Maple wood sports flooring and the various synthetic sports flooring options serve different purposes. QHF looks at pros and cons of both.
According to the MFMA, hardwood maple makes up 70% of sports floors installed around the U.S. Maple sports floors are the industry standard for basketball, volleyball and dance sports because the benefits for athletes far outweigh synthetic sports flooring.
Synthetic flooring may be safer for younger athletes who are finding their footing. Then again, synthetic flooring will not have the same absorption and bounce of maple flooring systems. This proper absorption and bounce can affect player performance and fatigue. Synthetic flooring is better suited for multi-purpose uses: weight rooms, indoor tracks or trade shows. Think heavier traffic such as large gatherings.
Maple flooring provides sports such as volleyball and basketball proper shock absorption and performance. The MFMA has created Performance & Uniformity Rating (PUR) Sport Specific Standards that rate shock absorption, vertical deflection, area of deflection, ball bounce and surface friction. This strict pass/fail rating ensures maple sports flooring is appropriate for athletes.