It isn’t a matter of IF, but WHEN!
Children fall down while they are playing, there’s no getting around it. At playgrounds, which have elevated platforms, things to swing from, and things to jump off of, falls and subsequent head injuries are even more frequent. Playgrounds are, more often than not, required to utilize some method of impact attenuation in their surfaces beneath their equipment. The most popular systems include Poured in Place Rubber, EWF Wood Chips, rubber matting, and sometimes turf/padding.
The standard measures that these surfaces should meet are set to provide protection from serious head injuries when a fall happens. The proper surfacing can make the difference between an ice-pack injury or a hospital trip!
In the 1960’s, HIC (Head Injury Criterion) testing was developed for safety in the Auto Industry, used inside of the classic “crash test dummies”. The testing has developed and improved over time. Now HIC testing is used for safety research in sports, personal protection equipment, and of course, PLAYGROUNDS! For playground surfaces, there is a specially designed method testing the HIC score of your playground’s surface. Companies like Trassig perform these HIC tests to determine if a playground meets ASTM requirement for surface attenuation.
HIC Testing is done on newly installed playgrounds as well as on older surfaces. ALL surfacing will lose attenuation over time. Therefore, it is important to periodically test to see if your surface’s HIC scores are compliant.
To Test or Not to Test?
I think we all have the same answer. Keeping playgrounds as safe as possible is important. It’s lovely to believe that your playground has the proper safety measures. It’s an entirely better feeling to know that you have them.
Get your playground surface tested. Make sure you Know.