A New Building - With Unexpected
Challenges
Popcorn Palace is a flavored gourmet popcorn
company consistently growing in popularity over the
past 15 years, due in no small part to its commitment
to hand batch production methods. The popcorn is
sold primarily online through its e-commerce store
and school fundraisers. The continued growth has
allowed the privately held company to purchase a
building in Burr Ridge, IL. The 45,000 ft. facility
needed approximately half to be renovated for the
manufacturing, preparation and packaging of their
specialty popcorn.
Concare was invited to evaluate the concrete’s
condition and recommend a solution for sanitation,
safety, cleanability and more. The news wasn’t quite
what Popcorn Palace was expecting.
Occasionally, chemical exposures early in the concrete
curing cycle will lead to this condition. Regardless of
source, the top portion of the concrete was weak.
Test Patch for Evaluation In the case of Popcorn Palace, the scaling condition
had progressed to exposed aggregate, dusting & an
uneven floor surface; previous floor patches were
failing as well. Concare presented its findings to the
owner who was committed to fixing this condition, but
wasn’t sure how to best accomplish that.
Concare set up 4 test areas in the facility with
possible solutions by Protective Industrial Polymers
PIP in order to understand which flooring preparation
and product would best resolve the scaling and
deliver a safe, food grade, durable work surface.
After Milling, additional spot scarification was needed to remove all traces of scaling concrete The Evaluation
Concare discovered that the existing concrete floor
was scaling, in fact had been scaling for years.
Scaling is a concrete condition exhibiting 1/8” flaking
at the surface. This is caused by wetting of the
surface during finishing, or excess air entrainment in
the concrete ready-mix.
Option 1: Remove the scaling with scarification and
diamond polish & densify the surface leaving the
aggregate exposed
Option 2: Remove the scaling and apply a thin coating
with a fine quartz broadcast for enhanced traction
Option 3: Remove the scaling and install a coating
with a medium grade quartz for better hide & durability
Option 4: Remove the scaling and install a 1/4" thick
polymer resurfacer, sealed and finished
The Choice-s
Concare recommended two different flooring
applications for the production area. In the main
production section Concare installed a cementitious
polyurethane that can withstand the high
temperatures of steam cleaning as well as hot oil
spills. In the warehousing, packaging, and shipping
area, an epoxy polymer resurfacer was used to level
out the floor to create a uniform surface.
All support legs need covering to keep water and soils from accumulating ‐ a breeding ground for microbes. Regardless of solution, the facility is required to
adhere to sanitation standards. Concare installed an
integral cove base on the wall to eliminate any
residues that may accumulate in the corner.
The test results revealed:
Option 1: The test revealed too many pin holes and
voids and would cause sanitation issues immediately,
plus the surface was too smooth.
Option 2 & 3: These applications would not provide a
uniform finish & less durable.
Option 4: Restored the integrity of the flooring surface
and eliminated any pin holes and voids while
delivering the longest life.
Concare still wasn't done with the evaluation. Next,
we needed to take into consideration the hot oil from
popping kettles and the finishing operations where
flavors & chocolate are added, creating a sticky and
oily residue. The Popcorn Palace also wanted to
install a high pressure hot water cleaning system in
the main production area to clean and sanitize the
equipment.
Preparation & Installation
The surface preparation was quite extensive,
requiring specialized machinery and techniques for
milling, scarification and abrasive blast cleaning.
This ensured a surface free of the scaling condition,
with no loose residue left behind.
Concare was faced with removal of previous floor
coating layers that required additional preparation in
order to get to the substrate. Our state-of-the-art
milling equipment gave Concare the ability to remove
anywhere from 1/8" to 3/16" from the surface of the
floor prior to applying the polymer topping.
Epoxy polymer flooring creates a better‐than‐new productive work surface and a clean environment Multi-Tasking Floor Types
Results
As Concare worked on the two flooring solutions in
the production area, the installation team worked on
two additional areas in the facility.
The Popcorn Palace chose Concare as the best
company to provide the specific solutions completed
to exact details in a precise process that delivered the
results.
Reception: The reception area and offices were
covered with carpet and tile and the Popcorn Palace
wanted a more contemporary look. Concrete polishing
(Option #1 from the test) proved the right choice, with
the addition of color stain. Concare removed the tile
mastics and contaminants from the highly visible area.
We ground and polished the floor and installed a clear
protective surface coating that would be easy to clean
and stain resistant.
Restrooms: Providing a place for workers to wash up
in a clean and sanitary environment was important to
the Popcorn Palace. Concare installed an MMA full
flake floor which was the ideal solution for sanitation,
cleanability, aesthetics and safety. The Popcorn
Palance wanted to ensure the texture installed on the
floor could withstand wet conditions in order to
prevent employees and visitors from slipping and
falling, yet be relatively easy to keep clean. The MMA
choice captured these requirements, and beautifully!