Striking Polished Concrete Floors
Over 3.6 million passengers traversed Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, FL last year bound for adventure on one of forty-two cruise ships, including Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival Cruise Lines. When four of the port terminals underwent a major restoration project, the facility managers wanted a flooring solution that could hold up to the foot traffic demands of up to 50,000 guests per day. The existing flooring consisted primarily of epoxies, mortars, and carpet, which had become costly to maintain due to repeating coating reapplication required and unsightly wear and tear. With its incredible durability, limited care requirements, and clean aesthetic, polished concrete was selected for the job.
The Port Everglades restoration is part of a $54 million renovation project that sparked from a milestone agreement between Carnival Corporation and Broward County Board of County Commissions to prepare the port to handle a minimum of 25.5 million guests for Carnival Cruise Lines in the next 15 years. The renovated space has transformed the facilities into modern vestibules appropriate for Carnival’s excursionist clientele.
“The most striking part of this project is the reflection on the floors because of the polished concrete,” remarks Dick Slater, VP of Moss & Associates and project manager for the terminals work.
Moss & Associates have extensive experience managing high profile renovations such as the Port Everglades project, and are adept at accommodating federal guidelines and working within secure locations. When it came to the polished concrete floors, however, Slater knew he needed specialists. As part of the Broward County process, contractors must meet certain criteria and participate in a competitive bid. After inviting bids from only a select handful of prequalified contractors with the expertise and capacity to handle the scope of work, Slater awarded the project to Perfect Polish.
“I couldn’t afford to have a bad contractor come out and half way through the project realize they didn’t have the experience. [Polished concrete] isn’t like painting. It is not an exact science and you have to have done it for a long time to know how to get it right.” explained Slater. “Perfect Polish knows how to do this work…I have seen them do it, and I would recommend them.”
Perfect Polish is one of the largest concrete polishing contractor in the US and had previously installed polished concrete into another terminal for the Port in 2009. The high accolades for their prior work and ability to meet the rigorous scheduling demands of the job ensured the project was a success. The fifteen-month project was completed in only eight months, and included over 306,000 square foot of polished concrete. Perfect Polish partnered with a local labor force to help infuse work back into the local community. The Broward County Business Opportunity Act suggests a goal of at least 25% of project participation to come from local qualified businesses. Perfect Polish was able to partner with a Broward CBE firm, Sagoma Construction, to supply approximately 30% of the workforce.
“The accelerated schedule made the work that much more of a challenge,” explains Ashley Hamby, Senior Project Manager at Perfect Polish. “The work was very labor intensive including several different types of demolition of existing floor coverings including carpet, thick epoxy coatings, and thin set from tile. There was also a good deal of hand tooling, patchwork, joint fill and joint repair.”
Slater recalled, “[Perfect Polish] really worked with us. They worked off peak hours in evenings, then worked in dedicated areas to keep the trades separated.”
After the coatings were removed and the concrete repair work completed, Perfect Polish performed their signature Natural Wonder Polished Concrete Floor System, which uses a progressive series of diamond-bonded abrasives to grind, hone, and polish the floor until a highly reflective, ambient finish resulted.
“The client was very impressed with the appearance of the buildings,” concluded Slater. “The polished floor presents as clean and attractive. The building is about 780 feet long and you can see 500 feet of it in one glance through the reflection.“
For more information about Moss & Associates, visit http://www.mosscm.com
About Perfect Polish:
Since 1998, Perfect Polish has provided the highest quality concrete flooring solutions to the industrial, retail, and commercial markets, and is one of the largest contractors in the United States that specializes in polished concrete. They have built their reputation for exceptional craftsmanship and have completed installation of millions of square feet of flooring across the nation. To learn more about polished concrete services, contact them at 877-91-SHINE
