Floor Plates

General information about floor lates

A floor plate, tear plate and corrugated plate can be recognized by the rolled pattern in the plate. Ribbed surface sheets are primarily used for safety reasons because they reduce the risk of slipping. Designers also use the patterned sheets as a design element.

Floor plates offer many advantages: they are robust and durable. They are also easy to process. Their low weight also has a positive effect on use.

What is the difference between a tread plate and a floor plate?

Patterned steel sheets are available as tread plates and checker plates. If the sheet is made of aluminium, it is more likely to be referred to as a floor plate, with the "Duett" and "Quintett" versions being the most common. Tear plates made of stainless steel are mainly used in the "Mandorla" version. This pattern is formed by single tears arranged in a T-shape. The terms are often used synonymously, e.g. aluminium chequer plate instead of floor plate.

A floor plate is still relatively safe to walk on and drive on, even if it is wet or smeared. This is ensured by the embossed ribs, which are usually one to two millimetres high. For example, a floor plate is mainly used as floor covering. In vehicle construction they are also made of aluminium because of their lower weight.

They are also used as a design element for decoration. If you use tear plates made of stainless steel or steel at this point, they are also available with different surface finishes (e.g. black or galvanised surface).

How is a floor plate produced?

The starting point for the production of floor plates is slabs, which are hot-rolled to the desired thickness. A cold rolling process can also be connected to influence the material properties.

The patterning of the floor plates is carried out in skin pass mills. Here, forming rolls with high forces produce the desired surface structure. The sheet structure is also produced in this way for checker plates and tear plates.

Depending on the desired material properties, heat treatment may follow. Finally, the metal sheets are cut to size. DIN 59220 applies to steel bulb plates; specifications for patterned aluminium plates can be found in DIN EN 1386.

Where are floor plates used?

The use of a floor plate is mainly in the following areas:

• Platform coverings in the (petro-)chemical industry
• Offshore installations
• Power plants
• Automobile industry
• Fashion industry
• Aircraft construction
• Shipbuilding