IFP Scotland has completed upgrade works to a floor mezzanine and stairwell as part of a £1.8 million investment to improve customer facilities at Edinburgh Waverley.
Waverley station is an architectural icon located in the centre of Edinburgh and the second busiest station in Scotland, after Glasgow Central. The station has many Victorian architectural elements – including the booking hall – but has also been recently renovated with a new roof that provides great natural light to the terminal below.
Due to complete in Spring 2021, Network Rail has now committed to refurbishing the station’s toilets, improving the floor surface on the mezzanine walkways in the station and reopening a public access corridor through the main building.
The old toilet facilities have been stripped out and a new facility will be installed utilising energy efficient systems and fittings.
Work has also begun on a new public corridor which will connect the east concourse with the ticket hall – restoring a walking route which was part of the original station design.
Improvements to the flooring on the concourse mezzanine level have already been completed by commercial and industrial flooring specialists, IFP Scotland, using a fast-cure, slip-resistant and decorative MMA resin system designed to minimise any disruption to the station’s operations throughout the refurbishment.
vebrospeed Quartz SR is a decorative, trowel-applied, fast curing MMA flooring system used in areas subject to frequent pedestrian traffic, as well as surfaces that can be become slippery from inclement weather and dirt tracked in on wet shoes and boots.
The system is positively textured to promote safety underfoot, minimising the risk of slip, skid and trip accidents. The material was installed in two decorative quartz blends, Pebble Beach and Rainstorm.
MMA resins are an excellent choice for floor refurbishment works owing to their rapid installation and fast-cure properties – full foot and vehicular traffic is accepted by the system within just 60 minutes of installation.
IFP installed the material over the existing tiled finish using a specialist primer to ensure adhesion to the substrate before installing the quartz system.
Now with a seamless, hygienic finish, with no tile grout lines that can crumble and harbour dirt and dust, cleaning and maintaining the new floor finish will prove much easier for the Waverley’s facilities team.
“We are delivering these works as quickly as possible for passengers.
“The new facilities will provide a brighter, modern, environmentally friendly and more comfortable experience for passengers.”
Patrick Henry, Station Manager
A second system, vebrospeed Flake, a fast-cure resin system that sees coloured flakes broadcast into the MMA resin binder before being sealed for a smooth finish was chosen for the stairwell treads and risers in a White Russian flake blend.
IFP (short for Industrial Floor Preparation) Scotland, based in Livingston, West Lothian, has over 50 years of experience in the art of surface preparation including diamond grinding and shotblasting substrates prior to the installation of floor coverings. The team has also carried out a number of high-profile resin floor installation projects including the Printworks, Glasgow and Queensferry Crossing.
