Suprav. Pietii Suedia.pdf

7/27/2019 Suprav. Pietii Suedia.pdf

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R E P O R T

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Market survey ofplaygroundequipment


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Contents

page

Summary 5

Results 5

Proposals for improvements 5

Current regulations governing playground design 6

New regulations according to the Product Safety Act 7

Standardisation work nationally and in Europe 7

Accident registration 7

Method 8

Choice of playgrounds 8Activities 9

Results 9

Responsible for maintenance 9

Maintenance plan 10

Examples of dangers noted by the five districts 11

Process 18

The results of the process 18

Conclusions 19

Annex 1 Requirements 20

Swedish Standards for playground equipment

Annex 2 SS-EN 11761177 Playground Equipment 27

Project leader: Ulla Stlbo

Bo Axelsson

Swedish Consumer Agency, March 1999


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Summary

The Swedish Consumer Agency (KOV) is a regulatory body which ensures that,amongst other things, the Swedish Product Safety Act (SFS 1988: 1604) is followed.The Act was augmented in 1996 to include products that are provided as part of publicservices (SFS 1996:334). An example of this kind of product is playground equipment

that is installed at community playgrounds.

The Planning and Building Act (PBL 1987:10) includes requirements for the provisionand maintenance of playgrounds in such a way that the risk of personal injury is limited.

The Swedish Consumer Agency carried out a market survey in 1997 of playgrounds in 5communities. 18 council-owned playgrounds were visited, half of which were located insome form of park. The others were found at day-care centres, schools and on housingestates.

The following communities were visited: Flen, Nynshamn, rebro, Motala and

Sollefte. Local consumer advisors selected suitable playgrounds and informed thecouncil of the pending visit.

The actual survey was carried out by two project managers from the Swedish ConsumerAgency together with the consumer advisors.

Calculations show that approximately 12,000 accidents happen each year at playgrounds.This corresponds to approximately 6% of the total number of accidents involving childrenwhich occur in Sweden every year. Earlier regional and local statistics show that accidentswhich occur at playgrounds are, in general, of a more serious nature than the averageform of accident involving children.

The Norrland University Hospital in the northern Swedish town of Ume is currentlyparticipating in a European accident reporting system (EHLASS) which registersaccidents that occur in the home and in conjunction with leisure time activities. Ananalysis of the registered accidents involving children that occurred at playgrounds during1995-96 was carried out. Here, it is obvious that approximately half (55%) of thosechildren injured have suffered from fractures, concussions or dislocated joints.Playground injuries accounted for 7% of the total number of accidents involving childrenin Ume during this two year period.

Results

New playground equipment is, generally speaking, safer than older equipment.

Planning of playgrounds and the way in which play equipment is placed in relation toother items of equipment cannot be considered satisfactory from a safety standpoint.

Maintenance of equipment and playgrounds is far from satisfactory when seen from asafety standpoint.


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Proposals for improvements

Old and faulty equipment should be replaced.

Home-made equipment should be checked and up-graded or removed for safetyreasons.

Planning of playgrounds should be reviewed and corrected when problems areevident.

Maintenance procedures must be improved considerably. Maintenance schedulesshould be compiled.

When new equipment is bought and new playgrounds planned, consideration shouldbe given to the European standards that will soon be introduced.

Current Swedish regulations governing

playgrounds and playground equipment

The regulations which govern playgrounds and playground equipment are part of thePlanning and Building Act (PBL 1987:10)) chap. 3:15, paragraph 17. Under the headingopen spaces, public areas, etc. requirements are made for the provision of open spaces forplaying and outdoor activities with demands placed on how playgrounds and fixed playequipment should be maintained so that the risk of accidents is minimised.

As part of the Swedish Housing Board's* Regulations, BFS 1993:57, under generaladvice and directives, chapter 8:234, the following is written:

Fixed equipment should be arranged so that the risk of personal injury is limited.

Advice: The underlying surface of swings, climbing frames and similar items ofequipment should be shock absorbent or otherwise designed so that the risk for personalinjury is limited.

An example of suitable designs is shown in SS 99 10 16 and SS 99 10 17.

