United Kingdom

United Kingdom

Construction
Transport
Construction
Transport

Samples basket

Continual professional development

To continue our commitment to industry development and high quality customer service, we have developed a range of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses focusing on main issues surrounding floor, wall and door products, plus their impact on the wellbeing of the people using the spaces where they are installed.

More information about these CPDs is given below. Each seminar is approximately one hour long and is designed to fit flexibly within busy work schedules. Courses are delivered by our sales consultants, face-to-face or online.

For more details or to book a course, please contact our Customer Care Centre on 01462 489516 or email cpd@altro.com.

For more information on how your data will be used, please refer to our privacy policy

Our CPDs aim to:

  • develop understanding of the key considerations when selecting floor and wall finishes
  • outline important health and safety elements
  • provide installation guidance, hints and tips

All our CPDs fit within one of RIBA’s ten core curriculum topics, meaning they can count towards your 35-hour learning requirement. You can award some of the required 100 learning points to these activities – please visit www.ribacpd.com for more information.

A number of our CPDs are RIBA-approved. These CPDs earn chartered architects double points:

  • designing for Neurodiversity - NEW
  • designing for dementia - Updated
  • how to reduce the risk of slipping
  • designing for mental health
  • Altro factory tour: Innovation in manufacturing product design
  • specifying vinyl flooring
...

NEW - Designing for Neurodiversity

Around 35% of the UK population is thought to be neurodiverse, meaning that their brain functions, learns and processes information differently. This CPD will provide an outline of what neurodiversity is, and demonstrate the importance of designing spaces to be inclusive with consideration for the needs of people who are neurodivergent. It will also provide details of the relevant legislation, standards and guidance to consider when designing inclusive spaces.

The CPD will:

  • Set the scene for neurodiversity in the UK
  • Outline current guidance and legislation
  • Provide an awareness of sensory differences
  • Discuss design considerations
  • Showcase some successful design projects
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Updated - Designing for dementia

By 2021 it is estimated that over one million people will be living with dementia in the UK, an increasing figure. During this interactive CPD presentation, we will look at common symptoms and how the built environment can exacerbate symptoms, or help those with dementia to live well. The session will include industry best practice guidance, including information and input from the Dementia Services Development Centre (DSDC), including video content from Lesley Palmer, Head of Design Services and Chief Architect, DSDC.

The learning aims of this CPD are:

  • an understanding of what dementia is, common symptoms and its impact on the senses
  • awareness of the effects of visual impairment
  • an understanding of the use and measurement of light reflectance values (LRV)
  • an understanding of rules, regulations and best practice
  • build knowledge of design principles
...

How to reduce the risk of slipping

According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), slips and trips are the most common cause of major / specified injuries to employees. The specification of appropriate flooring is an important way of controlling risk. This seminar coincides with the HSE’s campaign to reduce slips by education and enforcement and covers:

  • The regulations
  • Statistics
  • HSE activity
  • Flooring slip test methods
...

Designing for mental health

The design within mental health facilities has to be safe and robust. The consequences of failing in this can be devastating. With one in four people in the UK experiencing mental health problems*, understanding the differing needs of service users can have a major impact on wellbeing. This CPD covers:

  • the state of mental health in the UK
  • considerations in mental health facility design
  • general design principles including privacy
  • dignity and choice, acoustics and colour
  • application areas in detail
  • designing for high risk areas
...

Altro Factory Tour: Innovation in manufacturing product design

This tour of our manufacturing plant and laboratories in Letchworth will focus on how safety flooring is manufactured, how new products are developed and provide guidance on issues, legislation and standards affecting the specification of safety flooring. You will be taken through the history of Altro and how we continue to lead the way through the delivery of innovative solutions, in which sustainability objectives underpin our decision making processes. This course/workshop/tour focuses on:

  • the composition of safety flooring and how it works
  • the manufacturing process
  • the history of safety flooring and how it has developed over the years
  • different types of safety flooring to suit different requirements
  • cleaning requirements for safety flooring
  • measuring slip resistance
...

Specifying vinyl floors

The variety of vinyl floor types has developed rapidly in recent years, offering multiple benefits to those designing spaces. These include safety, sustainability, installation practicalities, cost, and the wellbeing of the people working and living there. This CPD covers:

  • what vinyl floors are made of and how
  • when and why vinyl is the most appropriate floor choice – and where the Bauhaus comes into it
  • the different vinyl floor options available, including LVTs and specialist safety
  • real case studies where vinyl floors have made the difference to a project

Altro CPDs

We also have a number of Altro CPDs, which focus on a construction industry topic and how our floors, walls and doors can help you achieve what you need to, in detail:

  • design
  • designing for wellbeing: sound reduction
  • Designing for wellbeing: adapting spaces
  • Designing for wellbeing: comfort underfoot
...

Design

Design inspiration, the connection between Altro and the Bauhaus movement and how our floors and walls can help you fulfil your design goals.

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Designing for wellbeing: effective sound reduction

Noise can have a profound effect on us – associated issues include cardiovascular disease and strokes. This interactive CPD presentation covers how noise affects us, how good design can help overcome it, and what obligations you have when planning.

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Designing for wellbeing: adapting spaces

We offer two CPDs that focus on adapting spaces: one for offices, schools and other enclosed places of work, and one that looks specifically at health and care spaces. After the COVID-19 global pandemic, the materials that make up working and hygienic environments are under scrutiny to satisfy user needs, government requirements and British Council recommendations. These sessions take you through the hygiene issues associated with carpet, paint and tiles, plus current guidance and, should you decide to follow it, how Altro floors, walls and doors can help you do so, focussing on the key areas of achievable hygiene and ease of cleaning.

...

Designing for wellbeing: comfort underfoot

With musculoskeletal problems accounting for 35% of the total amount of working days lost due to ill health in the UK, comfort underfoot is a large consideration for employers. A healthy working environment should not be damaging to someone’s physical health and our CPD details how the specification of appropriate flooring can help improve these spaces.

The CPD covers:

  • why comfort underfoot is important
  • health implications of comfort underfoot
  • know when and why vinyl is an appropriate floor choice
  • understand legal implications
  • understand the different floor options available