Fiberglass FRP Grating is the perfect solution for docks, decks, marinas and boardwalks.
With winter coming to an end and spring right around the corner, now is the perfect time to start planning for summer.
Summer is about spending time down by the lake enjoying the sun and water on a dock or marina. Far too often unfortunately that fun is cut short due to damage and maintenance requirements associated with traditional building materials. Many docks in the past have been built with wood and metal which rots or rusts, warps, and deteriorates resulting in much of your summer being devoted to maintenance and repairs.
FRP Grating is long lasting and industrial grade, and will take the worry out of your summer. Our Mini Mesh FRP Grating has a non-slip coating and has holes that are much smaller than our traditional FRP Grating making it barefoot friendly in a dock or deck setting.
Over the last several years we have seen a huge amount of interest from people who are looking for a better product for their dock or marina. Fortunately for them we have the perfect solutions with our Mini Mesh Fiberglass (FRP) Grating, Pultruded FRP Grating and FRP Stairs.
Mini mesh FRP grating is a special molded fiberglass grating with cross bars at the top, forming smaller holes at the top of the grating. It offers unobstructed water and airflow, slip resistance, and is suitable for marine environments, walkways, boat docks, marinas, mooring pontoons.
The mini mesh means that the holes are much smaller than our traditional FRP Grating. This makes it perfect for barefoot use in a dock setting. The top of the Mini Mesh Fiberglass (FRP) Grating is also covered in a light anti slip material for safety when wet..
The grating comes in various surface types, colors, and dimensions, providing a durable, comfortable, and safe walking surface for marine decking and other similar applications.
Mini Mesh FRP Grating is ADA Compliant (Americans With Disabilities). Mini mesh FRP grating is ADA compliant due to its small mesh size, which prevents small tools and objects from falling through, ensuring safety for personnel or equipment below. The small mesh also provides greater foot coverage, making it comfortable for bare feet and high heel shoe traffic. Additionally, the smooth surface of mini mesh grating allows for easier movement of wheelchairs and carts.
Pultruded FRP Grating has an anti slip top and gaps between each bar which can be large or small depending on requirement.Another FRP solution from National Grating that is perfect for dock and marinas is Pultruded Fiberglass (FRP) Grating. Pultruded FRP (Fiber Reinforced Plastic) grating is a high-strength grating made by assembling parallel bearing bars into a series of I-shaped or T-shaped profiles, which are then held together by cross-rods. There are also many variations where the ratio between the gaps in the grating and the FRP beams can change for large gaps or very thin gaps for bare foot traffic on a dock.
This construction provides exceptional strength, allowing it to span greater distances and support heavier loads compared to molded grating. Pultruded grating is manufactured by pulling fiberglass rovings and mats through guides, then into a resin bath, and finally through a heated die to form the desired bar shape. The grating is then assembled by installing the cross-rods spaced on 3&#; or 6&#; centers, and the bars are bonded with epoxy to ensure they will not move. It is corrosion-resistant, low maintenance, and offers a safe and comfortable walking surface, making it an ideal choice for various applications, including docks, walkways, and marine environments. Pultruded grating is available in different gap ratios, colors and heights, providing versatility for different project requirements.
Pultruded FRP Grating creates a rugged, long lasting and elegant walking surface.Pultruded FRP Grating can be ADA Compliant (Americans With Disabilities). Pultruded FRP Grating can ADA compliant if a small gap ratio is chosen. 1- and T- Pultruded FRP Grating is ADA compliant due to its small gaps between bars which allows for easier movement of wheelchairs and carts.
Comfortable and Safe Surface: The small holes or gaps allow light and water to pass through, providing a comfortable and safe walking surface, suitable for bare feet or any footwear typically worn in a marine environment.
Anti-Slip Properties: The concave and anti slip grit surface provide excellent anti-slip properties, ensuring safety for pedestrians, even in wet conditions.
National Grating also has yellow FRP Grating available for high visibility. Custom colors area available.Corrosion Resistance: FRP grating is resistant to corrosion, making it durable in the harsh marine environment.