* The National Board for Housing, Building and Planning ( Boverket )

For the management of playground equipment and playgrounds there is, as a guideline,the Swedish Standard for playground equipment with the following codes:

SS 99 10 10 Playground equipment Definitions and general safety requirements

SS 99 10 11 Playground equipment Swings Safety requirements

SS 99 10 12 Playground equipment Slides Safety requirements

SS 99 10 13 Playground equipment Runways Safety requirements

SS 99 10 14 Playground equipment Carousels Safety requirements

SS 99 10 15 Playground equipment Safety tests

SS 99 10 16 Playground equipment Shock-absorbent surfaces Safety requirements

SS 99 10 17 Playground equipment Layout Safety requirements.


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The most important requirements from a safety standpoint can be divided into thefollowing main groupings:

Shock-absorbent surfaces under climbing frames, swings and other climbing equipment

Fall heights, fall protection and safety barriers.

Size of openings

Pointed partsProtruding parts

Safety distances for the entire item of equipment or parts of it.

Maintenance requirements

Maintenance requirements

Excerpt from the standards for the most important demands are noted in annex 1.

New regulations according to

the Product Safety ActThe Swedish Consumer Agency (KOV) is a regulatory body which ensures that theSwedish Product Safety Act (SFS 1988: 1604) is followed. KOV carries out checks onproducts and services that are offered to consumers for private use or which fulfilapplicable safety regulations. The Act applies when products or services are provided(sold, rented, etc.) by suppliers to consumers.

The Product Safety Act was augmented during 1996 to cover products that are offered aspart of public services. An example of this is public training equipment and facilities,certain items of equipment used in old peoples homes and playground equipment.

This means that what the law calls a supplier also applies to the public sector when itprovides products to consumers. Products such as those supplied by a district council insuch a way that individual consumers come in contact with them are also covered by theAct. The change made to the act came into effect in July 1996, SFS 1996:334.

Standardisation work nationally and in Europe

In the middle of the 1980s, a Swedish standard for playground equipment wasformulated. This was based on the German standard, DIN 7926. The standards withcodes SS 991010 - SS 991017, came into effect in 1989.

The standards includes technical requirements for playground equipment with the aim tominimise the risk of accidents occurring during use and limiting the injuries caused whenthe playground is used by children up to the age of 15 either together or in groups.

European standardisation for playground equipment has been underway for the past 10years. The new EN standards are about to be introduced, and as they are ratified, willreplace the current Swedish standards. Implementation will begin with standards thathave already been adopted during 1998 and will be completed next year.

The KOV has taken part in both the national and European standardisation processes.


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Accident registration

Using accident registration carried out by various county heath authorities and atindividual hospitals, it is possible to calculate that approximately 12,000 accidents occureach year at playgrounds. This accounts for about 6% of the total.

Previous regional and local registration work shows that accidents that occur atplaygrounds are, in general, more serious than other categories of accidents involvingchildren. Sweden has, since joining the EU in 1995, taken part in a Europeanstandardisation system which records home and leisure-time accidents (EHLASS European Home and Leisure Accident Surveillance System). The system is operated inSweden by Epc (Epidemiological Center, The Swedish Social Board) and the KOV. Theproject is designed to create an information database of accidents that occur in the homeand during leisure-time activities with the focus on the products that are involved.

The Norrland University Hospital in the northern Swedish town of Ume is currently oneof three Swedish hospitals participating in the project.

An analysis of playground accidents that have occurred in Ume during the past twoyears has now been compiled. The preliminary report shows that a little more than half(55%) of the children who were involved in accidents suffered from injuries that wereconsidered not minor injuries or of a quite serious nature (fractures, concussions ordislocations). Playground accidents accounted for 7% of the total number of accidentsinvolving children in the Ume region during the two-year period.

Reference: Accident Analysis Group in Ume. Injuries in conjunction with playgroundequipment fractures are common. Report no. 73

Methods

Two people from KOV visited playgrounds in five districts together with local consumeradvisors.

Suitable communities were chosen based on their willingness to participate and theirlocation which allowed the task to be carried out within a certain time-frame.

The following districts were visited:

Flen

Nynshamn

Motala

rebro

Sollefte.

Choice of playgrounds

We chose to visit playgrounds that were owned by councils and used by child careactivity organisers, child care centres and at schools, housing estates and in municipalparks. These represented a cross-section of old and relatively new playgrounds. The


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consumer advisors were asked to select 3 5 suitable playgrounds and inform the localdistrict councils of the pending visit.

