Design you can feel.
Access you deserve.
Polyurethane tactile products from MetalX come in three formats: studs, strips and tiles. Strips and tiles cause the most confusion because a bar tile looks like four strips on a plate. The difference lies in what each format is for and how it installs.
A PU strip is an individual directional bar, 280 mm long, 35 mm wide and 4.5 mm high, with rounded ends and a linear top pattern. Strips are laid parallel to the direction of travel at 75 mm centres, four bars across a 300 mm-wide path, and they fix either with moulded stems in drilled holes or with 3M self-adhesive tape. Because each bar is independent, the path can bend, split at junctions and skirt columns.
A PU tile is a one-piece moulded plate, 300 × 300 mm with a 2.5 mm base. The dome tile carries 36 warning domes at 50 mm centres; the bar tile carries 4 directional bars at 75 mm centres. Tiles fix with four corner screws and adhesive or with a full-area self-adhesive backing. They lay quickly in straight runs and give a perfectly uniform surface.
| PU strips | PU tiles | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Directional guidance | Warning fields (dome tile) or straight guidance (bar tile) |
| Unit size | 280 × 35 × 4.5 mm | 300 × 300 mm, 2.5 mm base |
| Handles curves | Yes | Requires cutting |
| Installation speed | Moderate | Fast |
| Fixing | Stems or 3M tape | Screws + adhesive or full-area adhesive |
| Best for | Corridors, junctions, retrofits | Stair landings, platform edges, large fields |
| Replacement | Single bar | Whole tile |
A school might use strips to guide from the gate to the reception desk, around corners and through doorways, and dome tiles at the top and bottom of every staircase. Both are moulded in the same six colours (grey, red, yellow, black, blue, terracotta) from the same compound, so the result looks consistent.
Per square metre of tactile surface, tiles are usually cheaper to install because one tile replaces 36 studs or 4 strips and needs only four fixings. Strips cost more per metre of path but avoid cutting and waste on complex routes. MetalX will prepare a take-off and quotation from your floor plan.
Yes. They are moulded from the same material in the same colours and share the same bar and dome geometry, so a project can use strips for routes and tiles for warning fields.
Strips and studs with 3M self-adhesive tape are the easiest retrofit, because they need no drilling and can follow any layout. Self-adhesive tiles work well on flat, smooth floors.
No. The base is 2.5 mm and the domes rise 4.5 mm above it, similar to any surface-mounted tactile indicator. Tile edges are chamfered.
The dome and bar geometry aligns with AS/NZS 1428.4.1 and ISO 23599, and the six body colours make luminance contrast straightforward.
Tiles install five times faster and guarantee alignment; studs handle curves and heritage floors. A clear rule for choosing between the two formats.
12 February 2026 · 6 min read
Ten questions to ask a polyurethane tactile manufacturer before you order, from compound data and dimensional tolerances to templates, stock and export paperwork.
12 March 2026 · 5 min read
India has many tactile indicator suppliers; few are manufacturers. Eight criteria for choosing one that can deliver a compliant, on-time project.
16 March 2026 · 6 min readSend us your drawings, quantities and delivery location. We reply with a quotation, technical datasheet and lead time, usually within one working day.