Fifty-five percent of the safety, production and manufacturing leaders we surveyed say they don't have a formal mat inspection process. Another 21% say they're unsure. In brief, over 75% of anti-fatigue mat users don't know how their anti-fatigue mats are performing.
Regular inspections help you identify problem areas before they arise. As an anti-fatigue mat manufacturer, we provide hundreds of on-site mat inspections every year. Below is our 6-step process. If looking to gain a complete understanding of the state of your mats, or if your mats aren’t lasting and you’re not sure why, start here.
Anti-fatigue mat inspection in 6 easy steps:
Step 1: Print AcroMat's Mat Inspection checklist
The AcroMat Anti-Fatigue Mat Inspection Checklist is freely available resource available here on our website, and includes the most common anti-fatigue mat safety issues you should be documenting:
- Wrong size / gaps / constant on-off stepping
- Curling or broken borders
- Visible rips or tears
- Reduced cushion: Sinking, flattening
- Exposed cords and cables
- Eroded surfaces / lost traction
- Constantly sliding around / out on an island
Jack Link's before-after. The red X's show common hazards, including overlapping borders (trip hazard), size issues (ergo hazard), and gaps (trip hazard). Jack Link's replaced the pieced-together mats with a single custom AcroMat designed to fit the work area.
Pro Tip: Short on time but looking for a "snapshot" of how your mats are performing and whether they are putting your people at risk? In just 5 minutes, get an understanding of the state of your mats with our Anti-Fatigue Mat Performance Snapshot. The checklist can be used digitally or printed, and provides a precursor to our Inspection Checklist.
If short on time, kickstart your inspection efforts with our Performance Snapshot.
Step 2: Agree to a consistent inspection cadence
Ideally, anti-fatigue mat inspections take place every 30 days, 60 days, or 90 days. We recommend shorter timeframes between inspections, but also recognize time is limited and most safety, production and manufacturing leaders are already at max capacity. Whichever timeframe you choose, consistency is the key.
We asked a Fortune 500 AcroMat client how they stay consistent with anti-fatigue mat inspections. Here is what the Corporate EHS Manager had to say.
Pro Tip: As touched on above, assigning anti-fatigue mat inspections to a machine operator or technician as part of a stretch goal is an effective way to stay consistent. This approach gives team members the opportunity to "stretch" outside of their day-to-day roles, collaborate with other team members, and helps you maintain a consistent and reliable cadence.
Step 3: Complete the checklist
Complete the Anti-Fatigue Mat Inspection Checklist. File it away. Complete another one next month or next round of inspections. After several inspections, gather the checklists, compare findings, and look for key trends rising to the forefront.
- Are there any noteworthy trends (e.g., borders curling at all areas)?
- Are certain mat styles aging faster than others?
- Is a certain style failing when others are succeeding?
- Are you getting consistent high scores for a specific type of mat?
- Does the Performance Snapshot align with operator feedback?
Example Checklist: Write the name of the area in the appropriate row, note the hazards with a checkmark or "yes," and add comments based on feedback or anything else that stands out.
Hazards at this helicopter manufacturing facility include stacked mats, pieced-together mats, sliding around, and inconsistent surfaces, tractions, and cushions.
Pro Tip: Take pictures. As we talk about trends and re-visiting, having an album of photos you can refer back to provides visual clarity and can help with buy-in when it comes time to replacing mats that are outdated or performing poorly.
This can be as simple as taking 10 pictures at each workstation, creating an album on your iPhone titled the same as the workspace, then saving photos in the correct album. If you have an internal network, like Microsoft Teams, or use Google Photos, photos can be easily transferred and shared via mobile device.
Step 4: Get feedback from the anti-fatigue mat users
Every day at AcroMat we're asked about mat inspection, how to assess ergonomic support, shape and size, or how this mat compares to that mat. There is a science to it all, but at its core inspection is about making sure your mats are supporting the people who use them every day.
Make sure your inspections are not disconnected from the people it matters to most by incorporating feedback from your standing workers.
Here are 7 questions we always recommend asking during inspections:
- Do you feel safe and physically supported?
- Has your mat been sliding around or curling?
- How is the mat holding up to liquids/chemicals?
- How do your feet/back/neck feel after each shift?
- What would you change about your current mat(s)?
- Do you have pains you can't connect to an impact injury?
- How does this mat compare to what you have been using?
One reason feedback is so important is the discrepancy we often see between those on the production floor and those removed. We talked to a plant supervisor with a solar panel manufacturer who said a new mat they were considering was "way more comfortable" than the others (and cheaper). He works in an office and was testing the mat at his standing desk.
During a visit to the production floor, we asked a machine operator who would be using the mats 8+ hours a day. She said, "The mat is way too soft, my ankles feel like they're sinking."
This type of feedback shouldn't be ignored.
