After hurricane season has run its course and left its mark, it’s time to assess the damage and start planning to rebuild your community.
Accessibility must be taken into consideration when doing so. Is there damage to existing ramps that provide access to public spaces such as schools, libraries, or small businesses? It’s a great time to evaluate accessibility needs and select the right ramp that will work for each location.
With this in mind, we’re going to walk through a few features you should look for in a commercial-grade ramp system that will last for years to come, even in hurricane-prone areas.
Insights on Rebuilding Accessibility
Easy to Install
If you are looking at installing quite a few access ramps in your community, it is important that you select a ramp system that sets up with ease. While wood might be the easiest material to come by, building a wood ramp may take several days and requires skilled labor along with a wide variety of tools to get the job done. From digging and pouring concrete footings to cutting the wood, the tools needed and the install time can quickly add up.
An aluminum ramp system is made up of modular components that are connected with universal hardware. This means a system can be installed in a matter of hours with minimal tools, cutting the wait time down for a safer environment for individuals of all abilities.
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Customizable
A ramp system that can be customized to fit any entrance is a must when planning out which structures need safe and code compliant access. An aluminum, modular ramp is going to be the best option for your disaster relief plan, because it’s the easiest to customize. Ramps, platforms, and steps can all be combined and configured to accommodate the layout of the structure needing ADA access. At EZ-ACCESS, you can give our Customer Service team a call to talk about the properties in need of access solutions, and an expert will walk you through the configuration that will be best suited for each location.
Compliant
Another point of strife regarding wood ramps is their potential to fall out of alignment with the ADA’s guidelines concerning a maximum slope of 1:12. Due to warping and shifting boards, the slope of a wood ramp could become very inconsistent and potentially exceed 1:12. Our commercial-grade ramp system can easily be set at 1:12 and is fully ADA compliant to ensure the ramp is safe for all users.
Weathers the Storm
A ramp needs to hold up to hurricanes and tropical storms that will inevitably come, year after year. This is one of the reasons we build EZ-ACCESS ramps exclusively from aluminum. Other popular materials including wood, concrete, and steel will rot, rust, or deteriorate when they come in contact with water and won’t be a sustainable option, especially in areas where heavy rains and flooding are prevalent. Aluminum ramps, on the other hand, are corrosion-resistant and virtually maintenance-free, so you can be sure they will stand up to the harsh, changing environment and last for years to come.
For more research on different types of materials for commercial ramp solutions, you can read through our blog from earlier this year to get a more expansive view of the pros and cons.
Or, you can jump right to our disaster relief resources to learn about the two access solutions that we recommend for disaster relief.
As always, please reach out to our Customer Service team if you have questions about the solutions!