Sikafloor Creates High-Performance Base For New-Look Warehouse

A highly-complex floor refurbishment has transformed a derelict warehouse into highly-marketable business premises, thanks to global product supplier, Sika.

Concrete flooring at the former Matalan distribution centre in Skelmersdale, west Lancashire, had fallen into disrepair and required urgent attention to enable the building’s owner to re-let the site. Flooring which offered durability, a seamless, aesthetically-pleasing finish and a five-year warranty was a prerequisite of the refurbishment. Sikafloor®-264, was the only system to offer such guarantees.

A high-performance, two-part, economic epoxy resin, Sikafloor®-264, provides a roller and seal coat for concrete and cement screeds which need to withstand heavy wear in environments such as car parks, garages and production plants. In total, 30,000m² of product was applied to two units at the distribution centre. Before the Sika system could be applied, contractors IRL Group Ltd had to repair sections of the original concrete substrate where racking had been removed.

Temporary heating was also installed. The ideal substrate temperature for the application of Sikafloor®-264 is between 10°C and 30°C. With the distribution centre having remained empty for a considerable time, warmer internal conditions were required to maximise the new flooring’s performance. Members of Sika’s technical team were on site during the project to assist contractors and ensure manufacturing methods were properly applied as a condition of the warranty.

Once the surface had been smoothed, a coat of Sikafloor®-264 was installed. This was followed by Sikafloor®-264 Thixo, a two-part, epoxy resin. The coloured roller coat is textured, an ideal constituent for the provision of a hard-wearing, non-slip, easy-apply, high-gloss finish.

Mark Ollerenshaw, Managing Director at IRL Group Ltd, said: “The client was over the moon with the new floor. Installation standards and the finish itself had to be of the highest quality as the owners were essentially showcasing the distribution centre to new tenants. It was a highly-complex project, made all the easier by using a flooring system we knew and trusted – and performed precisely as we’d hoped.”

The distribution centre refurbishment was carried out in two phases over a five-month period. The second phase is due to be completed in March 2017. The badly-damaged, unsafe flooring has been replaced by a smooth, uniform, light-grey surface which will stand the test of time – whatever the nature of the business of the site’s new occupants.