For decades, architects and designers have admired terrazzo for its timeless beauty.
Its seamless finish, design versatility and exceptional longevity have made terrazzo a popular choice for prestigious commercial developments worldwide.
By contrast, cementitious polyurethane concrete has built its reputation in demanding industrial environments.
Food manufacturers, pharmaceutical facilities and commercial kitchens have relied on it for decades for its resistance to thermal shock, aggressive cleaning, impact and chemical attack.
Until now, these two worlds have remained largely separate.
The International School Ho Chi Minh City (ISHCMC), part of the global Cognita family of schools, presented Vebro Polymers with an opportunity to bring these technologies together, creating a floor that combines the architectural appeal of terrazzo with the durability and resilience of polyurethane concrete.
Project: International School Ho Chi Minh City (ISHCMC)
Location: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Sector: Education
System: vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf)
Construction: Cementitious polyurethane concrete terrazzo
Installed thickness: 10.0 mm
Ground & polished finish: 8 mm
Colours: Light Grey, Dark Grey, Light Ivory and Yellow
A different design challenge
Within the school’s newly developed Community Café, designers sought a floor that would become an integral part of the interior design rather than simply providing a functional surface.
The original specification for the café area called for a resin-bound decorative aggregate system. While suitable elsewhere within the project, the principal wanted the central social space to become something more than simply another functional floor.
Working closely with specialist flooring contractor Industrial Flooring Solutions Co., Ltd (IFS), a bespoke vebrocrete Terrazzo system was developed that combined sweeping geometric curves with complementary aggregate blends to define seating areas and create visual movement throughout the café.
As a result, the café would become a vibrant hub for students, staff and visitors, demanding a finish capable of making a genuine visual statement whilst providing the durability required within a busy educational environment.
Unlike many terrazzo installations that rely upon straight lines or geometric grids, the ISHCMC floor uses flowing organic curves to naturally guide visitors through the café.
Three complementary aggregate blends were carefully selected to create subtle transitions between circulation routes and seating areas without introducing physical barriers.
Alongside aesthetics, the floor also needed to provide reliable slip resistance for the hundreds of students, staff and visitors using the café each day, without compromising the clean contemporary design.
Rather than accepting a compromise between appearance and performance, Vebro proposed a different solution.
The result is a floor that quietly influences how the space is experienced while remaining durable enough to withstand the constant movement of students, staff and visitors throughout the day.
Introducing vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf)
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) is a decorative flooring system built upon cementitious polyurethane concrete technology.
Installed at 10.0 mm before being precision ground and polished to an 8.0 mm finish, the system retains the visual richness traditionally associated with terrazzo while introducing many of the performance characteristics that have made polyurethane concrete the flooring of choice within heavy industry.
The result is not intended to replace conventional epoxy terrazzo.
Instead, it extends the possibilities of terrazzo into environments where greater durability, resilience and operational performance are required.
Expanding the possibilities of terrazzo
Traditional epoxy terrazzo remains one of the world’s most respected decorative flooring systems and continues to be specified extensively throughout commercial buildings, transport hubs, healthcare environments and educational facilities.
Its clarity, design flexibility and highly polished appearance have made it synonymous with prestigious architectural projects for generations.
However, certain environments place additional demands upon flooring that extend beyond aesthetics alone.
Cementitious polyurethane concrete has earned its reputation over several decades in food manufacturing, pharmaceutical production and other demanding industrial environments where durability, hygiene and long-term performance are critical.
Areas exposed to frequent cleaning, moisture, thermal cycling, impact or aggressive maintenance regimes often require flooring technologies specifically engineered to withstand these conditions over many years of service.
It is within this space that cementitious polyurethane thrives.
By combining these well-established technologies, vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) allows architects and specifiers to consider decorative terrazzo finishes in applications where they may previously have selected purely industrial flooring systems.
Performance alone does not define terrazzo.
Designed for demanding environments
Although the installation at ISHCMC demonstrates the system’s architectural potential, the underlying technology has been developed from flooring systems trusted within some of the world’s most demanding industrial facilities.