Activities

In order to conduct the survey as smoothly as possible, certain sections of the standards

were used as reference materials together with schematic drawings which showed howthe regulations were formulated.

Templates were made that were the same size as childrens fingers and toes, hands andfeet, their bodies and heads. The use of these eased the process of assessing the suitabilityof openings in the equipment.

A tape measure and camera were also useful items of equipment during the survey.

General check-lists were compiled for the whole playground while more specific listswere formulated for each type of equipment with special demands made for eachstandard clearly defined.

It proved to be quite difficult to compile check lists that worked for the whole playgroundas playground designs differ enormously. The various items of equipment they includeare arranged in different ways which creates a range of dissimilar risks that are notincluded in the standard.

The survey was carried out during weeks 38 40, 19 29 September, 1997 with one dayspent in each district.

In one community the local press had been invited to interview the team. This was donebefore the survey was carried out. In another district, a local politician took part.

Results

The results were presented to each district in summarised form compiled from thechecklists. The location of each playground is specified as is when it was built, when itwas overhauled and if a maintenance plan exists. Each item of equipment is accounted forwith remarks, and in most instances, photographs of the item remarked upon.

In all, 18 playgrounds were visited divided among the following:

Park 9

Child-care centres 4Schools 3

Housing estates 2

Responsible for maintenance

Departments were assigned with responsibility for the maintenance of playgrounds intheir areas in four out of five districts. In one of these, there was only one person, placedin one department, who was responsible for all the playgrounds.


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Normally, it is the parks authorities, community activity organisers or the technicaldepartment of the local council or similar that is responsible for playground maintenance.However, even the cultural, social or housing departments may be responsible.

Maintenance plan

Maintenance plans did not exist for playgrounds in three of the five districts.In the forth district, a maintenance plan had been compiled for all the playgrounds and inthe fifth district there was a plan for some of the playgrounds. Which ones were includedin the lists was determined by which local authority unit was responsible. Theplaygrounds that did not have maintenance plans in this district were located at child-carecentres.

Summaryof the market survey of 18 playgrounds in five districts.

Number of remarksSock-absorbing surface 32

Fall height/fall protection 8

Size of openings 62

Pointed/protruding parts 14

Safety areas 36

Reason for problems:

Wrongly constructed 20

Poor maintenance 5

No maintenance 40

This review of the number of remarks divided among some of the main groups providesus with an idea of the kind of remarks that were noted.

The most serious failings from a safety standpoint are those that apply to the size ofopenings, safety distances and the way the playgrounds are maintained. This is largely

due to the fact that maintenance has been almost non-existent and in certain cases, when itwas done, it was done incorrectly.


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Examples of problems that were noted in the five districts

Size of openings

Comprises, to a large degree, the remarks made about chains used for swings that eitherdont fulfil requirements regarding the size of the links or chains that had been wronglyrepaired.

The openings of moving parts were larger than 8 mm which means that childrensfingers may come in contact with the chain at, for example the joint with the swing seat.

A very dangerous opening had been created through a repair that was carried out

wrongly.An extra handrail had been welded onto an existing construction on a slide. A child canfall through the opening and be left hanging by the head thereby hanging around 1.70 mabove the ground.


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Other incorrectly sized openings were found in older items of equipment and in home-made equipment.

With rengard to home-made equipment, such as those made by a local producer in thedistrict council, there were many incorrectly sized openings.

With regard to equipment such as the elephant slide, it was found that the gaps betweenthe poles were wrong, the seats were the wrong size, the sides were too low and therewere protruding parts and angles that could cause injury.


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In certain cases, a lack of maintenance was the reason why openings were of the wrongsize. An example of this are plastic covers, chains with long links, where the plastic hadcracked and partly fallen off. Planks were missing on seesaws, playhouses and inclimbing equipment. Openings had occurred where children may fall and get stuck bytheir bodies or parts of their bodies.

Cracks can occur where no maintenance had been carried out such as on slides. This maylead to cords or childrens clothes getting caught as they move in the direction of theslideresulting in very serious injuries.

Safety areas

The remarks included under this heading are for the safety areas that apply for the variousitems of equipment individually and the distances between various items of equipment.The most serious problems are the result of smaller than appropriate safety areas around

climbing frames which means that children can fall down onto hard edges or surfaces. Incertain cases, a framework is built around the item of equipment in order to keep theshock-absorbing material in place.

