Liebherr develops and manufactures a vast variety of fascinating products, across many industries, including being the largest construction equipment manufacturer. Their site in Biggleswade is one of 2 UK sites. In addition to the Head Office in Biggleswade around 70 kilometres north of London, the company operates sales and service branches located right across England.
Our colleagues at Promain UK Limited were contacted initially by the Facilities Manager at Liebherr’s UK Head Office to ask for help and advice in providing a solution for demarcating zones within their 15 acre site at Biggleswade.
Grit Blasting UK has a long-established relationship with Promain, who are the UK’s largest industrial paint distributor. Promain were able to introduce Grit Blasting UK to Liebherr to provide the expertise in the preparation works for the project.
The Project
On inspection of the works to be undertaken, traditional line marking material such as Thermoplastic Resin had been used previously, along with standard line marking paint in some areas. This had not withstood the daily movement of heavy plant and machinery. The constant movement of vehicles through workshop doors and other hatch areas had broken
down the existing lines. Insufficient preparation, and quality of product used previously had resulted in this breakdown.
The Solution
Preparation is everything. The most suitable method of preparation, (and the only one that would guarantee the work) was to prepare all areas using captive shot blasting. Captive shot blasting is the process of firing steel beads at a very high velocity. The beads remove debris and contaminant. This method removes the surface layer of contamination. Such contamination could be the previous line marking products, laitance, dirt etc, and this blasting also creates a key for any new product.
Once the work is undertaken, the profiled surface allows the product to
attach itself to the contours of the created profile, Improving adhesion and ultimately its durability.
Here we see the team's equipment and transport on site.
Products and technical specifications - line marking
We decided it was time to try a new product - one which will bind exceptionally well to the prepared surface, whilst remaining flexible and not become too brittle.
Introducing the CentreCoat MMA Flex Concrete grade. A two pack, fast
curing flexible coating for line marking for concrete surfaces. It is designed to provide a slip
resistant, seamless floor finish with protective and decorative properties.
CentreCoat MMA is supplied as a two pack material consisting of a base component and the catalyst, which are mechanically stirred together prior to use. The rapid cure allows light foot traffic after only one hour, and can even be applied at freezing temperatures, allowing maintenance to be carried out all year round. A 5kg pack is sufficient to coat an area of 5m2 at a rate of 1kg/m2.
On going project
Our work at Liebherr continues and we’ll post some more photos and updates as the project progresses around the site.
The video demonstrates the effectiveness of the technology.
Grit Blasting UK can be contacted through this website for any enquiries or information. We under take all types of surface preparation work throughout the UK.
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