Versatility: It can be used for walkways, boat docks, marinas, mooring pontoons, and other marine applications, offering a strong, waterproof decking surface that will last for years.
Low Maintenance: It is corrosion-resistant and requires minimal upkeep, making it a cost-effective choice for long-term use in a marine environment.
Durability and Longevity: FRP grating is highly durable, resistant to saltwater, UV rays, and corrosion, making it ideal for marine environments.
Low Maintenance: Unlike wood that degrades rapidly in wet environments, FRP grating requires minimal maintenance and does not warp, crack, or splinter.
Customization: The ratio between the pultruded bars and the gap can be changed due to strength requirements. Thickness and lengths can be customized as well. Color is optional, with grey being the most popular and available.
Fiberglass Reinforced Stairs are stair tread systems manufactured from Molded FRP Grating or Pultruded FRP Grating. They can be purchased with a yellow nosing for added visibility and safety as well as non slip top surface.
FRP (Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic) stairs are perfect for docks due to several key advantages:
Pultruded FRP Stair Treads are used here for steps into a lake from the dock. This application is perfect for FRP because it does not degrade from water exposure and has a anti slip top layer for barefoot safety.Corrosion and Chemical Resistance: FRP Stair Treads are corrosion-resistant and can withstand exposure to harsh chemicals, making them ideal for marine environments like docks.
Durability and Longevity: Unlike wood that degrades rapidly in wet environments, FRP Stair Treads are durable and have a long service life, reducing the need for frequent replacements.
UV Resistance: FRP Stair Treads are UV stable, meaning they do not degrade when exposed to sunlight, ensuring they maintain their appearance over time.
Easy Maintenance: FRP Stair Treads are easy to clean with standard cleaning agents or by power-washing, translating to cost savings and reduced downtime.
Slip Resistance: FRP Stair Treads offer high friction factor, ensuring secure footing even in challenging conditions, making them safe for high-traffic areas like docks.
The corrosion resistance, durability, UV resistance, easy maintenance, and slip resistance make FRP Stair Treads an excellent choice for docks.
FRP Stairs Treads are perfect for walking to and from water because of their anti slip top surface. Here pultruded FRP Stair Treads with yellow nosing was utilized.National Grating Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Grating Solutions:
National Grating prides itself on providing exceptional customer service to all customers, big and small.
Reach out to us today for your next FRP Project!
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Strongwell's DURAGRID® and DURADEK® are high strength pultruded bar type gratings that provide the intrinsic benefits of fiberglass and yet can be designed and utilized just like conventional metal grates.
These products serve as perfect substitutes for aluminum or steel gratings in corrosive environments, or in places where walkway replacement and frequent grating costs are not good enough (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Top: DURADEK® and DURAGRID® fiberglass grating provide safe, corrosion resistant walkways and work platforms in a broad range of markets and industries. Bottom: Manufactured with unique cross bar construction, DURADEK® and DURAGRID® fiberglass grating can be cut to any size like a solid sheet.
A standard product supplied by distributors nationwide, DURADEK® comes with separate bearing bars in a 2" (51 mm) T-shape or 1" (25 mm) or 1-1/2" (38 mm) I-shapes. It is a flame retardant product that uses a vinyl ester or polyester resin. The bearing bars of DURADEK® are configured into 12 panel sizes, such as 1 m (standard), 0.914 m, 1.219 m and 1.524 m widths in each of 6.10 m, 3.66 m, 3.05 m, and 2.44 m lengths. Standard panels are also provided with cross-rod spacings of 304 mm or 152 mm on center.
A standard fiberglass grating may not be suitable for certain applications. DURAGRID® custom grid or grating systems are specifically designed to accommodate such applications. It provides customers with a number of options, including selection of bar shape, open space, custom fabrication, cross-rod placement, color, or custom resin.
DURADEK® and DURAGRID® are light in weight, which means installation is made easier, and freight cost is saved.
