The construction of industrial floors, such as warehousing and factory floors, calls for concrete with specific characteristics, says Bryan Perrie, managing director of The Concrete Institute (TCI), which monthly receives huge volumes of appeals for advice regarding faulty flooring.
“It is also important for the tenant or property owner to fully brief architects and concrete designers about the logistics system and handling equipment on the floor being planned to help define the loading criteria for the concrete mix for the surface tolerances of the finished floor. If incorrect information is supplied, the same serviceability criteria used for routine slabs could be selected – with disastrous results when handling huge volumes of heavy forklift movement and racking,” Perrie adds.
Concrete for flooring calls for correct design, materials, and proportions. Material specifications for all the ingredients of the concrete exist – and should be adhered to – as well as South African Codes of Practice for the actual placement of concrete and the finishing of floor slabs.
“A thorough understanding of all the characteristics of concrete, the influence of material selection, environmental inconsistencies, as well as handling and finishing, are essential to produce a quality floor. It is also critical to specify the correct surface tolerances for the type of operation on the floor and to ensure they are met by the contractor, preferably assessed by an independent third party.”
Consistency by experienced contractors is crucial throughout: receiving, discharging, placing, consolidating and finishing the concrete which has to be protected during placement and curing.
“Lack of attention to these factors could lead to a floor with poor durability, strength and aesthetics. Successful concrete flooring relies on successive phases: understanding what is being done in each design phase, using the right concrete and equipment, by the right person at the right time,” he adds.
“Concrete Industrial Floors on the Ground’, a one-day training course on all facets of industrial floor design and construction, will be presented online on June 1 by TCI. Visit www.theconcreteinstitute.org.za for more details.