To
maintain its professional corporate image, Sika South Africa undertook a
refurbishment project in the company’s head office reception area in Westmead,
Pinetown, which included structural and aesthetic upgrades to the walls and
flooring.
Sika
South Africa is renowned for supplying specialty chemicals to the building and
automotive industries.
In
revamping the reception area, a challenge to be overcome was the high volume of
foot traffic needing to pass through the central reception area to access their
respective offices while the renovation process was underway.
The
initial phase of the project began in October 2018, when Sika’s specialised
flooring products were specified by Sika’s floor expert. Mark Griesel. The
overall goal was for the floor to have an attractive and clean decorative
finish, which is precisely what was accomplished.
In
preparation, the existing tiles had to be removed, at which point it was noted
how much the screed beneath had deteriorated, with major cracks running
through. The cracks were subsequently filled with Sikadur®-52 ZA, a two-part,
solvent-free, low viscosity injection-liquid based on high strength epoxy
resins.
The
expertise of Concrete Laser Flooring (CLF) was called on to provide a top
quality finish with their dedicated team and equipment. CLF assisted with the
preparation of the floor to achieve the perfect finish to the substrate, after
which the final decorative system was applied.
The
methodology was priming the existing concrete surface with Sikafloor®-161
Primer followed by a scraper coat of Sikafloor®-161 Primer filled with Sika
Extender T to avoid any outgassing that could cause pin-holing. The top coat was applied with a combination
of Sikafloor® DecoFiller and Sikafloor®-304W clear matte.
Sikafloor®
DecoFiller is a combination of Sikafloor®-169 clear epoxy resin and Sikafloor®
DecoFiller certified synthetic fine filler that provides a highly aesthetic and
decorative yet durable flooring system. CLF again provided support for the
priming and laying of the SikaFloor® Decofiller system. Together, Sika and CLF
provided a finish of truly international standards for decorative flooring.
The
stair risers and walls were primed with Sikafloor®-161, binded with
Sikadur®-932 coarse silica sand. All vertical surfaces were covered with
Sikafloor® DecoFiller and thereafter sealed with two coats of Sikafloor®-304 W,
a low VOC, clear, two-part, water-based polyurethane matte coat.
As
part of the reception revamp, Sika created a green garden from an old existing
pond feature. The chosen waterproofing system was the trusted Sikalastic® MTC green roof system that has root-resistant
properties. The system comprised Sikalastic®-601BC, a cold-applied, seamless, highly elastic, one-component,
root-resistant, polyurethane base coat, reinforced with Sika Reemat Premium Glass Fibre. Sikalastic®-621
TC, which is finally used as a top
coat to create a tough, highly durable waterproofing system that is seamless
and root-resistant.
Despite
minor challenges, Sika’s high quality products enabled this project to be a
showpiece for their special range of decorative flooring systems.
More information from Nadine Slabbert, Tel: +27 31
7926500 / email: slabbert.nadine@za.sika.com
