Reinforced concrete floor specialist contractor Twintec has recently completed an 18,500m2 project at Bardon, Leicestershire for Innovate Construction Limited. For the latest application of its market leading industrial flooring technology, the Rugby-based company recently laid the 11,500m2 internal flooring to FM1 classification, and 700m2 of external paving, using joint free, steel fibre reinforced concrete, SRFC, all cast using large pour techniques. The project is an extension to the existing distribution centre at Bardon, (part of the Innovate Logistics nationwide ambient storage and distribution network).
The 180mm internal floor slab is reinforced with 40kg/m3 of advanced fibre technology, AFT, 1/50 steel fibres, integrated on site and discharged directly at the concrete workface within the warehouse. Some 1,900m2 of slab were completed each day.
Darryl Eddy, Director, at Twintec added, “Our decision to recommend FM1 takes into account that end users, and equally importantly speculative developers, are increasingly looking for higher quality flooring with greater flexibility of use and the potential to use a variety of racking systems, together with reduced maintenance”.
“Adopting a Twintec floor also eliminates troublesome contraction joints; this along with the improved flatness, assists the user greatly by reducing the wear and tear on mechanical handling equipment and the drivers themselves”.
“Twintec floors are designed in-house, and the specification developed in-conjunction with the end user or developer. For both parties, our FM1 floors offer significant benefits”.
To achieve the FM1 classification of flatness for this floor, Twintec effectively combined the advantages of its rapid laser-screed laying techniques with final completion by trained teams who survey and rectify the flatness during the early stages of finishing.
Upon completion of the project, independent UKAS accredited onsite surveying results confirmed that the floor exceeded the FM1 specification. The entire floor area was within 7mm of datum.
This floor bears all the hallmarks of flatness and levelness consistently achieved by Twintec and was made possible by close working between the Project Managers, Mirus Management Services, contractors Innovate Construction, in-house designers and, for this project, property and construction consultancy, McBains Cooper.
Russell Woodward, Project Manager, Mirus Management Services, acting for the developer, said, “On this project Twintec’s speed of delivery exceeded our expectations. More importantly, their consistent support and assistance, at every stage, added to the quality of their service. They are certainly setting new standards, which others will find hard to match”.
“A revised fire corridor, along one complete wall at the facility, called for a significant redesign of the floor and their laying schedule. Twintec’s team had no problem in accommodating that revision”.
“Overall, they are well suited to this type of complicated project, where again they have confirmed that they offer good value industrial flooring”, he added.
With growing concern over sustainability being expressed by developers, Twintec is alive to that fact. The company promotes its steel fibre floor designs as these minimise the use of heavy steel bar reinforcement and consequently improve the whole life environmental performance of each facility.
“The ground conditions for this high bay extension can only be described as challenging right from the inception of this project”, pointed out Paul Cowton, Director, McBains Cooper.
“The combination of natural soils, roughly 50% of the floor area, and improved fill at varying depths called for an innovative soil improvement plan. In conjunction with Twintec, our engineering team determined the use of vibro stone columns in the fill area, with additional columns at extended centres in part of the area of natural soil”.
“Working with this leading floor contractor, we were able to confirm that this ground improvement solution was entirely compatible with Twintec’s ground floor slab design and that it would provide the required a surface tolerance to FM1; with the minimum number of joints to allow maximum flexibility for future racking layouts for Innovate”, said Paul Cowton.
Twintec Limited
Ruth Waugh, Marketing Manager
Tel: 01788 567 722
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