Aaron Anderson-Walker, Senior Manufacturing Engineering Technologist with Fortune 100 mainstay 3M, shares how his team's "internal audit" identified hazards with their previous mats – including what they looked for and the steps they took after.
According to Gallup research, less than 25% of workers in manufacturing consider themselves "engaged," one of the lowest of all industries. One way to increase employee engagement? Integrate feedback from front-line team members. Ask. Listen. Document. Act.
Pro tip: Ergonomist Mary Plehal joined AcroMat to discuss what causes MSD injuries and how to prevent them. During this webinar, she shared 5 key steps to creating and conducting effective comfort surveys during anti-fatigue mat inspections. If you have an additional 5 minutes to spare, here is one way you can take employee feedback to a deeper level:
Ergonomist Mary Plehal shares 5 steps to creating an effective comfort survey as part or your mat inspections. This 5-minute video is part of a broader AcroMat webinar Mary led on preventing MSD injuries. The webinar can be viewed on our YouTube channel, here.
Step 5: Act – Start with a single mat
The nice thing about anti-fatigue mats is that you don't have to replace everything at once. Some companies prefer a major overhaul across facilities at the same time. If you’re looking to make an upgrade but still unsure of the right partner, it’s okay to start with a single mat.
Research a few anti-fatigue mat providers, ask for free sample mats, then review these samples using the same steps we just walked through above.
Before-after: This windows manufacturer made a significant safety upgrade by shifting from hand-cut rectangular mats to custom mats with AcroMat. Before standardizing with AcroMat, they kickstarted the process with a free, full-sized sample mat.
Pro Tip: Fifty-two percent of the same leaders we surveyed expect their anti-fatigue mats to last at least 2 years. Nearly 70% say they aren't lasting a single year. At AcroMat, we talk a lot about how a comprehensive trial period before filling your facility with mats can stop you from becoming part of the 70%.
We put together the 1-page survey below for a $30+ billion grocery and food manufacturing chain. The survey is simple and straightforward, but it's built around the questions you need answers to. This survey can help:
- Gather genuine, honest feedback from employees
- Create consistent, quantifiable data points
- Easily compare mats across facilities/geographies
Our 1-page Trial Process Feedback Survey can help you gather genuine, honest feedback from employees and create consistent, quantifiable data points.
If you're in the market for new anti-fatigue mats or looking to compare new mats with what you have now, first get get a sample or multiple samples. Test the mats for 30-60 days, handout a hardcopy of the following survey or build a digital version with Survey Monkey or Microsoft Forms, compile the results, then feed it all into an AI tool asking for a neatly summarized report.
From there, review the data against the mat provider's warranty, their own third-party test data, and against testimonials they allow you to contact.
View Survey: AcroMat Trial Process Feedback Survey
Step 6: Create an anti-fatigue mat standard
The last and more important step so you don't have to keep laboring through the process above is to create a standard for anti-fatigue mats. At its simplest, standardizing means uniting your anti-fatigue mat approach into a single document or process.
Nearly 80% of our audience says they have standards in place for other safety products like PPE, gowns, and glasses. Yet, only 13% has one in place for anti-fatigue mats. This highlights a huge safety and cost-savings opportunity.
Like inspections, standardizing is a straightforward process that involves bringing your use of anti-fatigue mats down to a select 1-2 types of mat, listing the exact features every mat needs (e.g., yellow safety borders on entry points), the provider to get the mats from, and making sure everyone in the company knows exactly how to go about getting what they need.
Once the standard is in place, you know with confidence you have mats that are protecting your people and your budget, a partner you can trust, and you no longer have to worry about dealing with the steps above every few months.
Interested in a comprehensive anti-fatigue mat inspection but unable to dedicate the time? Looking to standardize your approach? Our team at AcroMat provides hundreds of inspections each year and would be happy to answer your questions or lead the process on your behalf.
Book a 15-Minute Call or In-Person Site Visit
Summary: The Role of Anti-Fatigue Mats
According to a Cintas and The Harris Poll survey of 2,050 U.S. employees, 93% believe companies that provide anti-fatigue mats care more about their health than those that don't. An additional 94% believe the health and comfort of people who work on their feet for long hours should be a top priority.
More than 9 out of 10 employees in the U.S. believe strongly their companies should provide anti-fatigue mats. The key is making sure you have mats that actually help your employees, and aren't working against them.
Further, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, work environment and ergonomic injuries (MSDs) are directly connected. In other words, your workplace is either reducing MSD injury risks, or it’s causing them.
Anti-fatigue mats have proven to play an important role in employee satisfaction, safety and MSD prevention. The challenge is, most companies think "all mats are alike." The right mats will elevate your company. The wrong mats will actively work against your people.
The first step is gaining a complete understanding of your current situation. From here, you can begin to make changes with confidence and certainty.
