Flooring A Perfect Fit for Versatile Spaces

Kinetex textile composite flooring

Kinetex textile composite flooring easily met every requirement of Georgia College's Bell Hall, a prominent 100-year-old building.

When Bell Hall, a prominent 100-year-old building at Georgia College in Milledgeville, GA, needed renovating, the school took great consideration into the flooring required for the space.

The Colonial-style building serves multiple functions. It is the primary residence for nearly 200 students, via 125 two-person suites. It also houses a classroom and a spacious lounge area for casual gatherings and activities.

Dr. Larry C. Christenson, executive director of university housing, along with his staff, required flooring that could meet all the functions of the facility. At the top of the priority list, Dr. Christenson desired a floor covering that would answer both acoustic and safety concerns. “We looked at hard-surface options but knew this would mean stripping and waxing over the summers. We also had concerns with the rooms being louder and possible slip and falls,” says Christenson.

Secondly, the flooring needed to be forgiving in regards to substrate issues, such as high moisture, which is often common with older buildings. Finding a “breathable” flooring product was important to address the minor moisture concerns on the ground floor. Finally, the school desired a product that could convey a residential feel while also matching the historic aesthetic of the building.

Dr. Christenson selected Kinetex from J+J Flooring Group. Kinetex is an innovative textile composite flooring that offers a superior alternative to hard surfaces. “Kinetex resolved all of these concerns while giving us the ‘softness of carpet,’” notes Christenson. Constructed of knitted polyester fabric and cushioned polyester felt backing, it combines the comfort and warmth of a soft-surface flooring with the long-wearing performance characteristics of a hard-surface flooring. Moreover, the product’s contemporary design, which features pleasant earth tones and lighter patterns, was the perfect answer to meeting the residential feel required of the space.

By meeting all of Bell Hall’s requirements and more, Dr. Christenson says Kinetex is now being considered for other facilities at the school.

www.jj-kinetex.com

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Missouri State University Debuts Construction Education Center

    Missouri State University in Springfield, Mo., recently opened a new 10,000-square-foot addition and renovation to support the School of Construction, Design, and Project Management, according to university news. The Construction Education Success Center, built onto the existing Kemper Hall, provides academic space for the school’s construction managers and cost $9.6 million.

  • How One School Reimagined Learning Spaces—and What Others Can Learn

    When Collegedale Academy, a PreK–8 school outside Chattanooga, Tenn., needed a new elementary building, we faced the choice that many school leaders eventually confront: repair an aging facility or reimagine what learning spaces could be. Our historic elementary school held decades of memories for families, including some who had once walked its halls as children themselves. But years of wear and the need for costly repairs made it clear that investing in the old building would only patch the problems rather than solve them.

  • Extron, CENTEGIX Partner for Comprehensive School Security Solution

    Professional audiovisual solutions provider Extron recently announced a partnership with CENTEGIX, which provides rapid incident response technology, to integrate two of their top products in the name of school safety.

  • North Dakota State University Completes Music School Renovation

    North Dakota State University in Fargo, N.D., recently announced that construction on the Challey School of Music has finished, according to a news release. The university partnered with Foss Architecture & Interiors for design and Kraus-Anderson for construction services, and construction began in July 2024.