FLOORING FAILURES IN FOOD PLANTS

There are many reasons that can cause a floor system to fail. With proper planning, following the manufacturers product data and a good QA/QC these can be avoided:

#1. Proper Surface preparation- 95% of failures we have encountered was due to not preparing the concrete properly. The Concrete should have a CSP - Concrete Surface profile of 3-4. With the concrete clean, free of oil or contamination the chance of success greatly improves.

#2. Engineering details- The environments in which a High Performance System is selected has a basic concrete design which must be honored.

• The expansion joints are there to allow the slab to move from the loads or thermal changes. Without honoring the joints the floor will crack and trap water and bacteria.

• Drain details- In most food plants the operating temperature is 38'F When the area is sanitized with hot water 140'F it creates stress. If the Resin system was selected correctly it would have been a Urethane System allowing for the rapid temperature swing or "Thermal Shock". What is important now is that the interface where the steel, concrete and Urethane meet has a joint to assist with the movement.

From here the failures result from improper resin selection, improper mixing, poor job conditions.

What we have found is to clearly communicate what is required to provide a seamless , durable, slip resistant . Thermal Shock resistant floor is to educate the owners team. When we have Engineering, Safety , Production and Sanitation clearly educating us on the challenges they face we come up with a solution, schedule and conditions to deliver a quality finished product.

We stick that 95% of failures are preparation. We also feel that committing to a detailed QA/QC process these can be avoided.