipboard core with a galvanized steel bottom tray f with a strengthening edge trim protection and a top covering. It obtains the best fire rating and load resistance. Due to the use of galvanized steel damp-proof increases. Learn more in GAMAFLOR PAC system.

• Heavy load resistance for raised access flooring
• Fire-resistant classification, fire rating and smoke development
• Damp-proof, humidity resistant
• Acoustic values
• Stability of raised access floor.

The difference between access floor panels manufactured with steel rather than aluminum, relay in the following:

• The use of a panel bottom tray made of steel considerably increases its heavy-load capacity. Steel is an elastic, hard breaking resistance material that may deform but does not break. By using aluminum foil at the panel bottom sheet you can easily get a broken panel decreasing its load resistance capacity.
• Steel obtains much better fire classification than aluminum according to UNE-EN 13501.
• Steel protects the panel from external aggressions such as humidity, bad use, or dirt. Aluminum can easily break leaving the system vulnerable to external aggressions.

Access Floor Stringers are made of steel and join the pedestals horizontally, creating a reticule to fully support the access floor panels. We advise the use of stringers in the following cases:

• GAMAFLOR PAC and BANK systems recommend the use of stringers for heights over 300 mm.
• GAMAFLOR FULL STEEL system uses stringers when coverings are factory-made in all possible heights. When they are manufactured without the coverings, the panel is screwed to the head of the pedestal and the stringers are used for heights over 450 mm.

See more in our structure section.

Gamaflor Access Floor Systems can be regulated to the most suitable range from 55 mm to 2000 mm. Height will depend on the volume of services and types of equipment channelled under the raised access floor, on the levelling at the surface and on other factors developed at the project.

Yes, there are advanced structures which are screwed to the base floor to protect the system against earthquakes and to provide with better safety.

Gamaflor Conductive Raised Access Floor System is made of steel components that are always in contact along with the system. This facilitates the conduction of electrostatic charges generated in the surface, creating a path through the plenum through the structure (pedestals and stringers) and later diverted to the ground.

There are transversal electricity conductive systems which facilitate the room electrostatic discharge.

See more in conductive section.

Access Floor steel pedestals are fastened to the base floor with polyurethane adhesive allowing them to be fixed to the base floor. Pedestals have fixing points at the base that provide the possibility to mechanically screw them to the base floor according to the project needs.

There is a large number of coverings applied on raised floor panels at the production centers. Such as light floorings that include: vinyl, stratified, linoleum, rubber, carpet, and also the natural coverings such as granite, ceramic, and natural wood.

We analyze the possibility to apply any new covering that suits our customer’s needs if it is compatible with our system. Learn more about floor covering in our architectural finishes section.

Europe and most of the countries around the world follow the UNE-EN 12825 for raised access floor systems. It is the most frequent one used in western and eastern markets.

Other regulation still in use is:

• CISCA: It is used at North-American markets.
• BSEN 12825: It used at the British market.

Gamaflor raised access floor system should always be installed by professionals in order to maintain the system’s properties. Leveling, adjustments, and positioning, among many others,  are key concepts that only professional installers will take into consideration when installing an access floor system. 

Contact our technical team to learn more about installation processes.