ADA-compliant grating is a panel of vertically positioned metal bars joined to perpendicular cross bars that meets Americans With Disabilities Act requirements, creating a safe and accessible surface for those with disabilities. It has comparable functionality to other grating types but has more tightly spaced cross bars. 

This bar grating type is manufactured from aluminum, carbon steel, molded fiberglass, and stainless steel in dovetail, swaged, and welded constructions. It can be built with an anti-slip surface and support pedestrian or heavy-duty vehicular loads. 

What is ADA-complaint grating? 

The Americans with Disabilities Act sets standards that ensure government buildings, public accommodations, and commercial facilities are accessible by individuals with disabilities. The following requirements apply to grating: 

The maximum allowable opening between cross bars is a 1/2”, or 13mm, wide in one direction

Gratings with elongated openings shall be placed so that the long dimension is perpendicular to the dominant direction of travel

Walking surfaces should be slip-resistant.

Closely spaced cross bars provide better support for canes, walkers, crutches, wheelchairs, motorized scooters, guide dogs, and other mobility aids. This grating type is ideal for applications used by the general public. Examples include: 

  • Pedestrian walkways
  • Tree grates
  • Pedestrian ramps
  • Elevated walkways
  • Pedestrian bridges
  • Drain covers
  • Sewer covers 
  • Concourses

Although ADA bar grating is designed for public settings, it’s advantageous to install in many places when not required. For instance, material handling platforms and mezzanines subject to continuous cart and dolly traffic should keep openings under a 1/2” wide to ensure that cart and dolly wheels can roll over grating smoothly. 

Providing you with sure footing

Indiana Gratings is a leading fabricator of ADA-compliant bar grating for demanding applications. It’s available in an array of bar sizes and spacings as well as material types and finishes.

We also offer grating with exceedingly narrow 1/4” openings, which prevent most high-heeled shoes from falling between cross bars. Grating with openings even smaller than the minimum required by ADA standards is wise for venues that experience diverse foot traffic and a variety of footwear.

The construction method and material type are the primary things to consider when choosing ADA grating for your application. 

ADA grating solutions 

The three prominent styles of ADA compliant bar grating are welded, swaged, and dovetailed. Each type has unique characteristics. 

Welded grating

A grating type where bearing bars and cross bars are resistance welded under high heat and pressure, forming a permanent joint. This technology creates a rugged, one-piece structural panel with a smooth and flat surface, which is easy and safe for walking. 

Swage-locked grating

This grating type is fabricated by inserting hollow tube cross bars into bearing bars with pre-punched holes. The crossbars are then permanently secured using a swaging reshaping process. With cross bars recessed below the top surface of the bearing bars, duty swage-locked steel grating offers clean lines and a distinct appearance.

Dovetail grating

A tightly locked and rigidly stable panel grid with clean lines and an aesthetically pleasing appearance. Manufactured by deforming pre-punched bearing bars and cross bars assembled in an egg-crate configuration under intense hydraulic pressure, this dovetail grating permits heat, light, and air to pass easily. 

Materials make the difference 

Indiana Gratings can fabricate ADA complaint grating from any material by request, but those used most often are aluminum, carbon steel, stainless steel, and molded fiberglass. Each one offers distinct advantages.  

Aluminum

Aluminum is perfect for ADA grating when weight and moisture degradation are key considerations. Light mass, high strength-to-weight ratio, and robust corrosion resistance make this metal alloy an ideal option for wet environments, food and beverage preparation, and water treatment facilities.

Carbon steel

This material offers excellent strength, load-bearing capacity, and affordability. It’s a popular choice for indoor or sheltered ADA bar grating applications. Carbon steel doesn’t resist corrosion, so it’s not ideal for moist, wet, rainy, humid environments. The application of a galvanized finish boosts corrosion resistance, however. 

Stainless steel

Stainless steel ADA compliant grating is rugged, long-lasting, and designed to withstand severely corrosive and high-moisture environments. Typical uses include catwalks, platforms, stairways, entranceways, and trench grating. Water treatment, chemical processing, food processing, and outdoor industries can benefit from this grating type.

Molded fiberglass 

Molded fiberglass reinforced plastic grating, or FRP grating, is manufactured by combining thermosetting resin with continuous fiberglass rovings in precision molds. The subsequent material offers high corrosion resistance, ultraviolet light protection, and structural integrity.

Your ADA grating provider 

When constructing a government building, business, or park open to the public, ensuring they are accessible to people with disabilities is important. If you’re unsure which grating type is best for an application, Indiana Gratings is here to help. 

We can deliver ADA compliant bar grating in various configurations to meet unique client needs. Whether you want a standard product or a custom solution, our expert CAD designers take ADA regulations into account when developing floor grating. Skid-resistant finishes that minimize slippage risks for both wheelchair and foot traffic are also available. 

Customer satisfaction comes first at Indiana Gratings, a member of the National Association of Metal Manufacturers. From the moment an order is received, we are all accountable for the service and final product. No request is unattainable, and our team will exhaust every resource available to exceed client expectations.

Feel free to contact us to learn more about ADA compliant grating.


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We are Indiana Gratings Inc.

The mission of Indiana Gratings Inc. is to be recognized as the premier gratings supplier in the industry for the Midwest and Southeastern United States and to be the benchmark others strive to achieve. We, as a team, are committed to meet the agreed upon requirements of our customers by measuring and improving our work processes.

Indiana Gratings, Inc. is located in Martinsville, Indiana with over 35,000 square feet of manufacturing area. It is a financially strong; family owned company.

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Midwest and southeastern United States

Providing proven quality and craftsmanship for a variety of applications

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