3,600 m2 acrylic floor brings old factory hall back to date

In order to offer HPP treatment technology, HPP Belgium invested in several factory halls in the Borinage in 2018. Two years later, the production activities of The Juicy Group, producer of fresh fruit and vegetable juices, infused waters and soups, among others, were to be housed there. However, since the halls in question were still from the mining era, this required the necessary modifications. A box-in-box solution with acrylic screeds brought everything up to standard.

A first factory hall was tackled right away in 2018; a second one followed in 2020. "The premises were hugely outdated," admits Bram D'hondt of HPP Belgium. "In order to adapt them to contemporary building standards, but above all to bring them in line with the strict hygiene and safety requirements in our sector, a box-in-box solution was the most appropriate course of action. To this end, a completely new factory volume was built in the existing hall, including insulating sandwich panels and a brand new concrete floor."

Hygienic floor tailored to the application

To finish the new concrete floor, HPP Belgium turned to Deweco, which installed an acrylic cast floor. "The requirements for the floor are obviously very high in our field. It has to be hygienic and, given the products we work with - think citrus fruits - extremely acid-resistant. On top of that, the plant is polished about eight hours a day. So good cleanability and high resistance to the products used are also essential. The acrylic floor proposed to us by Deweco met all the requirements we set." In total, Deweco realized an area of roughly 3,600 m² in the second factory hall, in three different zones. "Each zone features rounded skirting boards and its own color according to the activities taking place there. In the allergen zone, accounting for 800 m², the floor was given a blue color; the yellow and red zones, the liquid and extraction zones respectively, each measure some 1,400 m²." Quartz was also added to the floor in all zones to ensure the necessary anti-slip properties, with in the red zone and slightly higher dosage. "Since forklifts are also driven here and therefore there is a heavier load, an additional compression layer was also provided."

As per agreement

For Deweco, which has specialized in the installation of synthetic flooring for more than fifteen years and counts hospitals, bakeries, restaurants and stores among its clients, the HPP plant, with its 3,600 m², essentially meant an increase in scale compared to regular projects, but HPP Belgium did not notice much of that. D'hondt: "The project went flawlessly. Both in terms of the technical and aesthetic properties of the three floors and in terms of planning and execution, all agreements were perfectly fulfilled." Wouter De Weerdt of Deweco adds. "The advantage of this floor is of course that it is completely dry after only two hours. For smaller surfaces, it means that we can complete an entire project in one day. In this case, a fat week sufficed."

Craftsmanship

Finally, D'hondt praises the drive and technical expertise of the Deweco installation team. "With a cast floor you get a very nice result, but the conditions of installation are usually no laughing matter. Nevertheless, we saw a lot of enthusiasm and pride during the execution. This is reflected in a technically strong result with respect for large and small details, from expansion joints to minor retouching."