Flowcrete UK Cements Partnership

Flowcrete UK has undertaken the extensive refurbishment of a large garage and car park area owned by Cambridge Council alongside Total Protection Special Projects, its exclusive applicator partner for social housing projects in the South of England.

This project exemplifies the ability of resin flooring manufacturer Flowcrete UK and specialist coatings contractor Total Protection to provide clients with every product and service required for a large-scale social housing flooring project. This holistic approach includes identifying existing issues and delivering a complete package throughout pre-contract specification and inspection to post-contract maintenance and warranty.

The site in Newtown consists of a 45-unit garage as well as a two-storey car park and ramp. The garages are rented to local council tenants and are in constant use.

When Flowcrete UK and Total Protection reviewed the 1,580m² site a number of issues were recorded, including water migrating from the car park’s top deck to the lower deck, cracking, leaking gullies and undulations in the concrete slab causing ponding. One of the main problems in the garage area was that a 100ml recess in the concrete slab’s centre was collecting water.

Cambridge Council could source all of the various repair mortars, screeds, damp proof membranes, PU injection systems, corrosion protection and resin coatings as well as the multidisciplinary knowledge required to fix the existing problems and upgrade the site directly from Flowcrete UK and Total Protection.

This was a significant factor behind the council choosing this supplier and applicator partnership, as it meant that the client did not have to spend time and resources finding a number of different manufacturers and contractors for each aspect of the project.

The Managing Director of Total Protection Ltd, Nick DiCienzo, said: “This project really showcases the benefits of our partnership with Flowcrete UK for the South’s social housing sector, as this was a difficult task that required a wealth of specialist knowledge as well as multiple high performance products.

“We always have the needs of the tenants in mind when we undertake any application. We know that the work has to be completed quickly to avoid disruption to the tenant’s day-to-day lives - but the quality also has to be there in regards to what systems are used and how they are applied, in order to ensure that the floor provides many years of reliable, effective use.”

Flowcrete UK’s Managing Director, Kevin Potter, said: “We’re excited to be working in partnership with Total Protection, as it means that we can offer an exceptional service to social housing developments carrying out a new-build or refurbishment flooring project.

“Previously specifiers and developers would need to spend time assembling a variety of different suppliers and contractor teams before they could embark on a project such as the one at Newtown, however our new partnership avoids all this hassle, streamlining the route to a high quality floor finish.”

The combination of Flowcrete UK products used during this project included Flowfast F1 Mortar to bring the substrate up to standard, repair the gullies and infill voids and buried joints. Isocrete Isopol SBR created a waterproof screed on the car park ramp and main garage area as well as a waterproof render band around the perimeter of the walls and Isocrete M-Bond primer was applied to protect against rising moisture in the garage area.

Flowcoat SF41 , a hard wearing epoxy resin coating, was applied as a wearing surface across the 850m² garage, with anti-slip aggregates incorporated into the finish. 700m² of the fast cure deck coating system Deckshield Rapide ID-HD was installed on the car park’s top deck and ramp to create a robust surface able to withstand traffic, weather and automotive chemicals.

The entire project, which was closely monitored by the council’s contract manager throughout, was completed in 2 ½ months, coming in under the client’s 3-month deadline. After the installation the site’s operators were supplied with a comprehensive O&M manual to help maintain and manage the floor area.

If you’d like to find out more about Flowcrete UK’s flooring solutions for the social housing sector you can download the brochure “Transforming Social Housing Environments” by clicking here , alternatively ring 01270 753000 or email uk@flowcrete.com to talk to one of the company’s resin flooring experts.

Flowcrete UK’s specialist team will be attending Homes 2016. At stand H88 of the event, which is taking place at the Olympia London from the 18-19th November, visitors will be able to discover a comprehensive collection of floors tailored to the social housing sector.