Both DURADEK® and DURAGRID® have a special cross-bar construction that is easy to cut and alter the grating panels to accommodate just about any needs of the facility. The following features highlight the benefits of DURADEK® and DURAGRID® products:
Fiberglass gratings, DURADEK® and DURAGRID®, are a composite of fiberglass reinforcements and a thermosetting resin system, created by the pultrusion process. Several unique properties of the product are produced by this pultrusion manufacturing process. The bearing bars have excellent corrosion resistance and strength through the use of multidirectional (glass mat) and longitudinal (glass roving) reinforcements, in addition to a synthetic surfacing veil. The continuous glass rovings have a thickly packed core that imparts strength and stiffness to the bar in the longitudinal direction, while the continuous glass mat offers strength in the transverse direction and eliminates cracking, chipping, and lineal fracturing. The synthetic surfacing veil offers a complete pure resin surface for additional UV protection and corrosion resistance.
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In DURAGRID® and DURADEK® grating, the 3-piece cross-rod assembly is used that forms a unified, strong panel which can be easily cut and fabricated similar to a solid sheet. This specialized system includes a center core wedge and a pair of continuous, pultruded spacer bars. At each bearing bar, the spacers are nicked so that the bars are chemically bonded and mechanically locked to the web of individual bearing bars. With this approach, the bearing bars are separated and firmly fixed in position and the concentrated loads are distributed to the neighboring bars. The ensuing panel can then be fabricated using standard carpenters&#; tools having abrasive cutting edges.
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Based on the design needs, a range of bearing bar shapes as well as bending bar and murmurs cross-rod spacings are available. The standard "I" bar shape offers the highest flexibility in design and comes in 1" (25 mm), 1-1/4" (32 mm), and 1-1/2" (38 mm) depths. The unique "T" bar shape offers a more solid walking surface and avoids catching high heels and other similar objects between the bars. It is supplied in 1" (25 mm), 1-1/2" (38 mm) and 2" (51 mm) depths. A lighter weight bearing bar is provided in the Economy series.
The DURAGRID® Heavy Duty (HD) solid bar grating from Strongwell can take heavy wheel traffic such as tow motors, forklifts, and truck traffic. Since different types of wheel types and loadings are available. Heavy duty grating is available in 1" (25 mm), 1-1/4" (32 mm), 1-1/2" (38 mm), 1-3/4" (44 mm), 2" (51 mm), 2-1/4" (57 mm) and 2-1/2" (64 mm) depths. Strongwell also supplies a 1" (25mm) "R" bar grating, a rectangular bar, in a number of different series.
Panels can be designed to accurate sizes to prevent fabrication costs and waste in the field. 227 kg is the maximum panel weight, with the maximum panel size of mm x mm.
For more color stability and protection for outdoor applications, bearing bars can be UV coated.
Yellow and gray are the two standard colors, but other colors are also available upon special request. A tiny inventory is also preserved for 1" (25 mm) and 1-1/2 (38 mm) "I" & "T" bars in white fire retardant polyester resin.
Fire retardant is the usual polyester resin utilized in DURADEK® that meets the needs for a Class 1 flame rating of 25 or less per ASTM E-84 and also meets the self-extinguishing needs of ASTM D-635. A UV inhibitor is also included in the resin. DURAGRID® provides a broad selection of resin options such as phenolic, polyester, vinyl ester, modar and the likes. Other options include UV inhibitors, fire retardant, specialized additives, and various colors.
Customers can order grids with or without an anti-skid grit surface. A range of grit material and textures are available for specific requirements.
DURAGRID® and DURADEK® grating systems can be used in a wide range of applications, such as:
In the year , DURADEK® grating was installed on Shell&#;s offshore platform Ellen (owned by Beta Offshore). After three decades of exposure, the platform has had little to no effect on the 10,000 sq. ft. grating. Even accidental paint overspray and sandblasting have not affected the anti-skid surface (Figure 2). When queried in regarding the lifespan of the grating on the platform, Yohn Rosqui, Facility Superintendent, stated, &#;The grating looks to be in great shape. The surface shows very little wear and tear.&#;
Figure 2. In , DURADEK® grating was installed on Shell&#;s offshore platform Ellen.
