Sheffield Teaching Hospital, Sheffield

Project Type:
Commercial

Installation Type:
Heavy Duty Polyurethane Screed

Finish Type:
FeRFA Type 8

After a rigorous tendering process, ACC Flooring Ltd was awarded the contract to install the new flooring and coving detail to the Central Processing Unit at Northern General Hospital in Sheffield.

The areas included the ingredients control area and decanting, holding lobby, test kitchen, kitchen and cooking areas and the freezer area to a total of 230m² with 104m of coving detail.

The contract was awarded only seven days prior to the hospital requiring us starting on site. Altro Crete 6mm slip-resistant heavy duty polyurethane screed @ 6mm and Altro Crete cove vertical detail had been specified by the client.

Altro Crete heavy duty polyurethane screed offers excellent resistance to a wide range of chemicals including organic acids in food stuffs. It provides a profiled, slip resistant finish offering low potential for slip. It also brings good cleanability properties as well as being impervious and seamless which enhances the hygienic characteristics. Finally it meets the European Directive on the Hygiene of Food Stuffs (93/43/EEC).

After a comprehensive site meeting with the Estates Directorate, Hospital Catering Manager and SPIE the M&E contractor, a programme of works was mutually agreed to suit all parties. The hospital emphasised that the works had to be completed in seven days. Having only given us a tight timeframe from receipt of order, SPIE had to carry out their works which included disconnecting the existing services, removing and storing the existing kitchen cooking equipment on the same day as we were to start the flooring works.

All the extraction units and fridges were protected with visqueen. All the existing quarry tiles, tile bed, skirting and grouting had to be uplifted by kango and removed from site. The substrate was then prepared by enclosed diamond grinding. A resin rich heavy duty repair mortar was used as a screed to form new levels and falls to the existing floor gullies. A heavy duty polymer modified screed couldn’t be used in this instance due to the 3 days cure time which would be required as standard practice. Using this product would not enable us to complete the works within the 7 days stipulated by the hospital.

The existing hygienic wall cladding had to be carefully cut in a straight line ready to receive the white plastic birds’ beaks prior to the installation of the Altro Crete polyurethane coving detail.

A coat of Altro Proof universal damp proof membrane was applied to the flooring substrate prior to the application of a primer coat. Altro Crete slip-resistant polyurethane screed in Zaffre, a very attractive shade of Blue, was then trowel applied. The coving detail was then formed at 150mm high to the perimeter of each area. The expansion joints were saw cut and infilled with Altro Expand, a chemical resistant jointing sealant again in Zaffre.

The works was completed in the agreed 7 day programme which enabled SPIE to recommission the kitchen equipment and reconnect the services.

The client was delighted with the quality of workmanship and that the project had been completed on time and within budget.

Testimonial: “At our Central Production Unit (CPU) at the Northern General Hospital we undertook a project that involved a 6 week shut down period in the main kitchen area, to replace the flooring.  The old flooring was small flooring tiles which caused major issues and were not the best suited for a busy very active kitchen area. This Kitchen floor was replaced with a resin floor.  An Altro epoxy or polyurethane resin system, which was recommended for heavy duty areas.

We were delighted with the quality of workmanship undertaken by ACC Flooring on the CPU project at Northern General Hospital.  The work was completed within a very tight timeframe causing minimal downtime to this busy area of activity within the hospital.

I would not hesitate in using the services of ACC Flooring on any of our other sites or indeed recommending them to any potential clients.”

Credits