Safety in Outdoor Commercial Playground Equipment

When it comes to designing outdoor commercial playground equipment, Elephant®Play considers all of the critical measures of playground equipment safety. From swing sets to climbing nets, Elephant®Play’s research and development team is committed to ensuring that its innovative playground equipment first and foremost adheres to the ASTM & CSA requirements for playground equipment safety. At the same time, Elephant®Play is striving to develop higher playground safety standards to ensure children are protected against injury. Whether spinning friends around on rotating nets, enjoying a ride on a group swing set, or scaling a climbing net, children are always in good hands with Elephant®Play.

Elephant®Play refuses to compromise on outdoor playground equipment safety. See for yourself some of the unparalleled safety features of Elephant®Play commercial playground equipment:

Impossibility of Free Fall

With a maximum 15-inch net width, children cannot fall to the ground but are always held up by a supportive net layer. Should a child fall from the interior play structure of an Elephant®Play climbing net, he or she will be caught by an intermediate net below. Similarly, if a child falls from outside the climbing net, the net play structure widens at the bottom to easily catch the child and dramatically decrease fall severity. Due to this widening bottom of the net structure, a fall from the full height of single mast spatial nets can only occur by extending outwards horizontally 43.31 in (1.1m)—rendering the prospect of free fall virtually impossible (see “Elephant®Play Climbing Net Exterior Fall Height”).

Enhanced Swing Set Safety

The impact of a swing set seat against a child’s head can cause serious injury. Such injuries are common in the uncontrolled movements of tire swings, but the risk can be minimized using design strategies that lower the mass of the seat and use impact-absorbing materials. Elephant®Play manufactures swings with light rubber bumpers in a suspended dish shape. The curved shape avoids the dangerous pointed corners of traditional swing sets and acts to lower the swing’s centre of gravity, while a malleable rubber bumper component allows for full compression around the suspended element. Elephant®Play swing sets are also calibrated to operate within a specific, controlled trajectory so that surrounding children can easily predict where swings will move—greatly decreasing the likelihood of an unexpected impact. In addition, the angle of the suspension members creates a substantially reduced arc of motion (see “Elephant®Play Multi-User Swing Movement”), thus directing kinetic energy upward and reducing the severity of a potential impact.

Enhanced Swing Stability

Rather than hanging from two chains, Elephant®Play swing sets are suspended with four steel reinforced nylon ropes. The ropes are mounted to the suspended element in strategic locations to avoid tipping over the swing. By keeping the right opening angle between the ropes, the pendulum motion of the suspended element is completely neutralized, and the lateral movement of the suspended element ends up being extremely limited. Thus, pushing against the movement of the swing merely results in a gentle rocking motion around point A (as shown in “Elephant®Play Stable Swing Set Design”).

Three-Point Clinging Enforced

Elephant®Play outdoor commercial playground equipment forces children to maintain bodily stability. Children gain this stability by having to move with only one free limb off the playground equipment. At all times the child must employ either two hands and one foot, or one hand and two feet. Thus, Elephant®Play playground equipment ensures that children always feel safe and stable as they play.

Protective Surfacing for Rotating Equipment

The protective surfacing zone for equipment that rotates around a vertical axis extends at least 70.87 in (1.8 m) from the perimeter of the play structure (see “Protective Surfacing and No-Encroachment Zone”)

No-Encroachment Zone for Rotating Equipment *

A no-encroachment zone of at least 70.87in (1.8 m) from the perimeter of the protective surfacing is provided for equipment that rotates around a vertical axis (see “Protective Surfacing and No-Encroachment Zone”)

Deck Rotates with the Central Post

Outdoor commercial playground equipment that rotates around a vertical axis holds the potential of catching a child’s clothing and resulting in injury. With Elephant®Play rotating playground equipment, such clothing entrapment is not possible as the movement of the central post coordinates with the movement of the deck to ensure that children are never inextricably caught on the mast. Children can thus safely enjoy the dynamic movement of the rotating playground equipment with no risk to their safety.

*Not applicable in U.S.; required by CSA (Canadian Safety Standards) only.