Playground Equipment Supplier In Phuket

[xen]

On a scale from 1 to 10 , adequate may be 1 or it may be 10 depending on what criteria you wish to apply.

Thanks for the reply, interesting reading. You're obviously a profesional and an expert in your field. (Probably the worst person, for me to have got in to this discussion with )

Everything you say makes perfect sense, it's just not relevent to this country and therefor not relevent to the OP. You are talking about the very cutting edge in playground design and safety, and even bringing child psychology in to the equation. You are talking about things as they would be in an ideal world, which most people in the world, and certainly Phuket, don't get to live in.

I had no idea that long tubes were being phased out (why would I) but that does go to prove a point. Until very recently, these were deemed to be adequate in western playgrounds, (and I would guess that lots still haven't been replaced yet) so you giving the OP advice, that his equipment should be safer and more cutting edge, than equipment that is still being used in the West, if you know Phuket, isn't appropriate advice.

Talking of knowing Phuket, I'm not sure if you've ever lived here or not, but as a parent, living somewhere like this, you need to behave in a completely different way than you would in the UK for example. I happen to like that aspect of living in a developing country, and it was a point I was trying to hit on earlier. I believe in the West, people automatically want other people to do their thinking for them. They want to just walk through life with their eyes closed, knowing that politicians health and safety executives, have already walked in front of them, clearing the way, making sure they can't come to any harm. And then, when as a result of living void of any common sense, and any desire to make their own decisions,they do get hurt, they want to sue somebody, as it couldn't have possibly been their fault. We all know the famous example of 'Caution Hot' having to be put on the side of coffee cups. People don't even want to take responsibility for finding out the temperature of their own drinks!

When you live somewhere like Phuket, you don't have that safety blanket that most people now require. You are left to make your own decisions, and to take responsibility for your own actions, and their outcomes. This is a refreshing way to live, and is how it was for my mothers generation and everyone before that.

In a playground in the UK, parents will happily leave their children unattended, because they know their environment has been made so sterile and safe, that they are unlikely to hurt themselves, they also know, that if they do, it will be someone elses fault not theirs! They are basicaly passing the buck of their childrens wellfare to that of the government and health and safety officials. What happened to good old fashioned, climbing trees? If you had that attitude in Phuket, it would be a matter of hours before your kids would have fallen to their death down a drain or been run over by a bus whos brakes have just failed.

The thing that most annoys me though, is that most of this, isn't done for the safety of the kids, it's done for the protection of the company, to avoid paying out compensation. The children benefiting, for the best part, is just a coincidence.

I'll give you a funny example (I found it mildly amusing anyway) While sitting upstairs at Tesco in the food area, at a table right next to the window, (if you don't know it, it's a floor to ceiling glass window that looks down to the shop floor, about 40 ft below. My son walked over to the window and gently lent against it. I instantly jumped to attention, and automatically scanned the window for cracks or missing putty. Now, in reality, the chances of him falling through that window was almost non existent, but it just shows how your brain changes. Can you ever imagine worrying about that, in a Tesco store in the UK? (Ok so it wasn't even mildly amusing, but it is a perfect example of how people are having the need to think, taken away from them in the West)

I think we've done this to death, and I've gone even more off topic now than before, (wouldn't hurt if you came back OP, and told us what you think is approprite for this country, and what you ultimately will decide to buy) and I wouldn't say you were wrong in any way. I just think you have miss judged this country, and the need for the OP to be purchasing cutting edge equipment, when in reality, a far inferior product, will still be more than adequate for his needs, for the safety of his guests and for him to avoid being sued.

When you live somewhere like Phuket, you don't have that safety blanket that most people now require. You are left to make your own decisions, and to take responsibility for your own actions, and their outcomes. This is a refreshing way to live, and is how it was for my mothers generation and everyone before that.

Unfortunately I think you miss my point- if the equipment is designed with safety a a prime consideration then an intense,almost suffocating, supervision will not be needed. It is , ironically, the opposite to the "nanny state" philosphy. leave the kids to play and go and sit and read a book with only an occasional glance to see if everything is okay.

In a playground in the UK, parents will happily leave their children unattended, because they know their environment has been made so sterile and safe, that they are unlikely to hurt themselves, they also know, that if they do, it will be someone elses fault not theirs! They are basicaly passing the buck of their childrens wellfare to that of the government and health and safety officials. What happened to good old fashioned, climbing trees?

I agree with you. Playground design is moving away from those concepts of sterility and is emphasizing certain "risk taking " activities, like climbing . It is all in a designed safe/risk environment. Kids can then develop their decision making abilities. If playground equipment is sterile and boring , then kids will then invent ways of making it more exciting and then injuries can result.

The thing that most annoys me though, is that most of this, isn't done for the safety of the kids, it's done for the protection of the company, to avoid paying out compensation. The children benefiting, for the best part, is just a coincidence.

I also agree with you.

Perhaps we can look at this another way - with the playground equipment . What happens if we don't have any "conventional" equipment at all . Why could not the OP put in a sand pit and a water feature - perhaps a shallow dish ,tiled , perhaps 150mm deep in the centre. It is safe ,it will amuse most kids for ages and it is relativly inexpensive , and yet it can be viewed as cutting edge if you prefer to use that term . Install a few balance beams . Kids ,if given the opportunity have amazing creativity and imagination to create play situations out of fairly simple resources. The Adventure playgrounds of the sixties and seventies are returning and are another alternative to "conventional" play equipment..

I am a firm believer that if you think with imagination , then good design can provide budget solutions.

You are right , i have not spent a great deal of time in Phuket and i spend most of my time in BKK and the eastern seaboard but I also fail to see how this would imply i" miss-judge this country ". Over the many years i have been associated with Thailand I have seen massive changes, both positive and not so positive to Thailand , but to settle for the mediocre option is not doing anybody any favours.

I also think this discussion has run its course. I don't know if has helped the OP or not. maybe , even if has provided a few options for him , it has not been without use.

[Logician]

I also think this discussion has run its course. I don't know if has helped the OP or not. maybe , even if has provided a few options for him , it has not been without use.

Leave kids alone in 15cm of water! Now I really know my assesment of risk is different to other people. I would never dream of doing that. Kids have drowned in 3 inches of water before.

Anyway, you are undoubtedly right, it's time to put this thread to bed. We seem to agree on a lot of things, I just think we're coming from different directions. Probably wasn't much help to the OP, but it didn't get in his way either. So no harm done.

It was an interesting discussion, (also one of the slowest I've ever had, what with you only checking in every few days, ) and I learned a few things, so it's all good.

Cheers & good luck.

P.S. OP, you never told me where your hotel was, or if you had a bar. I thought that would have been a nice opportunity for a quick plug. The thought of me popping in for a beer, next time I was up that way, was obviously less appealing, than the free plug though.