Epoxy Flooring for Pharmaceutical Plants
One of our pharmaceutical customers was doing some renovations to its manufacturing plant. The project involved pouring a new cement slab in the existing floor.
Obviously, the floor of this condition does not fit the pharmaceutical standards. The plan was to pour the new cement, and then PennCoat would enter the picture, and install a 100% solids, seamless epoxy floor coating with a urethane topcoat.
The first step, after pouring the new concrete slab, was to prep the floor. The area was too small to justify our large planetary grinder. So, we selected to use 7″ hand grinders to prepare the floor.
Prepping floors with 7″ hand grinders is tedious. But, the consideration that can make it optimal, is that it can get power from a 110V electrical outlet. Our larger, walk behind planetary grinders require 3 phase, 480v electrical panel boxes, which requires a certified electrician to hook up our equipment. But because the area was on the smaller end, the 7″ hand grinders were adequate.
One the hand grinding was completed, we installed the first coat. The first coat was an 8mil, 100% solid epoxy. The application method was brush and roll. Here is a picture of an enthusiastic installer applying material, while wearing cleats.
A floor with this appearance (the runs, and roller marks) would be unacceptable for a customer. But because this is the first coat, we knew that we had some room to conceal the imperfections that are apparent in a first epoxy poor.
The 2nd coat was an 8mil, 100% solid epoxy. Again, it was installed in the same fashion, except with more time for the material to self-level. By allowing the epoxy to self-level, the finish can gradually expand and hide the imperfections that may be remaining from rollers or squeegees.
Finally, the floor was completed with a 4mil aliphatic urethane top coat. Aliphatic urethane is abrasion resistant, and very chemical resistant. Chemical resistance is a preferred feature for floors in a pharmaceutical area. Because the aliphatic urethane is applied so thin, it can’t be installed with a squeegee. Is uses only a roller, which adheres very well to epoxy.
PennCoat, Inc. has been providing industrial painting, commercial painting, epoxy flooring, and polished concrete services for nearly 30 years. Our experienced installers are trained and equipped with the proper knowledge and tools to ensure that every installation is installed efficiently and safely. PennCoat, Inc. provides service to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware. And we cover York, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Chester, Montgomery, Baltimore, Harrisburg, Dauphin, Bucks, Berks, and other counties in the surrounding area.