Cold storage is statistically the highest-incident sector for industrial slip injuries in the UK. Condensation, frost, and ice formation at door thresholds combine with high-MHE traffic to create exposure patterns that warm-store testing protocols miss entirely. Pendulum testing …
Tier 1 · Logistics Storage
Every cold storage site has a distinct surface vocabulary that drives the testing protocol. We test the actual surfaces present, not a generic baseline.
Reinforced concrete with cold-store-rated sealerthe dominant base finish in chilled and frozen storage chambers
Cementitious polyurethane heavy-duty resinin loading-dock and ante-room zones where frost forms
Anti-slip aggregate-keyed coatings at door thresholdsthe single highest-priority intervention zone
Steel grating over drainage at thawing-equipment zonestested independently of surrounding floor
Cold-store door rubber thresholdsfrequently overlooked but a defined slip-zone
Vinyl walkways in pick-and-pack ante-roomswhere temperature differentials drive condensation
Generic slip testing misses the zones that actually generate incidents. Cold Storage sites have distinct high-risk zones that warrant independent testing.
Where +20°C ambient meets -25°C chamber, condensation freezes within minutes of door cycling. PTV at this 1-2m zone can drop below 0.10 — well into Extreme Slip Potential.
Forklift wheels accumulate ice in the chamber, then deposit melting water in the warmer ante-room. The melt-line creates a moving wet-PTV exposure.
Evaporator defrost cycles release water that flows toward floor drains — surrounding flooring sees twice-daily wet-PTV reduction.
Refrigerant condensate drips from ceiling cassettes onto specific floor zones — cumulative ice build-up that point-tests can miss.
Cold-store slip testing falls under HSE INDG225 and Workplace Regulations 1992 Reg 12, with specific HSE guidance on slip and ice hazards. UK Cold Storage Association best practice requires documented PTV evidence as part of the QHSE management system. UKAS ISO/IEC 17025 reports must specify the temperature at which testing was performed; pendulum testing below +5°C requires temperature-corrected slider material per BS 7976.
A 3PL operator running a multi-temperature site (+15°C ambient, +2°C chilled, -25°C frozen) commissioned quarterly UKAS pendulum testing after their PL insurer required documented evidence of slip-risk management at the cold-store thresholds. We test threshold zones at 1m, 2m and 3m intervals into and out of each chamber, providing a degradation profile rather than single-point readings. The operator uses the data to set the refresh cadence of their dock-threshold cleaning regime.
Whether you operate a single industrial site, a multi-site portfolio, or an FM contractor brief covering multiple operators, we'll return a fully-costed, no-obligation quotation within one working day.
Mon–Fri, 8am–6pm office hours.
23:00–05:00 attendance for production-floor sites by arrangement.