Strengthening The Ground Floor Slab For Mezzanine Columns on Settled Floor Slabs

The last thing a warehouse operator needs is for the facility to have to close while repairs are carried out to settled floor slabs, with all the costs associated with such disruption.  Nowadays, polymer injection processes are becoming widely used to remedy settled floor or rocking slabs, as they allow the strengthening of floors with minimal disruption. There are no excavations, business can continue as normal, and even racking does not need to be removed while the repairs are carried out.

The process involves the injection of liquid polymer resin through 15-20mm diameter holes drilled through the floor slab. The material immediately expands to fill any voids and consolidate the ground, and then exerts force in an upwards direction to gently lift the flooring where required. Because of the rapid set-off time of the resin, the slab lifting method is highly accurate and controllable, with movement being carefully monitored by laser level to avoid overlift.

With this method, it is possible to either lift the flooring, or to simply strengthen the sub-base. The geopolymer resin offers the benefits of significantly increasing load bearing properties of the fill and sub base, long-term stability, thermal insulation and impermeability.  Only 10% of the weight of concrete, the material does not add weight or stress to the surrounding soil. While the ground strengthening is carried out, work can continue in the facility, with the process being applied to one small area at a time and the rest of the commercial operations proceeding normally. No dust or mess is created.

The material achieves 90% of its strength within 15 minutes, enabling areas to be re-used immediately following treatment.

Depending on the type of storage being carried out, a facility may add a mezzanine floor rather than expand to new premises in an economically constrained climate. By the same principle, strengthening the ground for mezzanine columns without having to sacrifice time or retail opportunity makes polymer injections an attractive option.

Slab Lifting, Deep Injection and PowerPile systems are available for the optimum results, offering what it describes as the best and fastest strengthening options for different ground conditions.

Work is backed by a standard 10 year materials guarantee, and this method is now widely accepted by insurers, local authorities and consulting engineers.