S-Tiles - sistema Apice

APICE: A SYSTEM IN USE FOR MORE THAN TWENTY YEARS

Introduced from Japan in the 1980s, this simple system of floor/pavement guide for the visually impaired has also been in use for years in Australia, Hong Kong, South Korea and the US. In accordance with the Australian size standard (300 x 300 mm), Ceramica Apice produces and markets the three profiles (“Go”, “Stop” and “Alt”) that make up the system in porcelain tile. Inspired by clear and simple design principles (universality of the signs, their safety and durability), this product allows for endless applications both outdoors and indoors. When walking on paths employing such a system, visually impaired and blind people acquire an autonomy of movement by the active use of tactile information obtained from the floor through their shoes and/or sticks. To the visually impaired, specific chromatic contrasts both on the pavement guide and between this and the rest of the floor/pavement provide additional assistance. The manufacturer, finally, actively assists the designers of the floor space in the correct installation of the product. Using its ‘just in time’ approach, Ceramica Apice is always ready to supply on request the set of reliefs, colours and size of the tiles applied by the system.