Bostik has supplied a range of subfloor preparation and adhesive products for use at a primary school located within a new 1,200-acre urban development in Rugby, Warwickshire.
St Gabriel’s Church of England Academy is the first primary school being built on the new Houlton development, which is situated on the site of the old Rugby Radio Station. The development is named after the American town of Houlton, Maine, where the first transatlantic telephone call was received from Rugby Radio Station in 1927. The £4.2 million school will have an initial intake of 30 pupils and is expected to grow to 390 by 2021. It features eight classrooms, two halls, kitchen facilities and outdoor play areas.
Midlands Flooring was the main flooring contractor on the job and selected Bostik to supply its Screedmaster One Coat Membrane, Universal Primer, Screedmaster Epoxy Primer, Screedmaster Deep and Screedmaster Flow levelling compounds, as well as the B1 Super Tac Adhesive for use across 13,000m2 of the site.
Dave Wilson, Managing Director for Midlands Flooring, commented:
“St Gabriel’s Church of England Academy has been an interesting project for us as we were introduced to the development late in the process, meaning that the subfloor and structural building was already nearing completion. We therefore had no influence or input into what slab or subfloor was installed.
“Once on site, we found that a power float floor had been installed, but the surface was cracked and rough in texture. There was also a corridor that was sloping by approximately 40mm from one end to the other.
“As a result, we contacted Bostik for their technical expertise to provide a solution on how to prepare the floor ready for the installation of the floor coverings.”
Bostik’s technical team visited the site and carried out a survey to decide on the best solution. They came to the decision of using a copper grinder across the whole floor to smooth any bumps and give the required finish before it could be primed and levelled.
Once the floor had been prepared using the copper grinder, Bostik Screedmaster One Coat Membrane was applied to suppress any residual moisture in the subfloor.
To rectify the issue of the sloping corridor, Bostik recommended the use of its Screedmaster Deep levelling compound, which can be applied in depths of 5mm to 50mm in a single step. This was done following the application of an even film of Screedmaster Epoxy Primer, which enhanced the bond of the deep fill compound to the subfloor.
After Screedmaster Deep had been applied to the required depths in the corridor area, an additional 3mm layer of Screedmaster Flow was used to give a smooth finish in preparation of the floor coverings being laid.
Dave Wilson added: “Having previously used Screedmaster Deep, we knew the product was perfect for this situation and would perform to high standards. By only using Bostik products throughout the project, we were confident that we would be 100% satisfied with the finished surface prior to the installation of the flooring.”
In other areas of the site, Bostik Universal Primer was applied to prepare the floor ready for the application of the levelling compound.
The Bostik Screedmaster Flow levelling compound was specified as the site had a minimal water supply and the two-part product comes with a polymer liquid, making it much easier to work with. With exceptional flow and smoothing properties, Screedmaster Flow provided a perfect surface on which to lay the decorative floor coverings.
Once the levelling compound had dried thoroughly, Bostik B1 Super Tac Adhesive was used to bond the floor coverings. B1 Adhesive is ideal for use with vinyl, which had been specified throughout the project.
Dave Wilson concluded: “We have worked with Bostik extensively over the years and are impressed with the service they provide. The team is always professional and is willing to go the extra mile to help.”
The Houlton community – which is being developed in phases over the next 20 years – will eventually provide 6,200 new homes, three primary schools, a secondary school, an eight-GP health centre, as well as commercial premises.
