Industrial facilities require floors that are easy to maintain and tough enough to withstand harsh operating conditions. Besides keeping the facility running efficiently, the right type of floor can ensure compliance with industry-specific health and safety regulations. Because these two aspects are vital to business success, our industrial painting contractors recommend cementitious urethane floors for any challenging environment.
The demands of an industrial environment are very different from those of a residential and commercial building. This indirectly means that an industrial floor must have a series of physical and performance characteristics. Because cementitious urethane floors are highly durable, slip resistant, low maintenance, and exhibit excellent chemical and thermal shock resistance, they’ve become a popular choice among the owners and managers of industrial facilities.
Now, let’s find out what cementitious urethane is and how it can meet the requirements of industrial environments.
What Is Cementitious Urethane?
Also referred to as urethane concrete or urethane mortar, cementitious urethane is a coating system composed of Portland cement, water, aggregate, and different additives that are designed to:
- Promote the adhesion of the urethane floor to the substrate. Cementitious urethane floors can be directly installed over green concrete (concrete that hasn’t fully cured), or in cold and humid environments, without worrying about residual moisture. However, industrial painting contractors may specify a urethane-based primer, depending on the environment, overall floor system selected, and daily activities taking place.
- Turn the floor into an impervious surface excellent at withstanding a wide range of substances, including inorganic and organic alkalis, solvents, and acids.
- Enhance floor’s resistance to cracking or crazing, which might occur as a result of extreme temperature variations. Cementitious urethane floors are able to withstand temperature fluctuations that range from -330°F to +240°F.
- Control the bacterial population on the surface of the floor (e.g. silver-ion based antimicrobial additives).
Evaluating In-Service Performance
Our experienced industrial painting contractors can confirm that cementitious urethane floors are able to withstand consistently wet conditions and repetitive, extreme temperature fluctuations that could damage other types of floors, including epoxy systems.
Additionally, cementitious urethane can be installed as a completely seamless floor. As a result, there aren’t any channels to collect dirt, microorganisms, and toxic chemicals, which often get stuck in the seams of other floor coverings.
And because cementitious urethane floors expand and contract at the same rate as the concrete slab underneath, they ensure a tenacious bond. This means that the risk of buckling, bending, cracking, and detaching is much reduced.
This product can be used alone or in conjunction with other topcoats. In projects where epoxy toppings are specified, for instance, cementitious urethane coatings can be used as vapor barriers to prevent moisture migration from the concrete slab to the epoxy resin layer.
A product that eliminates potential moisture-related damage in epoxy floors will deliver a more durable floor, a safer work environment, increased productivity, and significant cost savings in the long term.
A few more benefits of cementitious urethane flooring systems include:
- They can be installed in varying thicknesses, which range from 1/4 to 3/8 inch, depending on the requirements of each project.
- There are different customizable slip-resistance options, which make these floors highly versatile.
- Cementitious urethane floors are zero VOC and ensure a fast-curing, low-odor installation.
- They can also be utilized to repair and resurface old concrete flooring.
Because deciding between cementitious urethane and epoxy flooring can be difficult, industrial painting contractors advise the debate to be centered on site conditions as well as the intended use of each area. In other words, it’s not necessarily about which type of floor is better but about which option is most suitable for a given environment.
Both cementitious urethane and epoxy floors are available with different customizable options for industrial facilities. Determining which type of floor is the right solution for your facility can be made easier with the help of experienced industrial painting contractors. To get more information about the flooring systems available for your facility, please contact Performance Painting Contractors with any questions you might have.