Concrete products manufacturer Pan Mixers South Africa (PMSA), in partnership with flooring solutions supplier Superb Flooring Systems recently introduced bush-hammered-finish flooring, which makes use of HTC technology, onto the local market, says PMSA marketing and sales manager Quintin Booysen.

To date, the company has completed a trial project on a 400 m2 floor.

“Bush-hammered flooring is achieved using the same HTC Superfloor machine that is used to achieve smooth polished floors; however, the tooling is changed to create an even but rough-finish floor,” he says.

Bush-hammered-finish floors are suitable for exterior use, such as industrial driveways or walkway paths where nonslip surfaces are required, he adds.

HTC’s Superfloor system, which was developed in Sweden, grinds and polishes concrete floors to remove the surface paste and expose the stronger concrete and aggregates beneath, creating a strong, shiny concrete floor, explains Superb Flooring Systems manager for Southern Africa Andreas Hasselmose.

The benefits of HTC Superfloor polished concrete includes flatness, which makes it easy to maintain and results in low-vibration levels for vehicles.

“Having a completely flat floor is especially important in warehousing, as this, along with low-vibration levels, reduces noise and dust, as well as forklift wear and tear,” says Hasselmose.

The Superfloor also has a 60% lower life-cycle cost compared with traditional flooring solutions, as no soft material is used on top of the concrete. “Only the base material, that is already in the building, is used and the only requirement to be able to polish it is that the concrete strength should be at least 25 MPa,” he says.

Superfloor is a green flooring solution, as only the existing concrete is used and no other material is added to the surface.

Further, cleaning these floors with the HTC Twister technology is environment-friendly, states Hasselmose.

HTC Twister pads fit most scrubbing machines and no chemicals or cleaning agents are needed, reducing chemical use in daily floor maintenance by up to 100% and reducing waste materials by up to 99%.
PMSA and Superb Flooring Systems, together with their contractors, are currently working on a number of projects, including the grinding of a large tile retailer’s floors, as well as those for a number of outlets of a major supermarket chain, says Hasselmose.

Further, another large retailer is considering making use of the HTC Superfloor technology, says Booysen.

The technology was also used to do the flooring of the Moses Mabhida soccer stadium, in Durban, in 2010, he adds.

Training
Meanwhile, PMSA and Superb Flooring Systems offer full support, as well as a training academy for their clients. “We teach clients how to grind and polish concrete floors up to the highest specifications, known as HTC Superfloor Platinum, as well as educate clients on the correct procedures for polished concrete,” says Booysen.

He states that other companies sometimes incorrectly refer to regular floors, or floors with epoxy coatings, as polished concrete. “This is why we try to educate customers about the specifications relating to professional polished concrete and, in particular, the HTC Superfloor system,” he explains.

“[These] systems have different levels of polished concrete, which provides customers with a specific finish product, as the grinding of the flooring is executed to certain specifications,” he adds.

Further, the company also provides full backup for its customers. It keeps stock of machines and spares and expert advice is provided by employees with suitable qualifications.

The increased demand for warehousing augurs well for the flooring industry, says Booysen.

“When warehouses are built close to distribution centres, land costs are higher and companies need to build higher warehousing, which requires flat floors,” he explains.

Further, concrete that is now available offers superior performance compared with the concrete available in the past.

“A few years ago, 40 MPa concrete was seen as extremely strong; however, now you can order specialised concrete with any stone configuration you require delivered to site with high-performance admixtures of choice, making concrete a modern tool in civil infrastructure development,” he says.

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