Industrial facilities such as manufacturing environments and warehouses face a wide range of daily abuses, from the abrasion of fork lift truck wheels to the attack of chemical spillages and much more in between.
The result of day-to-day use of an industrial space can result in damaged flooring which can, in turn, lead to a myriad of problems, including dangerous slip & trip hazards and exposed concrete substrates.
Failing to repair these problem areas presents a hazard for those working in and using the facility, but remedial works to the floor can cause considerable disruption to operational output — often an extremely costly exercise.
Here we take a look at some of the problems experienced in industrial spaces, and some of the polymer floor coating systems that can help protect against such conditions, minimising any associated damage and extending the life of the floor.
Heavy Traffic & Impact
Wheeled traffic from forklift trucks, combined with the impact of dropped tools and heavy machinery, can cause defects in the surface of floor coating materials — particularly if they aren’t up to scratch durability-wise.
Choosing a heavy-duty floor coating system, such as vebrores EP HBC Composite or vebrores Compact Industrial can help to reduce the risk of damage caused by consistently high traffic or impact.
Chemical Spillages
In areas where the risk of chemical spillage is a concern, it’s imperative to choose a resistant coating that will prevent damage to the surface as well as the substrate below.
Industrial high build coating systems like vebrores EP HBC demonstrate good resistance to a range of moderately aggressive chemicals, while vebrores EP HBC HCR offers protection against more corrosive agents including Skydrol aviation fluid.
Furthermore, electrostatic dissipative floor coating systems such as those in the vebrostatic range can help to reduce the risk of fire by reducing the risk of spark ignition of the chemicals by dissipating the electrostatic build up before a spark ignites.
Slips & Trips
Failure to address damaged, uneven flooring can result in trip hazards across the surface, creating an unsafe working environment.
Added to that is the risk of slips caused by improperly textured surfaces for the usage conditions. Systems like vebrores EP Quartz Classic or its fast cure methyl-methacrylate alternative vebrospeed Quartz can provide a positively textured finish underfoot.
Unclear Navigation & Zoning
Safe walkways and clearly marked storage areas are a must in large industrial spaces where goods move rapidly through the facility in different stages of production or logistics, and where forklift trucks are in operation.
Introducing demarcation and clearly defined zones using a range of colours can help to improve safety in large factories and warehouses.
vebrores epoxy and polyurethane floor coating systems are available in a huge range of RAL or BS 4800 colour matched shades.
Electrostatic Shock
Aside from minimising fire risk as outlined earlier, vebrostatic systems also protect against static shock that has the potential to destroy sensitive electronic components.
vebrostatic systems are designed to meet various ESD standards including DIN EN 1081, DIN EN 61340-4-1 & DIN, EN 61340-4-5 and DIN EN 61340-5-1; 5×10⁴ – 1×10⁹ Ω.
Discover the full range of Vebro Polymers floor coating systems designed for industrial facilities.
