National Flooring: Q & A – Industrial Flooring

With a wide range of industrial flooring available in the market place choosing a suitable floor finish can become a complex task. It is becoming an extremely competitive industry and in our experience clients are often susceptible to false claims made by flooring companies or invoiced for unnecessary additional extras. Robert Brown, Managing Director of The National Flooring Company has worked with most major flooring technologies over the last 40 years and can clearly establish the benefits and drawbacks relating to each product.

With a wide range of resin flooring products available on the market today, it can be difficult to ensure you are choosing the correct flooring system to suit your requirements. There are various factors which will influence what flooring system is bested suited to you and each resin flooring type has unique characteristics which determine their suitability. The information available on different resin flooring products can sometimes be inconsistent and misleading.

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Previously asked questions:

Q 1. Which is the best resin product?

Q 2. Time scale: do resins have different curing times?

Q 3. Does this mean the floor could be damaged if trafficked or cleaned too soon?

Q 4. What about tainting?

Q 5. Are anti-microbial additives beneficial?

Q 6. Are DPM’s necessary?

Q 7. What are your views on slip resistance?

Q 8. What are the acceptable standards for slip resistance?

Q 1. Which is the best resin product?

A. Each resin type has advantages and disadvantages so it is necessary for the customer to clearly identify their needs. Time scale to install and return to full production, chemical spillage, type of traffic, cleaning regime etc. You will then be able to question which product will fit your criteria.

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Q 2. Time scale: do resins have different curing times?

A. Very much so, if time is limited MMA resins completely cure physically and chemically in two hours ready for full use. Be aware that epoxy and polyurethane take longer to cure, in fact although they may cure physically (light traffic) in 8-12 hours it is usually days before reaching full chemical cure and heavy trafficking.

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Q 3. Does this mean the floor could be damaged if trafficked or cleaned too soon?

A. Yes, heavy trafficking will damage the floor but also cleaning (water) can cause the surface to “bloom” (go white), so take care to fully understand the length of time to cure to full use and at what temperature. The curing time of epoxy and polyurethane slows considerably at low temperatures (below 10ºC).

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Q 4. What about tainting?

A. All reactive resins can taint during the installation and curing period. MMA’s have a strong odour but cure in two hours, polyurethane and epoxy do not have such a strong odour but take longer to cure and therefore a longer period of risk. Because something has a low odour it does not mean it cannot taint food. Confectionary has been known to become tainted weeks after a floor had been laid due to incomplete cure. My advice is to remove any product from the area until the curing process is complete.

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Q 5. Are anti-microbial additives beneficial?

A. There are varying opinions on this subject, but everyone is agreed that there is no substitute for good housekeeping. If waste product is left on the floor bacteria can grow on the surface of the product. I would suggest you have a floor surface that doesn’t support the growth of bacteria and pay more attention to regular cleaning with the correct cleaning agents.

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Q 6. Are DPM’s necessary?

A. Yes, whatever resin system is used, the floor surface can delaminate if there is water pressure. However a DPM is often misunderstood to be a surface moisture barrier. DPM’s are installed beneath the concrete and withstand pressure. Moisture barriers only act as a barrier to allow systems that are sensitive to moisture to be installed. We prefer the sub-floor to be dry but do remember that a surface barrier will not prevent floor delamination if there is pressure from below.

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Q 7. What are your views on slip resistance?

A. Simple, if slip resistance is high on your requirement list due to production conditions and usage, always insist that the floor you are thinking of installing will provide you with anti-slip properties under production conditions. You must also accept that your cleaning process must be adapted to deal with the anti-slip properties. No matter what anyone claims, you will not find a smooth floor that is anti-slip under wet and oily conditions and if you do find one I will be pleased to hear from you!

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Q 8. What are the acceptable standards for slip resistance?

A. The slip resistance of a floor should ALWAYS be measured under production conditions. Most floors offer good slip resistance in dry conditions, therefore it is easy for suppliers to provide acceptable results. There are a number of test methods used to detemine slip resistance, the Pendulum test is most common. This method measures the coefficient of friction and relates to a PTV value. Anything >40 is low risk of slip.

Another method is the German Ramp Test method which produces an R Rating. The rating scale can be confusing and can often lead to misinterpretation and coincidently the wrong specification. The scale runs from R9-R13, with R9 being the most slippery of floor surfaces. The misconception is that the scale runs from R1.

We would suggest asking the following questions:

Q: Can the flooring suppliers provide slip test data?

Q: Are these results tested in wet & dry conditions?

Q: Have these tests been undertaken different footwear sole materials?

Q: Do the results provide adequate readings under your production conditions?

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Floors are a necessary investment. My advice is to identify your needs, ensure the product offered meets them; the installer has a track record of reliability and stability for the initial installation and any subsequent warranties. Also be sure the product selected will allow future maintenance to be carried out quickly to avoid disruption to production.

For further advice or information please call
National Flooring on 01778 343670 or use our contact form.