Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Jockimo Glass Flooring Benefits

jockimo-sandalsresort-frontHistory

Many people think that glass flooring is a new product - the "latest hot new trend". In actuality, glass floors have been a feature of architectural design for approximately 100+ years. Of course 100 years ago the safety standards that are in place now were not in existence. Glass floor panels "back in the day" were typically poured cast glass 1" thick plus and not tempered or laminated for safety. Many of the 100+ year old installations are only now being updated and replaced (many by Jockimo) due to wear and tear and to meet current safety standards. Hopefully this assures the owner, architect, interior designer, and contractor that Glass Flooring is an enduring product.

The second myth in regard to glass floor panels is that the walking surface of glass floors is slippery. This is simply not the fact. Jockimo was the first company in the industry to receive UL and NFSI certification on its glass flooring products. We are also the first company in the industry to meet worldwide (US, UK, EU, AU) anti-slip standards with our exclusive products.

The final myth is regarding strength. Are glass floors strong? Will they hold pedestrian traffic? Absolutely! Glass floors should be engineered to hold pedestrian traffic 100 to 150 lbs per square foot. Additionally, the analysis (we strongly recommend finite element analysis) should take into consideration that the glass must be partially compromised (broken) and yet still hold the load. Today the ASTM and other standards dictate that glass be produced to minimize potential liabilities and in turn be safe for all. Jockimo is a contributing member to the ASTM glass floor development committee where we are developing standards for all to follow in the producing of glass floors and glass stair treads. This new standard dictates that all glass floor panels should be laminated for safety.

Knowledge

There is an old saying, "knowledge is power," that sums up the philosophy here at Jockimo. We believe that in order to choose the very best glass flooring and glass treads/steps, you need to learn as much information as possible about the product. So, to help you understand glass flooring & treads, we would like to provide you with the following glossary of terms commonly used when describing glass flooring:

  • Annealed - Annealed glass is glass without internal stresses caused by heat treatment (i.e. by rapid cooling, or by toughening or heat strengthening). Glass becomes annealed if it is heated above a transition point then allowed to cool slowly, without being quenched. Annealed glass breaks into large, jagged shards that can cause serious injury, and thus annealed glass is considered a hazard in architectural applications. Building codes in many parts of the world restrict the use of annealed glass in areas where there is a high risk of breakage and injury, for example in bathrooms, in door panels, fire exits and at low heights in schools or domestic houses.
  • Tempered - Tempered glass is four to five times stronger than standard annealed glass and does not break into sharp shards when it fails. Tempered glass is manufactured through a process of extreme heating and rapid cooling, making it harder than normal glass. This heating process causes the glass to shatter into small oval-shaped pebbles when broken. This eliminates the danger of sharp edges. Due to this property, along with its strength, tempered glass is often referred to as "safety" glass.
  • Laminated - Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that holds together when shattered. In the event of breakage, it is held in place by an inter layer between its two or more layers of glass. The inter layer keeps the layers of glass bonded even when broken, and its high strength prevents the glass from breaking up into large sharp pieces. This produces a characteristic "spider web" cracking pattern when the impact is not enough to completely pierce the glass.
  • Polished Edges - The edges of glass are often polished to remove irregular edges and provide a clean finished edge on the glass. Typically edges that are exposed and not captured by hardware are polished.

Why Jockimo?

  • Jockimo is the first manufacturer in the industry to have our anti-slip glass (GlassGrit™) tested and Classified by Underwriter's Laboratories (UL).
  • Jockimo is the first manufacturer in the industry to have our ant-slip glass (GlassGrit™) tested and exceed the National Floor Safety Institute (NFSI) Phase 1 and Phase 2 requirements.
  • Jockimo was the first company in the industry to meet worldwide (US, UK, EU, AU) anti-slip standards with our exclusive products.
  • Jockimo is the first manufacturer in the industry to offer multiple anti-slip walking surface options:  GlassGrit™, GlassFrit™, and JGlass™.
  • Jockimo has been a contributing member for the past 2 years to the ASTM committee challenged to develop a standard that all manufacturers are to adhere to when producing glass flooring panels.
  • Jockimo offers an ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) required contrasting strip on the nosing of stair treads and landings. Jockimo is the first and only glass flooring manufacturer that offers this patent pending product.

Benefits of Jockimo Glass Flooring

Glass flooring is a very popular product and as a result, there are many "manufacturers" currently offering glass flooring products that are NOT safe - even though they may state that they are. These companies do not supply proof of UL testing/approvals nor do they engineer the glass safely. This in turn obviously proves a liability for all involved. Other manufacturers use annealed layers of glass. They may try to tell you that, once these annealed panels are laminated together, they are safe to use in building and design. Do not believe them. You and your client's safety are much too important.

Other manufacturers may also use tempered layers of glass.  However, they polish each layer before they laminate them together. This can result in an uneven, jagged and unfinished edge. While not necessarily unsafe, these treads are certainly not attractive.

At Jockimo we are different than other glass flooring suppliers in that we offer a UL tested and approved top surface on our glass flooring. Our exclusive anti-slip GlassGrit™ and GlassFrit™ surfaces exceed ADA requirements, were the first to be succesfully tested and Classified by UL, and were the first to be tested and approved by NFSI.

Safety is of the utmost importance, and at Jockimo™ we engineer the glass specifically for your project with your project's specifications. This allows us to provide you with the safest possible glass for your project. Jockimo™ will provide you with an engineering analysis pdf of your glass project from our structural engineer - who is a glass specialist. This is VERY important and will be helpful for the owner and GC when discussing with building inspectors. (There are many structural engineers in the world but not many that are experts on glass. We recommend that only a structural engineer specializing in glass be used.)

We only use tempered glass on all layers of our glass flooring and glass treads/stairs due to the increased strength of tempered glass. We are also the only manufacturer that offers monolithically polished stair treads that are fully tempered. We are different than other suppliers in that we fully temper each piece (lite) of glass, laminate all together, and then polish the edges as one monolithically laminated panel providing for nice cleanly polished edges.

Other manufacturers that offer "polished edges" offer an inferior product by providing one of two things:

  1. They provide all annealed glass that they polish after laminating. They may try to tell you that, once these annealed panels are laminated together, they are safe to use in building and design. Do not believe them. You and your client's safety are much too important. Our, and our engineer's, opinion is that an all-annealed glass flooring product is NOT safe. If someone suggests this make-up/solution to you we recommend that you talk to another source.
  2. They polish each lite of glass individually, temper and then laminate. This is a better solution than #1 above but in general, glass cannot be cut consistently from panel to panel nor can the individual panels be polished to allow the glass to be the correct size. So when providing this option the individual layers (lites) of glass in the multi-layer laminated panel are all different sizes - some up to 1/4" off the others. This provides for a less visually appealing and sloppy final product.


At Jockimo, we are committed to excellence, and thus we use only methods that ensure the safest and most beautiful glass flooring. You do not have to settle for an inferior glass product. You can expect the best quality and workmanship when working with Jockimo.

How to work with us

As to where to start, we will need to receive a take off (quantities and sizes) from you as well as any plans that you can send. (You can fax or e-mail pdfs to us.) Please include any details of the structural support system for the flooring as well. You can email them to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

We offer three major types of UL Approved glass flooring and we need to know which option you are interested in for this project - either Crystal Clear™, Ultimate Privacy™ or Ultimate Privacy Frost™. We also offer two different anti-slip surfaces - GlassGrit™ and GlassFrit™.