Robbins adds Philadelphia 76ers to roster

Robbins Sports Surfaces kicks off the New Year by adding yet another team – the Philadelphia 76ers – to the list of NBA franchises whose games are played on a Robbins floor. That means half of the 30 NBA teams currently play their games on a Robbins floor, and an astonishing 24 teams either practice or play their games (or both!) on a Robbins floor.

The 76ers already practice on the patented MVP system by Robbins, but also chose the portable All-Star™ Plus with RapidLatch™ locking system game floor for the Wells Fargo Center. The new floor installed on December 13th and marked the beginning of a new era for Robbins and the 76ers.

“We were all ecstatic. The 76ers had never played [their games] on a Robbins floor so this was a big deal for us,” says Portables Sales Manager Greg Pierce. “We always like to add a new one to the list. It’s wonderful to replace Robbins floors, but you get a little extra satisfaction when you know you’re replacing a competitor’s floor.”

Robbins and the 76ers had been in discussions for over a year, and the 76ers ultimately decided the proprietary design of the All-Star Plus with RapidLatch lock, which is meant to speed up changeovers for efficient and quick event transitions, would best meet their needs. After all, the All-Star Plus is easy to install, disassemble and store – a must for the team.

Once the decision was made, it was off to the races for Robbins. The purchase order arrived Nov. 6 and the experts at Robbins’ Ishpeming, Michigan plant got busy manufacturing, sanding and finishing the floor for a Dec. 11 delivery. Installation began two days later, and couldn’t have gone any smoother. A dozen or so crew members installed the court in a few hours, finishing up before noon.

“It’s generally a two to three hour process the very first time and it only gets faster from there,” Pierce explains. “They set the floor up with the 76ers logo, then they pulled it apart to a degree so they could put the second logo in with the Liberty Bell set up just enough that that was surrounded, and then they were done. Then, they were going to pick the floor up and store it until they set it up for the game on Friday.”

Despite the time crunch, everyone was happy with the entire process. Pierce received an email from one of the 76ers operations team members stating, “Everything went perfectly yesterday. Court was much faster and easier than any we’ve worked with before.”

Another successful Robbins project in the books – and another NBA team playing on a Robbins floor.