Five bar chequer treadplate was, I believe, designed as a durable anti-slip surface for potentially hazardous workplaces. Areas that get wet or dirty such as the platform of cranes, ship decking, factory walkways etc, could be made safer by its application. But, once it became widely available, man's ingenuity took over and a wide range of uses arose that the inventors had not anticipated. I've seen it applied as a "modern" facing for walls in twentieth and twenty first century architecture, as door kick plates, as a stand-on surface on 4X4 vehicles, and most recently, as a vandal-proof shell-like shelter over seating in a children's play park, where I took this photograph.
photo © T. Boughen Camera: Phone
