New IGA Supermarket in Toowoomba asks for Transitions Polished Concrete Floors

New IGA Store in Toowoomba asks for Transitions Polished Concrete FloorsProject Background

The new IGA supermarket in Newtown Shopping Centre, Toowomba opened its doors in late 2013 with the installation of Transitions Polished Concrete floors throughout the main trading areas and an epoxy coating in the deli and back of house areas. The retail space used by the supermarket is a 50 year old retail tenancy that has undergone countless tenants throughout this time. IGA has revitalised the store space bringing it up to date with a modern fit out, whilst preserving many of the historical features of the building; the concrete floors being one.

Specification

  • Transitions Polished Concrete
  • Parchem 6mm Epoxy System
  • R9 Slip Rating
  • Gloss Finish

Scope

  • 800m2 of Transitions Polished Concrete throughout the trading areas
  • 150m2 of Parchem 6mm Epoxy System in the deli and back of house

Client Objective

The client had a number of aesthetic and performance related objectives with which they wished to achieve out of the chosen flooring solution for the new IGA store in Toowomba. Firstly, the chosen product was to utilise the existing slab put down in the building some 50 years ago, to maintain its history. The client wanted a concrete floor with a gloss finish to increase light reflectivity and thus the brightness in the store. In terms of functionality, the client wanted a concrete floor that would stand the test of time and be easily maintained during this process.

Client Requirements

The client had the following requirements for the concrete floor at the new IGA Newtown Store. The floor was to include a three-quarter aggregate exposure with a gloss finish. It was to fulfil all Australian Standard codes in relation to performance and slip ratings. The concrete floor in the supermarket should be easy to maintain and remain in line with the supermarkets' cleaning program. Furthermore it must be able to withstand a high amount of foot and trolley traffic on a constant basis, meaning the concrete flooring product needs to be extremely durable with a long life cycle.

Chosen Product

The concrete flooring product that was specified by the client was Transitions Polished Concrete. This product was chosen due to its ability to fulfil all of the client objectives and requirements, as well as provide a number of advantages of its own. Transitions Polished Concrete floors are an extremely low maintenance and durable product that will stand the test of time in the new Newtown IGA supermarket. Further on from this, the polished concrete floor was finished with a gloss level that assists in bouncing light from the old buildings high bay windows around the supermarket. This makes it a lighter and brighter environment to shop.

The polished concrete floor finished by Transitions has also made use of the existing concrete slab, maintaining the history of the building. This history was brought to the forefront with Transitions during installation, with over 600 holes present in the slab, from 50 years worth of installing and removing fixtures and fittings. Additionally, the revitalisation of the tenancy saw new slabs poured throughout the store, due to new drainage requirements. Although this did create slight appearance differences in colour, Transitions worked very closely with the client, TRG Architects, to ensure that all aggregates of the new slabs were matching in with that of the existing slab.

Overall Outcome

Overall, the Transitions Polished Concrete floor installed at the Newtown IGA supermarket in Toowoomba was a great success. The old floor has been completely revitalised and now highlights a part of the buildings history. The client is overall happy with the product and its performance.

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