UCRETE DP slip-resistant floor coatings from BASF - The Chemical Company are formulated to build hard-wearing floors that can withstand tough environments.
When it came to selecting the floor for the new kennels at the University of Queensland’s School of Veterinary Science in Gatton, west of Brisbane, construction contractor Laing O’Rourke chose UCRETE DP from BASF Construction Chemicals.
In addition to the ability to withstand the highly acidic urine and dog droppings, one of the major challenges for floors in kennels is being able to cope with the extremely rigorous daily cleaning and hygiene regimen.
Peter Hollis, Managing Director with specialist flooring applicators Master Floor Coatings Pty Ltd explains that hygiene is a primary requirement in kennel facilities and floors are subjected to heavy duty cleaning as well as disinfection using a combination of cleaning chemicals and high-pressure hot water heated to 80ºC.
The cleaning combination can damage the floor as much as the mess that is being removed. This necessitates installation of the right kind of flooring for long-term performance.
UCRETE DP offers advantages such as excellent strength, resilience and non-slip performance characteristics with a unique monolithic formulation that combines the toughness and chemical resistance of polyurethane with the heat resistance and durability of concrete.
Key features of UCRETE DP slip-resistant floor coatings:
- Extremely high level of slip resistance
- Easy to clean and maintain
- Meets the requirements of US and European standards for slip-resistant pedestrian surfaces as well as AS/NZS 4586:1999 Slip Resistance Classification of New Pedestrian Surface Materials in relation to ‘high slip risk’ areas
- High resistance to chemical cleaners and solvents
- Not affected by thermal shock or repeated temperature cycling
- Fast application turnaround with long-lasting results
The kennel facilities at the School of Veterinary Sciences encompassed a total floor area of about 1290m².
The first task was to establish the slope required to provide adequate drainage within the kennels.
To achieve this, the crew from Master Floor Coatings first ‘scabbled’ the existing concrete slab floor and then used CONCRESIVE 2525, a solvent-free, high performance epoxy binder also from BASF Construction Chemicals to create a fall of 50mm across the width of the kennels.
With the required fall and drainage channels in place, the floor was coated with a 9mm thick application of UCRETE DP featuring a non-slip rating of R11.
The R11 slip-resistance rating provided the ideal balance of slip resistance and easy cleaning without being unnecessarily abrasive on the dogs’ paws.
Listing out the advantages of UCRETE DP, Peter Hollis says that the floor coatings provide the ideal flooring solution for facilities such as kennels since they are tough and robust in addition to offering superior resistance to a wide range of cleaning chemicals.
Based on his experience with UCRETE, Peter adds that the high quality results will last for a long time.
