This August, Life Floor celebrates 15 years of helping create safer, more beautiful aquatic environments around the world. Over those 15 years, the company has grown from an idea into a global presence, but behind that growth is a story shaped by much more than product development, projects, or business milestones. It is a story of discipline, faith, mentorship, risk, and a belief that meaningful change rarely happens overnight.

For this special anniversary edition of Splash Into Your Story, we sat down with Life Floor Co-Founder and CEO Jonathan Keller to talk less about the company itself and more about the person behind it. From the stories that inspired him as a child to the mentors who challenged his thinking, the moment Life Floor's purpose became clear, and the people who continue to make the aquatics industry meaningful to him, Jonathan reflects on the experiences that helped shape both his leadership and Life Floor's mission.

At Life Floor, our Core Values aren't simply words that describe the company we want to be. They shape how we work together, how we serve our partners and customers, and how we approach the future.

This July, our team had the opportunity to step away from our everyday routines and spend several days reconnecting, reflecting, learning, serving, and planning for what comes next during our annual Offsite Team Training and Strategy Building Retreat.

From strategic conversations and team development to volunteering, outdoor adventures, friendly competition, and plenty of laughter, our time together gave us an opportunity to celebrate what makes Life Floor special: our people.

It started with five words. "All decks should be slip-resistant."

That phrase, tucked into the ASTM F2461 Standard Practice for the Manufacture, Construction, Operation, and Maintenance of Aquatic Play Equipment, had been there for years. And for years, it was exactly as useful as it sounds: a well-intentioned aspiration that nobody could actually measure, enforce, or defend in court.

What qualifies as "slip-resistant" in one jurisdiction may not meet the bar in another. What one operator considers adequate, a plaintiff's attorney might characterize very differently. For Owner/Operators managing aquatic facilities across multiple states, regions, or countries, the vagueness created confusion at best, and liability exposure at worst. That changed in 2026.

After nearly a dozen ballot cycles over five years of collaboration, deliberation, and careful consensus-building, the updated F2461 standard was published this year with clear, technically defensible language for aquatic play surface performance. It defines what "slip resistant" actually means, in measurable, reproducible, enforceable terms, and it assigns clear responsibilities to everyone in the chain: designers, manufacturers, and operators alike.

Inlays have always been a core part of Life Floor's aquatic safety surfacing, giving designers an easy, budget-friendly way to add theming to any project. With a library of 130 shapes, our design team can bring an ocean-themed splash pad to life with fish and sea creatures, or send a space-themed play area into orbit with stars and rocket ships. Now, that same library is opening up to a whole new shape.

Hexagon Inlays Now Available

As hexagon tiles have grown in popularity, splash pad designers have asked for a way to bring the same thematic Inlays to hexagon layouts. Today, we're happy to announce that all 130 Life Floor Inlays, originally designed for our square tiles, are now available for hexagons, too.

This update opens the door to more whimsical, intentional theming across our geometric hexagon splash pad tiles. Bees fit naturally into a "honeycomb" layout, while flowers scattered across speckled green fields bring a garden feel to life. It's a simple addition with a big impact on how a splash pad design feels to the guests using it.

At Life Floor, we believe every aquatic space has a story to tell. From the first concept to the final guest experience, the best aquatic environments are built through collaboration, imagination, safety, and thoughtful design. That is why our work with WhiteWater West continues to be such an important part of our story.

As one of Life Floor's Distribution Partners, WhiteWater recognizes the need for safety surfacing in aquatics and helps ensure Life Floor is available to people worldwide. Through this partnership, we are able to support aquatic facilities in creating safer, more beautiful, and more engaging environments for guests of all ages and abilities.

Through projects around the world, WhiteWater and Life Floor have worked together to help bring aquatic spaces to life in ways that are functional, memorable, and meaningful for guests.

For this edition of Splash Into Your Story, we spoke with Una de Boer, Chief Marketing Officer at WhiteWater West, just before she departed to start her new role as CMO of the newest brand of US parks, Enchanted Parks. We tell of her unexpected path into the attractions industry, the role of storytelling in waterpark marketing, the importance of brand over product alone, and why creating spaces for women in the industry matters.

Celebrate Park and Recreation Month with Life Floor! Explore six municipal splash pads and aquatic centers that embody the power of connection, play, community, nature, belonging, and well-being.

Martin Aquatic Technical Director Diego Cordova shares how immersive aquatic spaces are designed — from complex water features to hidden storytelling details that reward repeat visits.

Explore how Life Floor hexagon splash pad tiles combine bold geometric design with NSF/ANSI/CAN 50 certified safety, built for aquatic environments that inspire.

Discover how Life Floor builds sustainable aquatic safety surfacing — from recyclable foam tiles and low-waste manufacturing to pursuing ISO 14001 certification.

Discover world-class resorts, waterparks, and cruise destinations enhanced with Life Floor aquatic safety surfacing for safer, more vibrant splash zones.

Prepare your aquatic facility for summer with five quick Life Floor safety upgrades including landing pads, zero-depth entries, ramps, slide towers, and locker rooms.

Explore Life Floor’s top Oceanian aquatic projects, featuring splash pads, pool decks, and resort installations designed for safe summer play.

Splash into Julie Kline's story of how she entered the Aquatic Industry, what drives her passion, and how learning to surf brought together her journey with Aquatic Development Group.

Explore Life Floor’s Top Projects of 2025, showcasing innovative aquatic surfacing designs for splash pads, resorts, parks, and cruise ships worldwide.

2025 was a year of innovation. We launched several new products, awarded meaningful grants, expanded our Registered Aquatic Partnership program, and won several industry-leading awards. 

As we enter 2026, Life Floor’s 15th anniversary, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for being part of our journey and mission; it’s more important now than ever.

Discover the winners of Life Floor’s 2025 Make a SPLASH! Grant Contest. Learn how the City of Sanger’s JFK Park Splash Pad and the Els for Autism Recreation Complex are creating safer, more inclusive aquatic spaces through Life Floor’s award-winning surfacing.

Life Floor expands its color palette with eight new hues inspired by nature, tropical destinations, and themed environments. Explore Lobster, Tiger, Mango, Pistachio, Breeze, Hibiscus, Flamingo, and Blossom; designed to elevate aquatic spaces with more creativity and customization than ever before.

Life Floor introduces planks, 6" x 48" tiles that combine the warmth of wood with unmatched slip-resistance, comfort, and creative design versatility.

Life Floor earns three prestigious Leading Edge Awards from the World Waterpark Association for projects at Yas Waterworld, Carnival’s Celebration Key, and Bavarian Blast Waterpark—recognizing innovation, design, and safety in aquatic surfacing.

Slip and falls in aquatic facilities can lead to serious injuries, lawsuits, and financial losses. Discover how slip-resistant flooring enhances safety, protects guests, and preserves your facility’s reputation.

Life Floor and Blue Mar Basins announce a groundbreaking partnership redefining aquatic environments. Combining award-winning safety surfacing with cutting-edge lagoon engineering, this collaboration brings world-class design, safety, and sustainability to cruise destinations, resorts, and waterfront projects worldwide.