Welcome to The Playground Post
This is your biweekly dose of playground knowledge and industry intel.
In this issue, I’ll dive into some key knowledge points regarding playground safety, hidden costs, and best practices.
I also lay out a story of a playground that was installed in a unique environment that’s rarely associated with swing sets and slides.
All that and more lies ahead in The Playground Post.
Playground Knowledge
When it comes to playgrounds, passing inspection is not the same thing as being safe
Inspections are just part of the playground story
The big picture: Having a safe playground doesn’t end with installing a bunch of shiny, new equipment. Each year, more than 200,000 children are treated for playground injuries.
But remember: Even if a playground passes inspection, it’s up to playground owners and operators to ensure it remains compliant.
Zoom in: Playground maintenance is just as important as playground inspections. Whether it’s refilling loose-fill surfacing like rubber or wood mulch, ensuring connecting bolts on swings are tightened and rust-free, or doing weekly spot-checks for debris and other obstacles,
Reality check: Just as being healthy doesn’t end with visiting your doctor, playground safety doesn’t end with an inspection. Follow the plan provided to you by your Certified Playground Safety Inspector, and you help make sure kids don’t get hurt.
The Case File
White County, Indiana - Fair Grounds for Play
Play structure installed at the county fairgrounds in White County, IN
Where it is: Our latest case study takes us to White County, Indiana, a verdant rural area about two hours southeast of Chicago.
What it is: Like most county fairgrounds throughout the US, the fairgrounds of White County is a public-use space that hosts several events throughout the year.
What happened: So, when it came time to upgrade their community’s playground, local sponsors and donors stepped up to the plate and hit a home run.
Check out the full case study here to learn how this donor-funded playground dream became reality:
Monitoring Minute
Minor issues become major incidents when no one is watching
Why small defects matter: You’ve probably seen it before: paint chipping off a swing set, rust around a connection point of a post, swings squeaking a bit more than they should be.
The problem: None of these seem like a big deal by themselves. But, if you leave them alone, they become headaches. And, I don’t know about you, but I don’t need more headaches in life.
The solution: Having a playground checklist and using it regularly is a good start, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle. The whole jigsaw? A comprehensive playground monitoring system.
What it looks like: Monitoring puts parents and caregivers in the drivers seat, allowing them to use QR codes to report potential hazards to playground owners and operators, who can then escalate the issue to a Certified Playground Safety Inspector.
In short: A good playground safety plan isn’t just words on paper; it’s a feedback loop that involves stakeholders at every level, each of whom plays a key role in making sure their playground is safe for kids to use.
One thing to check on your playground this week:
Industry Insights
Here’s one big reason your playground costs what it costs
While safety and monitoring are crucial aspects of any successful playground, the past year has made virtually every leader in the playground industry consider another factor.
It’s one that has permeated nearly every discussion about shipping, buying, and installing new playgrounds.
I’m talking, of course, about tariffs.
In October 2024, just about everyone in the playground industry was, to varying degrees, worried about the prospect of tariffs on China-produced goods, and I count myself among them. However, instead of giving into analysis paralysis, my team and I took action to safeguard our future and mitigate losses, including:
Building up inventory
Homing in on warranty costs versus material cost
Understanding tariff impact as it pertains to dutiable versus non-dutiable charges on the products we ship
Streamlining stateside shipping and handling through overseas packaging
Taken together, each of these actions meant we passed as little cost onto consumers as possible while we remained focused on expanding our reach and delivering engaging playgrounds to as many children as possible.
There’s weathering the storm, and there’s preparing to effectively navigate it.
I choose the latter every single time.
That's it for this issue.
If something in here made you think about your playground, your budget, your safety plan, I'd love to hear about it. Just hit reply. I read every one.
And if you know someone who manages a playground, runs a park, or sits on a school board, forward this to them. The more people paying attention to playground safety, the better off every kid is.
Know someone who should be reading The Playground Post on a biweekly basis? Subscribe them to spread playground knowledge:
Talk soon,
Nic Breedlove
Certified Playground Safety Inspector
20 years in the game. Still learning.