One of the ten colleges of Texas Tech University (TTU), Lubbock, Texas, the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources welcomed a new 53,000-square-foot Animal and Food Sciences Building in January 2005.
For the laboratory floors that would be power-washed daily with 180-degree water and harsh cleaning chemicals, the project architect specified an industrial floor coating system other than Tnemec’s.
Winning the contract in July 2003, coatings contractor Carl Taylor, Polymer Systems, Inc., Bluffton, Texas, requested that the coating be changed to a Tnemec Company system. “I have worked with Tnemec products for years, and have always found them to be robust, well-engineered, reliable and long-lasting,” says Taylor.
When the general contractor agreed to the specification change, Taylor called Tnemec coating consultant Lane Salvato in Lubbock. Salvato recommended a polyurethane modified concrete floor topping called Series 245 Ultra-Tread S — designed to resist thermal shock associated with freeze/thaw cycling, hot water washdowns, constant steam cleaning and a wide range of chemicals.
Taylor and Salvato met in Houston for a series of test applications. “Ultra-Tread performance characteristics are quite special — the best in the industry,” Taylor says. “It goes down quickly, cures in four to five hours, tenaciously bonds with concrete, and can resist heat, chemicals and harsh environments unlike any other polymer product on the market.”
The Ultra-Tread self-leveling slurry was applied 3/16 of an inch thick directly onto the concrete slab with a V-Notch trowel. It was then smoothed with a spike roller and a tweed-colored quartz was immediately broadcast with a blower and hopper. Finally, the entire 6,000 square feet of lab flooring was coated with Series 286 Deco-Clear CR, a high impact, abrasion, and chemical resistant modified novolac polyamine epoxy.
“The result was nothing less than perfect,” Taylor says. “When my seven man crew started in the new building, Lane worked with us on site for the 10 days of the job. The product worked smoothly and the result was beautiful.”