SOCCER
Federation International
of Football Associations
FIFA has established a network of accredited laboratories for the
purpose of testing and certifying the compliance of synthetic soccer
pitches.
Acousto-Scan
Pty Ltd is one of these accredited laboratory and offers a testing
service on a world wide basis.
Testing
of synthetic soccer pitches is carried out by the Laboratory to
the specifications contained in the FIFA Standard
FIFA
Field Testing Manual, 2001
The
relevant tests can be summarised from the Manual as follows.
Player/Surface
Interaction
2.1
Shock Absorbency
Test method 1: Berlin Athlete as per DIN 18032 Tiel 2 Marz 1991
Criterion: 55 - 70 % Force Reduction
2.2
Vertical Deformation
Test method 1: Stuttgart Athlete as per DIN 1803 Tiel 2 Marz 1991
Criterion: 4.0 – 9.0 mm
2.3
Slip Resistance
Test method: NSF Friction Tester
Standard: Coefficient of friction between 0.6 and 1.0
2.4
Traction
Test
Method: Rotational friction on a loaded studded disk
Criterion:
25 - 50 N m
2.5
Sliding Distance
Test
method: sliding trolley friction as per STRI
Criterion:
distance 250 - 450 mm
Ball
Surface Interaction
3.1
Vertical Ball Rebound
Test method: EN 12235
Criterion: percentage ball rebound for 2 m drop 25 - 45
3.2
Horizontal Ball Roll
Test method: EN 12234
Criterion: Roll out 4 - 10 m
Angled
Ball Behaviour (Pace)
Test
method: measurement of horizontal speed after and before bounce
Criterion:
50 - 70 % for 50 km/hr 25 degree impact
Constructional
Requirements
4.1
Slope
Test
method: EN 22768
Criterion:
in any direction < 1.0 %
4.2
Evenness
Test
method: EN 22768
Criterion:
0.3 m planometer < 2 mm
3.0 m planometer , 6 mm
2.11
Base Permeability.
Test method: EN 12616
Criterion: Minimum of 180 mm/hr
Section
5: Field tests
For
Pitch Compliance testing, arrangements are usually made about
3 months before a pitch is installed, or, if it is an existing pitch,
a shorter lead time may be convenient depending on the Laboratory's
work load. The testing usually takes about 12 hr on site work and
is subject to weather conditions. A report can be obtained within
the next two weeks.
The
client must supply the FIFA Laboratory Test Report for the installed
product before field testing will commence.
The
test report that will also be forwarded to FIFA, Switzerland for
registration.
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