Many remarks were noted about a lack of adequate space between swings and betweenthe swing and the frame it was attached to. This could be because the swing had not beenbuilt according to the standard. This kind of problem often noted in older

sw ings.

Some swings even had three swing seats instead of two. These should have been changedas they hang far to close to each other.


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Surface

Under this heading, everything is included that constitutes a hard surface that a child canfall on such as concrete, stones mixed with sand or ground with insufficient sand.

The most alarming remark noted in this category was an asphalt path that was placedunder a climbing frame with a fall height of 1.7 metres. This can also be classed asincorrect planning of the playground.

Also remarkable was the fact that a wooden floor had been placed under all the swingswhere a shock absorbing surface is required. This could be an example of incorrectm aintenance.


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A concrete surface under the soft surface under a climbing frame.

No maintenance

Under this heading, everything is included from insufficient sand, worn equipment, rust,cracked wooden railings, protruding nails, screws and missing bolts, other equipmentsuch as sand pits, benches and broken tables, were also noted here.


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Fall heights and fall protection

Remarks were noted for most of the climbing equipment that did not include fallprotection. This included playhouses. This often involves fall heights of 3 metres or morewhich presents an obvious danger to a child.

All fixed items of equipment that are found in playgrounds must fulfil the standards inapplicable cases. This means, for example, that fixed park benches and tables with roofsor rain protection is deemed as climbable equipment.


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Protruding parts of equipment and sharp edges

In this group of rem arks, parts of equipm ent that protrude in such a w ay that a

child can easily run into or fall over them have been included. These are often

found in older item s of equipm ent or in hom e-m ade equipm ent.

Som e rem arks about sharp parts have been noted w here it w as deem ed that an

item of childs clothing, such as hoods, m ight get caught. This can be due to

how the item of equipm ent has been built/designed or through poor

m aintenance.

Angles of less than 50 should be avoided. If there is a risk that extrem ities or

clothes m ight get caught, these angles should be altered or covered up.


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ProcessThe market survey was carried out among five districts in Sweden. The SwedishConsumer agency has, in a written submission, contacted each one of these and requestedthat they review the problems and failings reported by the survey team and then specifywhich steps they intend to take to rectify these. The preliminary report was attached as an

appendix to the letter which also had a separate appendix that covers each district withdirections given for each playground that was surveyed. The District Consumer Advisoralso received the same material.

The results of the process.

Case no. 98/K2812. The District of Flen.The district has informed us that it now has a maintenance plan for its playgrounds whichit previously did not have. The authorities are going to demolish or modify dangerous

equipment and, in future, aim to have fewer and safer playgrounds in the area. TheDistrict of Flen is also in the process of developing a playground inspection plan.

Case no. 98/K2813. The District ofMotala.The district authorities have informed us that they already have, or plan to in the nearfuture, take actions on the points that were raised in the survey at all of their playgrounds.The district has also formulated a plan to improve poor maintenance procedures and tomake sure that its playgrounds live up to safety requirements As part of this plan, theProperties Department will assume responsibility for the playgrounds.

Case no. 98/K2814. The District of Sollefte.The District Authorities have introduced a maintenance plan for all of their publicplaygrounds and are currently in the process of developing a similar plan for playgroundsat schools and day care centres. The district has also trained four members of staff fromthe local Technical Office who will be responsible for future inspections of the districtsplaygrounds. With regard to the specific points raised by the survey according to theappendix, the district authorities say that these have already been rectified.

Case no. 98/K2815,. The District of rebro.The district says that it now has a maintenance plan for its playgrounds which is based on

a programme whereby broken equipment will be replaced or repaired as soon as aproblem occurs. Also, a safety inspection will be made of all playgrounds once a year.The local Technical Office will, in future, be responsible for these activities and staff arealready being trained in playground safety. All of the districts parks employees will alsobe trained in the implementation of the new European regulations (new standards forplayground equipment which came into effect from January 1stthis year). With regard tospecific items of equipment that were located in the Skytte Park and Stads Park that wereremarked upon in the survey, both of these points have now been rectified.

Case no. 98/K1216. The District of Nynshamn.

