Epoxy coatings are worthwhile additions to your facility’s floors. When properly installed, these coatings protect your floors from moisture intrusion, abrasion, thermal shock, and more while enhancing their appearance for many years to come. However, the installation and curing processes for epoxy flooring flooring take time – approximately 10 days from start to finish. And for a busy operation like yours, going without functional flooring for that long can take a huge blow to your bottom line. The good news is that there are many ways to keep downtime to a minimum when investing in new floor coatings.
Here’s how to avoid extra downtime when applying epoxy floor coatings at your facility.
A commercial epoxy floor coating is best applied to floors that are clean, dry, and free from previous coatings. Note that these preparations can take a while to complete in their own right. If you neglect these steps, however, the coating process will take longer and yield shorter-lived results, resulting in additional interruptions at your facility. Speed up the process by taking care of the necessary prep work beforehand.
If you wish to keep your operations up and running throughout renovations (especially flooring projects), timing is everything. Simply put, some times are better than others for an epoxy floor coating application. You won’t want to get this project done during your busiest hours – after all, all of your operations require full, functional flooring. Ideally, you’ll have these coatings installed during scheduled downtime. Some facilities take extended breaks over the holidays or throughout their least active season(s). Other businesses typically operate year-round, perhaps even 24/7, making it more difficult to find the right time for floor coating. That said, every facility slows down here and there. Aim for these times of lower activity to get this project done. You might still run into some disruptions, but they won’t be as detrimental to your business or your people this way.
Many facility managers prefer to get their epoxy flooring project done all at once (e.g., throughout their entire facility), but you don’t have to approach it this way. If you’re struggling to find a large enough gap in time to properly coat your floors, consider tackling this project in a piecemeal fashion. You might apply epoxy to one floor at a time or one section of a floor at a time, so employees and customers always have a place to maneuver. If you go this route, make sure that work zones are clearly delineated, so no one accidentally steps on floors that are in the curing/drying process.
Speaking of delineation, a successful and efficient floor epoxy coating project depends on clear communication from beginning to end. Even the smallest incident, like someone walking on a still-drying epoxy floor, can result in additional hours (if not days or weeks) of work. Prevent these scenarios by posting clear signage throughout your facility so everyone knows what’s going on and where they should remain. Likewise, send out memos to all occupants well in advance of the flooring project, so no one is caught off guard once the work begins. And keep barriers up around the fresh flooring until it’s ready for safe use again. Keeping everyone in the loop will protect your floors and prevent unnecessary downtime.
Installing epoxy floor coatings takes time, no matter how you slice it, but there are ways to speed up the process. Experienced flooring contractors have the tools, techniques, knowledge, and experience to get the job done as efficiently as possible without taking shortcuts. PAINTech floor coating professionals have decades of local service experience. Our dedicated flooring team is deadline-driven, so our clients’ timetables and hours of operation are always a top priority. If you want to learn more about epoxy flooring benefits or you’re looking for a floor coating partner you can trust in Pennsylvania, The Main Line area, Delaware, Maryland, and Northern Virginia, look no further than PAINTech.
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