Playground Safety

Create a safe haven for the imagination

Each year, over 200,000 children in the United States alone visit the emergency room due to playground-related accidents. Your local Playworld representative will help you properly plan for playground safety to ensure your site doesn’t contribute to the statistics.

Playground safety starts at the surface

Seventy-five percent of playground injuries are a result of a fall on an unforgiving or poorly maintained playground surface, so surfacing is the first step to playground safety. We'll walk you through your options to make sure you get the right surface for your space. Learn more about playground surfaces.

Choose equipment that meets playground safety guidelines

With Playworld Systems, you get the peace of mind that comes with knowing our equipment can be designed to meet or exceed both U.S. and international guidelines for safety, including the following.

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) www.CPSC.gov The U.S CPSC Handbook for Public Playground Safety (Pub No. 325) serves as the reference for the entire play industry. Download a free copy from their Web site.
American Society for Testing & Materials (ASTM) www.ASTM.org The ASTM is one of the largest voluntary standard-setting organizations in the world. Their guidelines on playground safety, Standard Consumer Safety Performance Specification for Playground Equipment for Public Use (F-1487), is available for purchase on their Web site.
European Norm (EN) The European Norm EN1176 is the accepted playground safety standard for most of Europe and some other countries.
Canadian Standards Association (CSA) www.CSA.ca The CSA’s A Guideline on Children’s Play Spaces and Equipment (Standard CAN/CSA-Z614-07) contains technical recommendations for playground safety, and is available for purchase on their Web site.
Singapore Standard www.spring.gov.sg Widely used throughout Asia and based primarily on ASTM standards, the Singapore Standard SS 457:1999 (ICS 97.200.40) establishes acceptable performance standards for playground equipment and recommends technical specifications for all major playground safety issues.

Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act

Playworld Systems is proud to announce that we are in full compliance with the material, testing and reporting requirements of the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA).  Not only are we below the lead content in paint and substrate limits of the Act, we have eliminated 99.999% of PVC and extended the restrictions on phthalates to all types, not just the six phthalates indicated in Section 108 of the Act.  By restricting all phthalates to the limits of Section 108, Playworld Systems has taken an extra step in alleviating health concerns regarding phthalates.  We are also doing our part for the environment by eliminating 99.999% of PVC from our products and the associated environmental concerns about dioxins potentially created during its manufacture and disposal.

To learn more about any of these guidelines, visit the organization online or contact your local Playworld Systems representative.

Post risk management signage

Different age groups have different recreational abilities and playground safety needs. Playworld makes it easy to ensure playground safety for all ages with prominent playground rules and age-designation signs. See Playworld’s playground safety signage solutions.

Perform regular maintenance

Ensure playground safety for years to come with a documented maintenance program that includes regular equipment inspections. Keep a log of all inspections and repairs, which will be particularly important in the event of any warranty or accident issues. And with the installation of any Playmakers®, Challengers®, or LifeTrail® playsystem, your Playworld Systems representative will provide you with a custom maintenance kit that includes a personalized equipment maintenance program on CD-ROM, graffiti remover touch-up paint, basic replacement parts and more.