The District Authorities have explained that they have taken steps with regards to all ofthe playgrounds that were remarked upon in the survey. Dangerous equipment has eitherbeen repaired or removed. One playground will be completely demolished as it was


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considered far more dangerous than its continued use justified. The Head of the Culture,Parks and Recreational Department has promised to ensure that playgrounds will becontinually maintained in future.

ConclusionThe survey of playground equipment that was conducted in five districts in Sweden hasprovided us with very good results with regards to the actions taken by the localauthorities to rectify the problems that were identified in the report. It was not only theequipment that was remarked upon, but also the efforts that were required in future toensure that maintenance routines were up to scratch and staff training met requirements.One district stated that it would also follow up on the kinds of accidents that occurred atits playgrounds. What is not acceptable, however, is that in certain playgrounds,equipment has been simply removed and not replaced. This can, in turn, lead to accidentshappening somewhere else in the district such as on roads or other dangerous areasaround dwellings and schools.

Our survey of playground equipment has awaked considerable interest among the massmedia in Sweden. This has, naturally enough, meant that there is now an increaseddemand for training in how to look after playground equipment as well as in increasingthe knowledge and understanding of the regulations that should be adhered to by localauthorities. Also, knowledge of how playground inspections should be carried out shouldalso be improved. The results of the survey point towards a huge training requirement.The new, joint European standard for playground equipment that came into effect onJanuary 1stthis year is far more detailed than the previous Swedish standard ever was.

Therefore, it places increased demands on improved knowledge and a deeperunderstanding of playground design on the part of those who are responsible for themand from inspectors.

Playground safety is a very important issue for society as a whole and the responsibleauthorities should, in co-operation with representatives for the equipment manufacturersand the regulatory bodies, create the kind of training that is required if we are to achieveplayground inspector certification.


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Annex 1

Requirements and referrals to standards

for playground equipment

Demands According to the Swedish standards SS 991010 - SS991017

Defined in the standards.

Material and design SS 991010 item 4. GeneralMaterials should be selected so that the risk of accidentsoccurring is eliminated. The intended use should beobserved and maintenance should be carried outaccording to SS 991017.

Construction and design SS 991010 item 5Playground equipment should be designed withdimensions that take their loading and use intoconsideration. They should be designed so that suitablefootings and placement is possible.

Playground equipment should be designed so that it doesnot present a risk for personal injury. Playgroundequipment should be designed so that hidden risks forchildren are avoided.

Free fall height SS 991010 item 5.2The highest permissible fall height from a climbing frameis 4 metres for wire rushes, 2 metres for climbing framesand 3 metres for other equipment.

Parts of equipment that exceed these heights should notfacilitate climbing. Maximum permissible fall heights aredecided by the underlying surface in accordance withSS991016.

Fall safety SS 991010 item 5.3Platforms and surfaces that children can stand on should,

when the fall height is more than 1 metre, be providedwith at least one protective fence. The height, measuredfrom the surface of the platform to the upper edge of thefence, should be at least 600 mm, but may not exceed850 mm. If the fall height is more than 2 metres, fallprotection must be provided in such a way that the usercannot get caught or fall through the protective fence. Theheight, measured from the surface of the platform to theupper edge of the protective fence should be at least 700mm. The protective fence should not facilitate climbing


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Parts of equipment in theplayground

SS 991010 item 5.4

Within the playground area, there should be no playequipment with hard or sharp edges that a user, if fallingfrom a height of 500 mm, can land on. If the fall heightis, at most, 1 metre, standing surfaces and platforms arenot looked upon as parts of equipment.

Moving parts SS 991010 item 5.5There should be no risk of getting crushed or cut betweenor by moving and fixed parts of playground equipment.Dynamic loading should be used.

Size of openings SS 991010 item 5.7Above surfaces where children can stand and whenplatforms are placed more than 600 m above the ground,there should be no openings in which the users head canget caught. Playground equipment may not be placed sothat it, in combination, forms such an opening.

Openings between parallel, fixed parts of equipmentshould either be smaller than 110 mm or larger than 290mm. Tests should be carried out according to SS 991015.

SS 991010 item 5.15. Chain

Chain links should be no wider than 8 mm and should besmall enough so that small fingers cannot get caughtbetween the links and the linking elements.

SS 991012 item 4.2 Parallel gaps.

