Industrial flooring like many other components in the supply chain/distribution/logistics sector is evolving to cater for the changes in the environment. Traditional flooring poses a number of challenges and is associated with high maintenance costs.
The negatives associated with traditional flooring are fast increasing the need to find a more sustainable solution. At the back of this, seamless flooring, a fairly new phenomenon in South Africa, is gaining popularity as a preferred option for professionals during the specifying process.
While the idea of seamless floors is often perceived as unimaginable by many professionals in various industries, seamless flooring eliminates several issues associated with traditional flooring.
Looking at floors in general they are under significant pressure and are likely to deteriorate within a shorter period of time due to the extensive wear and tear associated with higher traffic volumes and heavier loads.
Some of the significant downfalls of traditional flooring include damaged joints, cracks, uneven floor surfaces, curling in panels leading to joint deterioration.
These problems require regular maintenance which can be extremely expensive, not to mention the high costs associated with damaged vehicles (wheels, bearings and computer equipment), stock losses and health and safety issues.
The need to explore other flooring solutions is critical and the use of seamless flooring is advantageous as it not only eliminates the flaws found in traditional flooring but has several other advantages including:
Improved durability
Better quality floors
Flatter floors
Lower maintenance costs
Improved operational efficiency
One of the key factors to ensure the sustainability of any product is the components used in the make-up of the product.
According to Concrete Laser Flooring (CLF) Managing Director, Peter Norton, this revolutionary technology in flooring results in a high strength composite, comprising of high saturation of steel fibres and shrinkage compensating admixtures allowing for floors to be placed without saw cut joints while displaying the optimal strength.
There are several other reasons why seamless flooring is fast becoming a more preferred option including the fact that it utilizes up to 50% less cement than in industry standard floors. Peter Norton further adds that up to 6000m2 of seamless concrete floor slabs can be laid in a single pour.
During the specification process other advantages include the option of better precision in flooring and in line with sustainable practices the technology helps to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 50% while improving and maintaining quality standards.
Seamless flooring is ideally positioned as an efficient and sustainable flooring solution which is aesthetically pleasing without compromising on quality.