The cementitious polyurethane concrete binder provides excellent resistance to:
- Thermal cycling through extreme high and low temperatures
- Mechanical impact experienced under heavy plant equipment
- Abrasion from vehicle traffic and general daily use
- Frequent cleaning and sanitation regimes
- Moisture exposure and surface water
- Many aggressive chemicals commonly encountered within industrial processing environments
Its coefficient of thermal expansion closely matches that of concrete, enabling the flooring system and substrate to expand and contract together during temperature fluctuations. This significantly reduces internal stresses that can contribute to cracking or debonding over time.
These characteristics have long made polyurethane concrete a preferred flooring solution throughout food manufacturing, beverage production and pharmaceutical facilities.
Beauty without compromise
Performance alone does not define terrazzo. The beauty of terrazzo has always been its ability to transform floors into architectural features.
Using carefully selected decorative aggregates and pigments, vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) offers designers the freedom to create bespoke colour combinations, intricate patterns, wayfinding features and branding elements whilst maintaining a seamless, hygienic surface.
At ISHCMC, a vibrant combination of Light Grey, Dark Grey, Light Ivory and Yellow was selected to create a welcoming, contemporary café that reflects the school’s creative learning environment.
Hygienic by design
Educational environments demand flooring that supports high standards of cleanliness without becoming difficult to maintain.
The seamless construction eliminates grout joints that can harbour dirt or bacteria, whilst the dense polyurethane concrete matrix withstands repeated cleaning with minimal maintenance requirements.
Combined with its durability and long service life, the result is a flooring solution that delivers both aesthetic value and operational efficiency throughout the building’s lifecycle.
Built around proven technology
While vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) represents a new decorative flooring concept, the technology behind it is anything but new.
Its cementitious polyurethane concrete binder is derived from flooring systems that have been successfully installed in food manufacturing plants, breweries, dairies, pharmaceutical facilities and commercial kitchens around the world for decades.
Rather than inventing an entirely new resin chemistry, Vebro has applied a proven technology in a new way, combining the long-term performance of cementitious polyurethane concrete with the architectural versatility of terrazzo.
For architects and specifiers, this provides confidence that the system is founded upon decades of practical experience rather than unproven innovation.
Healthier buildings
Modern flooring is expected to do more than deliver exceptional durability and aesthetic appeal.
Increasingly, architects, designers and building owners are looking beyond performance to understand the materials that contribute to healthier indoor environments.
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) has been developed using a cementitious polyurethane concrete binder that is phthalate-free and formulated without chemicals included on the Living Building Challenge (LBC) Red List.
This provides specifiers with confidence that the flooring system not only meets the demanding performance requirements of busy educational, commercial and public environments, but also aligns with the growing demand for greater material transparency and responsible product selection.
Across Southeast Asia, where sustainable construction standards continue to evolve, projects are increasingly seeking materials that support low-emission, health-conscious building design.
Whether pursuing Green Mark, LEED or other sustainability objectives, selecting flooring systems manufactured without unnecessary substances of concern has become an important consideration for many design teams.
For environments where occupant wellbeing is paramount, including schools, universities and community spaces, this means selecting flooring that contributes not only to long-term durability, but also to healthier interior environments.
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) demonstrates that decorative flooring no longer needs to be selected independently of performance.
A new chapter for terrazzo flooring solutions…
As buildings become increasingly multifunctional, flooring is expected to do far more than simply provide a durable surface.
Architects and facility owners are seeking materials that combine design freedom with long-term performance, sustainability and ease of maintenance.
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) has been developed to meet exactly those expectations, bringing together the decorative qualities of terrazzo with the proven engineering principles of cementitious polyurethane concrete.
The result is a flooring system that opens new opportunities across education, healthcare, food production, hospitality, public buildings and commercial developments where aesthetics and performance are equally important.
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) demonstrates that decorative flooring no longer needs to be selected independently of performance.
By bringing together the visual sophistication of terrazzo with the engineering principles of cementitious polyurethane concrete, Vebro has created a flooring system that expands the possibilities of architectural design into environments where durability has traditionally taken precedence.
The result is more than a new product. It represents a new way of thinking about decorative flooring.
vebrocrete Terrazzo (pf) represents the next evolution of decorative flooring, combining the timeless appeal of terrazzo with the proven performance of cementitious polyurethane concrete surface solutions.