Gaps that are parallel to each other in the same direction

such as between pipes and side pieces may not be widerthan 4 mm.

Angles SS 991010 item 5.8Assemblies that form an angle of less than 50 should beavoided. If there is a risk that extremities or clothes canget caught, then these angles should be covered or closedoff.

Distance between grips SS 991010 item 5.9The distance between parallel grips used for climbing orarm swings should not exceed 500 mm.

Design of details SS 991010 item 5.10Protruding nails, loose ends of steel wires and sharpprotruding parts are not allowed.

End surfaces should be designed so that they do not leadto personal injury.

Protruding screws should be permanently covered using,for example, domed nuts. Nuts and screw heads shouldbe free from sharp edges.

All corners and edges that protrude more than 8 mm and

which have not been covered up to a distance of 25 mmfrom the protruding parts end, should be rounded off.This rounding should have a radius of at least 3mm.


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Shock absorbing surfaces SS 991016 item 5. Construction and designAll ground covering material used within the playgroundarea should be so durable that cracks and other changes inits structure that can affect safety levels cannot occur.

When a hard surface is required on which to placemoving equipment or for playing on, there should be

very small height deviations so that the risk of trippingand falling is eliminated.

A safety area should have a shock absorbing surface overits entire width that corresponds to the fall height of theadjacent equipment.

The correlation between the material and the thickness ofthe surface in relation to the fall height should be:

1 m earth1,5 m laid lawn or synthetic surface2 m shock absorbent surface or at least 400 mm of

sand, gravel or bark products.Safety area SS 991017 item 6.1

Items of playground equipment may not be placedadjacent to each other or connected in such a way that therisk of accidents occurring is created. Playgroundequipment should be surrounded by a safety area of atleast 1.5 m if no other specifications are made in SS991011-14.

Between the various items of equipment and their playareas, or between these and other equipment, there must

be a safety area of at least 1.5 metres allowing for freepassage. Safety areas may, with certain exceptions,overlap each other

Examples of such exceptions are:Leaving area for swings 2 m (SS 991011 item 5)End area for slides 2 m (SS 991012 item 5)Safety areas for wire rushes 2 m (SS 991013 item 5)Side safety areas for roundabouts 2 m (SS 991014 item5).

Objects in safety areas SS 991017 item 6.3There should be no items of equipment with hard orsharp edges within the safety areas. Nor should there behard objects or objects with protruding edges on whichthe user can fall from a height of more than 500 mm andhurt themselves.

Within a swinging item of equipments play area, thereshould be no hard or sharp edges, ladder dowels or poles.Neither should there be angled supports or protrudingparts in the direction in which a childs head moves athead or foot level.


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Operation and maintenanceinstructions

SS 991017 item 8

The person who constructs the playground shouldprovide the playgrounds operator with operational andmaintenance instructions in the appropriate language.Among the requirements are a plan for how ofteninspections should be made.

Swings SS 991011 item 2.

Items used to hang up swings should fulfil demands formaterial durability, strength and safety.

Broken items used to hand swings should be repaired.Their design should be such that they cannot bedissembled by anyone other than authorised personnel.

Ways to hang swing seats up can include:a) short-link chains with openings of no more than 8 mmin a single directionb) in patrolled playgrounds, fibre lines of between 8 and

30 mm may be usedc) poles

Item 4.4 Swing frames

A swing frame that has more than two sitting or standingswings should be sectioned off using an A-formedsupport between each swing.

Access and passage from the side of a swing where solidpoles are used to hang the swing seats from should beobstructed through the use of, for example, A-formed

supports. If this support also has a play function, thereshould be a gap of at least 1.5 m to the nearest swingingitem of equipment.

Item 4.5 Fall height

When a child is swinging at an angle of 60 in relation tothe vertical, the fall height should not exceed 2 metres inthe swings play area.

Item 4.6 Special regulations.

Side safety area:General playgrounds at least 700 mm

Swings for small children at least 600 mmThe height of the swing:General playgrounds more than 2 mSwings for small children less than 2 mThe height between the ground and the seat of the swing at least 400 mm.


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Slides SS 991012Entrance stairs to a slide. Item 4.1

The requirements specified below only apply to laddersand steps that lead directly to the slide.

Width.

