AS part of Improve International’s expansion, the company has invested heavily into enhancing the training facilities at its Swindon site.

Adding two surgical wet-lab training theatres and a radiology suite, there was a keen focus on branding, comfort, and sustainability across the new spaces. Kerr Office Group looked to meet this brief using a range of Forbo flooring sytems, including its Marmoleum, Allura LVT, and Surestep safety vinyl.

As a leading provider of veterinary training, Improve International has been delivering courses to industry professionals since 1998, ensuring it has the skills and confidence to carry out compassionate animal care.

With two UK-based locations, in Sheffield and Swindon, Improve International has a range of facilities to perform practical and attendance courses across a broad range of specialities.

Following the recent refurbishment of its Swindon centre, Sarah Payne, head of design at Kerr Office Group, said: ‘Improve International approached us to refurbish a Category A space into a state-of-the-art veterinary education and support facility. This was a design-led project, with Improve International outlining the spaces they already had and instructing us to elevate this existing theme across the new areas.’

Abbie Thorne, project designer at Kerr Office Group, said: ‘It was an extremely interesting project to work on, with the company branding needing to be subtly reflected in each space, from the clinical areas into the breakout zones. To do this, we had to come up with a cohesive flooring scheme that would tie each area together nicely. This was one of the reasons we specified Forbo, with its wide range of designs meaning we had plenty of colourways to choose from.’

A significant part of this project was the breakout space that formed the centre of the new facility, as Abbie explained further: ‘When you first enter the building you come straight into this large open-plan breakout room, with tables and a large island in the middle. Improve International wanted this to have a ‘coffee shop’ feel to it, while tying in its branding colours.

‘To do this, we had the walls painted in its signature purple, blue and green colours and then created a hospitality feel with Forbo’s Allura Flex LVT in the Deep Country Oak. Laid in a lovely Ashlar pattern, this created a modern and grounded feel to the space. We installed the flooring adhesive-free, enhancing the sustainability of the space and making it easier to remove or replace the flooring if future refurbishments are needed.’

Connected to this breakout area are two lecture rooms, with both spaces featuring Forbo’s Flotex flocked flooring in the Metro Nimbus colourways. Abbie explained this specification, saying: ‘Not only is Flotex durable and provides good acoustic properties but it’s also extremely easy to clean. This was incredibly important to the client, as they can often have live animals in the lecture rooms for ultrasounds and other procedures.’

Forbo’s Surestep safety vinyl and Marmoleum floorcoverings were also installed in the two laboratories and radiology suite.’

She continued: ‘Sustainability was an important consideration to Improve International, as well as being one of our core design principles at Kerr. As a result, we knew Marmoleum would be a perfect fit for this project. Not only is it one of the most sustainable products on the market, being climate positive (carbon negative), cradle to gate, without the need for offsetting and manufactured from up to 98% natural raw materials and 43% recycled content, but its Topshield pro lacquer also makes it durable – perfect for the radiology suite, where you will regularly have animals and staff walking across the flooring. We used the Blue Heaven colourway from the Marmoleum Fresco collection in these spaces, as well as in the adjoining corridors, which nicely matched with the company branding.

‘Surestep was then used in the laboratories to ensure compliance with the relevant Referral Hospital standards and maintain the safety of those using the space. Owing to the number of people each lab could accommodate and the high potential for spillages, it was important we had an effective safety flooring and Surestep was just this, providing an R10 slip rating.’

In addition to the clinical and training spaces, Kerr Office Group specified a range of Forbo’s flooring for the wider office space where Improve International’s staff work from, including adhesive-free Allura Flex in Whitewash Elegant Oak, Tessera Infused in Magic Mood and Safestep in the Slate Grey colourway. Installed as an integrated flooring scheme, this combination helped create a modern and professional office feel, while also being easy to maintain and reuse or recycle at the end of their useful lifespan.

Officially opened in June 2024, the Swindon site is now the largest training centre for veterinarians in Europe (spanning 850sq m) and has been well received by Improve International and its team.

It also won project of the year at the inaugural Forbo Awards, with Sarah commenting: ‘It feels great to have won project of the year! This was a really special project to work on for the whole team and we’re so glad it’s getting the recognition it deserves. We couldn’t have done it without the wide range of designs and solutions that Forbo offers, providing us with ample choices for each space.’
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