Novolac epoxy protects PA meat processing facility.
Commercial epoxy coatings project near Carlisle, PA
1 Surface prep completed via planetary surface grinders connected to HEPA vacuums. Read below about the other special steps taken during surface preparations.
2 A moisture tolerant, low viscosity, clear epoxy primer applied to the prepared concrete surface.
3 Another view of the floor after the epoxy primer has dried overnight. Now the floor is ready for a layer of Novolac epoxy and sand reinforcement.
4 Pigmented layer of Novolac epoxy is applied over the clear primer. Sand is broadcast into the wet epoxy to reinforce the floor against impact.
5 Here all 3 layers (clear primer, gray epoxy and sand) are visible during the installation. Of camera, the crew is mixing more materials.
6 The crack repair material shows through the clear, epoxy primer in the lower, left-hand corner of this picture.
7 Gray, pigmented Novolac epoxy is applied over the sand layer. This provides a top, chemical resistant, wear layer for the processing floor.
8 Gray, Novolac top coating complete. Floor cured over 36 hours before returning to use.
Specialty coatings (Novolac epoxy) protects a meat processing plant's floor
One of the Mechanicsburg-based teams installed new coatings for a meat processing facility near Carlisle in July, 2016. The facility had already been processing beef on an unsealed floor. For this reason, the floor was cleaned by Advanced Cleaning and Restoration before the crews mechanically diamond ground the floor surface. It was cleaned again after the grinding was complete. This cleaning process degreased the floor of animal fats. Left in place, animal fats may cause fish-eyes in the coatings and future disbondment issues.
The coatings system, applied over a 3 day period, consists of:
Coat of clear, moisture tolerant epoxy primer with low viscosity which has superior wetting properties
Body coat of pigmented, 100% solids epoxy with a full broadcast of sand
Top coat of pigmented, Novolac epoxy with aluminum oxide added for additional traction
The sand added to the body coat allows the coating to withstand greater impacts. It also assists with avoiding dings from dropped items and thickens the overall floor. If a decorative floor had been desired, a colored quartz would be used instead of the sand and a clear top coating would be applied. If greater coating thickness and shock absorption was desired, a second body coat with full broadcast of sand (or quartz) would be applied.
The Novolac epoxy applied over the sand acts as a highly acid resistant, protective layer. Typically in food and meet processing, highly acid cleaners are used to clean and sanitize the floor surface. These cleaners will often damage traditional aliphatic, Bisphenol A and Bisphenol F epoxies. Novolac epoxies are also used in chemical storage, battery charging areas and brewery/distillery operations.
