Improving the Ground Beneath Your Feet

Playground Surface with Numbered Sections

Designed for running tracks, athletic facilities and local playgrounds, Carlisle’s Tru-Motion product line enables optimal performance for common recreational and exercise surfaces.

Are you an amateur or professional athlete who relies on high performance running spaces and surfaces to improve your stamina, speed and performance? Or perhaps you’re a parent escorting your little one to the local community playground to enjoy a game of chase around the swing set—with some occasional jumping, sliding and tumbling thrown in for fun?

If so, you probably didn’t know that the QUALITY and SAFETY of your overall experience in these environments can be directly impacted by the materials used in the composition of the physical surfaces your activity depends upon. For both athletic tracks and playgrounds, the mat and track material that supports your regular exercise or playtime is comprised of adhesives and binders that offer structural integrity and enhance the performance and longevity of the spaces you’ve come to love. And those involved in the building and construction of sports facilities play a pivotal role in the selection of advanced materials to optimize training.

So, what is the technology behind, or should we say underneath, the best forms of recreation—and why are these support materials so important? Because—while few in the industry and even fewer consumers even think about or notice the surfaces that serve as a foundation for the way we walk, run and race—they offer a fundamental ergonomical and ecological contribution to our health and the environment.

Carlisle’s Polyurethane Systems—producer of some of America’s most relied on running tracks, athletic practice surfaces, playground foundations, and indoor play and exercise flooring—is a leading manufacturer of premier adhesives and bindings. These materials are fundamental for the proper construction of high-quality sports flooring and safety surfaces. Their development is based on decades of world-class R&D, engineering and innovation in the field of urethane binders and adhesives. These terms may sound like tech jargon, but Carlisle’s decades-in-the-making specialty formulations help athletes, both large and small, get the most out of their indoor and outdoor movement and performance ability—and assist developers in maximizing their bottom-line when it comes to cost-efficient production.

Our adhesive and binder technology combines polyurethane coatings, along with chemical-resistant and light stable aliphatic polyurethanes. Product offerings include:

Rubber-based binder technology that is used to bond small particles together for a smoother, more resilient play or running surface.

Polyurethane binding material commonly used in playground and in athletic track surfaces to ensure performance flexibility—offering reliable material-bonding and greater resilience in the face of fluctuating weather extremes (from cold temperatures to sweltering heat).

Adhesives that offer added stability during rigorous workouts for use in running tracks that typically face extreme denigration and greater wear-and-tear.

How do these technologies specifically help change athletic performance and preserve the integrity of essential workout and play surfaces?

For running tracks, proper construction depends on the durability of adhesives and binders used in synthetic track surfaces (like polyurethane, rubber, or EPDM granules). If a surface isn’t smooth and even, running performance and consistency can falter. Often running tracks are comprised of small granules of rubber mixed with polyurethane-based adhesives that bind the granules together. The longer these granules remain intact, the better the elasticity, shock absorption, and grip of the track itself! Additionally, the improved layering and coating offered by premium adhesive binders prevent cracks and divisions from forming in the material, while creating a “no-slip surface” that is safer and more comfortable for athletes during high-speed practice and competition.

Alternatively, for playground environments, adhesives and binders are paramount for the creation of safe, resilient flooring and support services, which all parents will likely agree is arguably the MOST important feature when considering child safety. Rubberized playground surfaces typically use rubber mats or loose rubber granules bound together with a polyurethane adhesive. This technology helps to absorb impact and reduce the severity of potential trips, slip-ups and falls, and secures the rubber underneath slides and swings in a manner that best supports the child during an unexpected tumble. Also, an outdoor play space is only as safe as the quality, provisions and state of the equipment that kids are exposed to. If playground matting is in disrepair—with holes and tears or damaged spots from extreme weather conditions—it’s of little to no value in properly supporting playground visitors during potentially robust play.

Additionally, Carlisle’s binder technology ensures that playground surfaces are resistant to the elements, helping to make outdoor playgrounds exposed to rain, UV light, and fluctuating temperatures safer and better able to withstand seasonal climate “abuse.” Moreover, our adhesive binders offer easier installation for poured-in-place playground surfaces (i.e., surfaces that are created by mixing rubber granules with a binder poured and spread to develop a smoother layer with more shock-absorbing properties).

Whether the aim of track and playground developers is to ensure smoother, higher performance surfaces with less weather damage or to fortify the structural support that delivers enhanced safety for young ones, the use of adhesives and binders is essential to protecting the surfaces upon which Americans LOVE to recreate.

Check out Carlisle’s line of Tru-Motion offerings to learn more about how our premium line of adhesives and binders supports both athletic performance and the well-being of users of all ages. www.CarlislePS.com

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