When compared to traditional steel grating, DURAGRID® Phenolic I- 38mm is designed to carry 1.75 times the load of corresponding steel grating. DURAGRID® Phenolic, unlike metal gratings, returns to its original shape if there is excess design load (Figures 3 and 4).
Figure 3. DURAGRID® Phenolic grating is used for fire integrity, weight savings and low maintenance and is U.S. Coast Guard approved.
Figure 4. Strongwell&#;s DURAGRID® T- pultruded grating was used for substituting wood planks on a large walkway at Dinner Key Marina in Miami, Florida. The grating allows for easy accessibility to utilities below the walkway and will not rot like the previous wooden walkway.
Figures 5 and 6 show the use of DURADEK® I- 38 mm, and DURAGRID® T- 51 mm with a custom polyester resin, respectively.
Figure 5. Copper processing facilities such as the Ammonia Leach/Solvent Extraction/Electrowinning plant for Minera Escondida Limitada in Chile found DURADEK® I- 38 mm to be the perfect solution.
Figure 6. Chicago Transit maintenance walkways alongside elevated train tracks constitute one of the largest fiberglass grating installations in history. This project used DURAGRID® T- 51 mm with a custom polyester resin.
Figures 7- 9 show the applications of DURADEK® and DURAGRID® fiberglass gratings.
Figure 7. Low maintenance fiberglass grating provides trouble free operations for the covers and walkways in the Lakewood, Colorado Wastewater Treatment Plant Headworks. DURADEK® I- 38 mm was used.
Figure 8. MIll Ruins Park in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota utilized DURAGRID® T- 25mm for new pedestrian walkways in the beautiful historical district.
Figure 9. Strongwell DURADEK® I- grating was installed at this School of Business and Information Systems in Hong Kong as air-conditioning platforms when placed horizontally and as louver when placed vertically (as shown here).
After many years of continuous moisture and the steady beating of golf shoes, the wooden deck posed a safety risk and had to be replaced at the Muirfield Village Golf Club. Strongwell produced DURAGRID® T- by utilizing a custom-made pigmented resin to substitute the wooden deck and thus provide the structural and aesthetic benefits required by the club (Figure 10).
Figure 10. The Muirfield Village Golf Club, designed by Jack Nicklaus, offers an outside patio deck for players to relax and have a snack between nines.
Stair landings and treads are produced by joining a 51 mm deep nosing to the leading edge. This provides extra rigidity and strength to the area, which takes the maximum abuse and impact. The nosing offers increased surface area for wear, better visibility, and skid resistance. With an additional cost, gray stair treads with yellow nosing are also supplied.
Fiberglass Curb Angle offers a firm and strong base for bearing bars. It is pultruded from the same material and in the same way as other DURAGRID® and DURADEK® products. Corrosion-resistant Fiberglass Curb Angles come in four sizes in gray fire retardant vinyl ester.
Strongwell provides a variety of fiberglass flooring and decking materials. Figures 11 - 15 provide a short description of other flooring products available in the Strongwell industrial product line.
Figure 11. SAFPLANK®, a system of interlocking planks, provides easy installation and superior corrosion resistance for applications requiring a solid deck or floor
Figure 12. SAFDECK® is a high strength, one-piece, overlapping panel system. Low in conductivity and nonsparking, SAFDECK® provides safe walkways in numerous applications.
Figure 13. DURAGRATE® molded grating has a concave profile on the upper surface for skid resistance. Grit tops are optional.
Figure 14. COMPOSOLITE® building panels are suitable for major load bearing structural applications and are particularly well-suited to outdoor use and corrosive environments.
Figure 15. SAFPLATE®, a solid anti-skid flooring, helps reduce worker slips and falls in both wet and dry applications.
This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by Strongwell Corporation.
For more information on this source, please visit Strongwell Corporation.
Are you interested in learning more about fiberglass grating stair treads? Contact us today to secure an expert consultation!