New Generation Playground Sets

The New Generation Series comprises 4 models built around tall towers, enclosed tube slides and multi-platform links. Height is what they share: peak heights of 450–650 cm and drop heights of 200–380 cm, the 380 cm figure being the highest fall value in the catalogue. The structure is electrostatically powder-coated steel profile, with slide bodies and panels finished for outdoor conditions.

Those figures also settle who the series serves: children of six and over. Tall platforms, long tube slides and climbing transitions keep an age group that has outgrown the simple slide inside the play area. It is not suitable for younger children; where pre-school children are also expected on the same site, a separate low-platform unit should be planned.

Height does not translate into a large area on every model, and this is the point that most repays attention here. Footprints run from 750 × 520 cm to 1350 × 935 cm and safety areas from 950 × 720 cm to 1750 × 1335 cm — roughly 68 m² to 234 m². In other words the series includes models with a 300 cm drop height that still fit into 68 m². A small area does not mean a small surfacing requirement.

Surfacing is therefore the decisive planning item. The thickness of the impact-absorbing layer follows from the drop height, and the difference between 200 cm and 380 cm changes that line item substantially. The covering must extend across the whole safety area rather than the ground beneath the unit, including the widening in the exit direction of tube slides. Choosing the equipment and deferring the flooring produces more budget surprises here than anywhere else. TS EN 1176 applies on the equipment side and TS EN 1177 on the surfacing side.

In siting, allow for the fact that these units become a focal point in a large park — which means people gather around them. Route pedestrian flow outside the safety area, and place benches just beyond it, facing the equipment. Sightlines matter on tall platforms too: the unit belongs in an open position where the upper level can be seen from ground level.

Units at this scale are usually procured through a tender specification. Whether writing one or assessing a bid, four headings belong together: the drop height and safety area of each unit, the fall height the surfacing is suited to, an m² figure for the surfacing calculated across the entire safety area, and the post-installation inspection and maintenance obligations. Written with cross-references between the equipment and flooring items, the specification leaves no mismatch to be discovered on site.

Concrete foundations and anchoring are required at installation. Because the structures are tall, post-installation inspection is more detailed: platform guardrails, stair connections and tube slide joints are each checked in turn. Transport, surfacing and assembly are carried out by our own team.

Three items lead the maintenance list: cleaning and crack inspection of enclosed tube slide interiors, monthly tightness checks on guardrail and platform connections, and an annual review of panels for UV brittleness. A surfacing check before winter is worth making as well, since an open joint widens once water freezes in it. Share your site dimensions and the age range you have in mind and we will identify a suitable model.