Contractor FK Group and single ply manufacturer IKO Polymeric have completed a 48,000m2 roofing project for one of the world’s biggest online grocery centres – in under four months.
A number of practical innovations developed by project managers FK Group and IKO Polymeric ensured the project was completed on time, with minimal material waste and the best use of resources.
The first time and money-saving measure was IKO Polymeric’s manufacturing bespoke roll lengths for the project. Standard length membrane (20 linear metres) needs cutting or extending to fit required dimensions.
On such a large and time-pressured project as the Erith centre this would lead to delays in installation and considerable waste of material –and more time and expense for disposal. So IKO Polymeric manufactured its Armourplan PVC single ply membrane in bespoke rolls of 22.35, 19.20 and 8.00 linear metres to fit the installation’s specific requirements.
Another innovation was manufacturing half the rolls with the membrane overlap on the right of the roll, and half with the overlap on the left. This 50/50 split meant the contractor could use two teams working simultaneously on either side of the ridge, each rolling the membrane out correctly aligned without having to turn rolls – again, saving time and money.
“The project also benefitted from a new installation technique developed by FK Group,” explained Anthony Carlyle, Managing Director of IKO Polymeric.
“The contractor welded together eight bespoke-length rolls to create a large (320m2) membrane ‘blanket’. This was then rolled up and positioned so the installer’s large team could apply adhesive before rolling it out like a carpet – effectively applying eight rolls at once. FK Group completed 20,000 metres in 10 days.
“This was possible because of the properties of IKO Polymeric’s PU low-foaming adhesive, which can be applied and left exposed for up to 25 minutes, allowing large areas to be applied prior to the membrane’s installation. This allowed FK to minimise idle periods and spend less time working at height.”
