Home » ESD Flooring » Testing » Data sheet claims

Reading ESD Flooring Data Sheets: Claims and S20.20 Qualification

An ESD flooring data sheet may report floor resistance, walking body voltage and compliance with a named standard. Those statements describe different aspects of performance. Before using them to select or qualify a system, establish what was tested, with which footwear and under what conditions.

Craftsman Concrete provides project-specific testing and closeout documentation to support the facility’s ANSI/ESD S20.20 program and document testing under the applicable ANSI/ESD STM methods. When specified, the package includes selected-system product data, floor-resistance reports, mapped readings, test conditions, equipment records and pass/fail results against the project’s acceptance criteria.

STM97.1 system-resistance and STM97.2 walking-body-voltage reports are included when those tests are assigned. Corrective-work and retest records connect the original findings to their final disposition.

What each data-sheet claim reports

Resistance figures depend on the named method and conditions

The supplier sheets reviewed here describe resistance differently:

ProductResistance statement on the sheetTest method named on the sheet
PIP 200 ESD Conductive URDesigned to impart electrical resistance readings below 1 million ohmsANSI/ESD STM 7.1 and ASTM F-150
Sikafloor-200 ESD, SikaStatic-dissipative range of 1.0 × 10^6 to 1.0 × 10^9 ohmsANSI S7.1 / ASTM F150, as written on the sheet
RESUFLOR SCT, Sherwin-WilliamsSurface resistance, point-to-point and point-to-ground, of 1 × 10^5 to 1 × 10^9 ohms, with results based on conditions at 77 °F (25 °C)ANSI/ESD STM 7.1-2013

The table preserves the suppliers’ method names and editions. The linked guides explain the methods; they do not change which edition the supplier cited.

These figures apply to the products and conditions identified on the sheets. They do not establish identical performance under other conditions.

Conformance, design intent and method lists are different assertions

The selected sheets also describe their relationship to standards differently:

  • Sikafloor-200 ESD: states that it conforms to ANSI S20.20-2021.
  • Stonkote ESD, Stonhard: describes the coating as specifically designed to comply with the ANSI/ESD S20.20 specification, without identifying an edition.
  • PIP 170 ESD SR: states that it meets or exceeds specification under named editions of STM7.1, STM97.1, STM97.2 and S6.1, without supplying measured values in that statement.

A list of test methods without results needs supporting evidence before it can establish measured performance.

Charge-decay time is different from walking body voltage

The PIP 100 ESD HB sheet states that the coating dissipates a 5,000-volt charge to zero in less than 0.1 seconds. It places that figure after its body-voltage statement without identifying a test method or configuration for the decay figure.

Charge-decay time and voltage generated on a person walking in footwear describe different quantities. One cannot substitute for the other.

What an under-15-volt body-voltage claim establishes

The footwear condition is part of the claim. The reviewed PIP 200 ESD Conductive UR and PIP 100 ESD HB sheets state body-voltage generation below 15 volts with conductive footwear. The Sikafloor-200 ESD and Sikafloor-2350 ESD NA sheets state under 15 volts with ESD-compliant footwear.

Those statements do not establish the same result with other footwear or ordinary shoes. The footwear assumptions behind supplier body-voltage claims explain what to check before applying a supplier’s result to the facility.

A floor-resistance range also cannot establish walking body voltage. The two measurements describe different properties, and body voltage depends on footwear, environmental conditions and movement.

Why supplier results may differ from an installed floor

The tested assembly matters

STM7.1-2020 requires a qualification sample to include the flooring system’s components as they would be used in an installation (section 6.1.2.2.2). The qualification sample assembly therefore matters when assessing whether supplier evidence represents the specified system.

The method also explains that resistance-to-groundable-point measurements on qualification samples may differ from resistance-to-ground measurements on installed areas, particularly for materials such as floor finishes (section 1.3).

Request the resistance range and test voltage

STM7.1-2020’s informative Annex C advises specifying a resistance range at a defined test voltage rather than relying on the labels “conductive” or “dissipative.”

Request the system’s actual resistance properties and the conditions under which they were measured.

What to request before relying on a supplier’s claim

Qualification evidence for the intended combination

Request documentation identifying the footwear and flooring tested, the methods, measured results, limits and environmental conditioning. Confirm that the evidence applies to the combination the facility will use.

S20.20-2021 permits product specification review, but a floor-resistance range or general footwear description does not establish both required system results. The footwear/flooring qualification guide explains the complete process, and the qualification-evidence guide addresses which records can support it.

The underlying floor-resistance report

Request the report behind the advertised resistance range, including measured values, test voltage, environmental conditions and the assembly tested. Compare it with the STM7.1 reporting requirements rather than relying on the data-sheet summary alone.

Frequently asked questions

Numerically, a result below 15 volts is below 100 volts. Whether it supports qualification depends on the footwear/flooring combination tested, the method, conditioning and supporting records. A headline value alone does not establish qualification of the facility’s combination, and the separate STM97.1 system-resistance requirement must also be met.

Only after identifying what each statement represents. Check the measurement configuration, method and edition, applied voltage, tested assembly and environmental conditions. A similar numerical range does not establish that the products were evaluated under the same conditions.

No. Charge-decay time describes how quickly an applied charge dissipates under the stated test conditions. Walking body voltage describes the voltage generated on a person moving in footwear on the floor. A charge-decay figure does not replace the required walking body-voltage measurement.