If the fall height exceeds 1 metre, entrances to slidesshould have a width of between 400 and 600 mm. Slideswith a width that exceeds 1 metre can have more than oneentrance.

Ladders.

If the entrance to the slide is a ladder, it should be placedat an angle of between 65 till 75.

The size of the inner opening between the ladder stepsshould be the same. It should be at least 230 mm.

Ladders that are longer than 1 metre should have ahandrail. The upright distance between the handrail and

the side piece should be between 150 mm and 200 mm.The opening between the handrail and the side piece maynot exceed 110 mm.

Width Item 4.4

On slides where the slide section is longer than 1.5metres, the slides width should either be at least 650 mmor at most 1 metre.

Curved slides may be, at most 650 mm wide or have aconcave slide surface.


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Side walls. Item 4.5

The height of side walls in the sitting section and the slidesection should have the following minimum dimensionsmeasured from the centre of the slide.

at the slide section of up to 1,5 metres in length: 100 mm at the slide section of more than 1,5 metres in length: 150mmThe height at the end section should slope downwards until itno longer exists.

Sitting section Item 4.6

In order to guarantee a safe transition from standing to sittingat the entrance to the slide, it should be fitted with a sittingsection that is between 300 mm and 400 mm in length.Regulations for standing areas do not apply in this instance.

The sitting section should be reachable only in the direction ofthe slide and have an angle of at most 5. It should be the

same width as the slide section.When the descent section has a fall height in excess of 1metre, it should be affixed with a side wall that is, at least inone place, higher than 50 mm.

The side wall of the sitting section must be connected to theside walls of the slide and railings (if such exist) so that theydont limit the movements of the user.

Any openings in the side sections may not exceed 110 mm inany direction and my not be designed so they make climbingeasy.

If the sitting section is combined with other equipment suchas platforms, then no further protection against falling isrequired in accordance with SS 991010.

The transition between the sitting section and the slide sectionmay have a height difference of up to 25 mm.

Joints are allowed if they do not affect safety when the slideis in use.

Item 4.7 Slide section

The slide sections first 500 mm may not include curves orspirals.

If the slide section includes curves, then the appropriate stepsmust be taken so that the user does not risk being thrown outof the slide.

The slide should be constructed in such a way that the slidingmotion is slowed before the end of the slide is reached.


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Item 4.8 End section

The lower section of the must have an end section.

The end section should have an angle of, at most 10 in theslide direction. The length of the end section should beproportionate to the length of the slide, but should be at least500 mm in length.

On slides that have a slide section that is at most 1.5 metres,the end section may be 300 mm in length. The slides loweredge should be bent downwards by at least 50 mm. Theslides end should either reach all the way to the ground or bebent downwards and backwards with a blunt angle of at least100. The minimum radius of 50 mm can be reduced to 25mm if certain steps are taken when the slide is constructed.These could be to let the slide end at the same level as theground or by eliminating the risk for a fall backwards.

The end sections lowest point should be no more than 350

mm above the ground.Runways SS 991013

Free height under the seat item 3.9

The upright distance between the lower edge of the seat andthe ground should be at least 400 mm measured at a lineloading of 1000 N.

Safety area item 3.10

The runways play area and the surrounding free areas that arerequired for safe use limits the affects of a fall and allowsuncluttered passage.

The safety area should be 2 metres around the runway.


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Annex 2

SS-EN 11761177 Playground Equipment

The new European standards for playground equipment which are comming into forcethe first of January 1999.

SS-EN 1176-1 Playground equipment Part 1: General safety requirements and testmethods

SS-EN 1176-2 Playground equipment Part 2: Additional specific safety requirementsand test methods for swings.

SS-EN 1176-3 Playground equipment Part 3: Additional specific safety requirementsand test methods for slides

SS-EN 1176-4 Playground equipment Part 4: Additional specific safety requirementsand test methods for runways

SS-EN 1176-5 Playground equipment Part 5: Additional specific safety requirementsand test methods for carousels

SS-EN 1176-6 Playground equipment Part 6: Additional specific safety requirementsand test methods for rocking equipment

SS-EN 1176-7 Playground equipment Part 7: Guidance on installation, inspection,maintenance and operation

SS-EN 1177 Playground equipment: Impact absorbing playgroundsurfacing Safety requirements and test methods

Documents

Suprav. Pietii Suedia.pdf