For the creation of an acoustically designed live recording studio in an old Victorian building in Edinburgh, a continuous brilliant white flooring system was required throughout the entire ground floor. Meeting the stringent acoustic, aesthetic and durability requirements, ComfortFloor Pro – a seamless, liquid applied flooring system from Sika – fitted the bill perfectly.
Due to the nature of the building and its end-use, the solution had to be sleek, modern and 'acoustically beneficial', while providing a seamless floor which straddled varied substrates including concrete and timber. And in order to minimise vibrations and enhance acoustic performance, an innovative jacked-up concrete floor slab was used to isolate the studio from the rest of the building prior to the application of the flooring materials.
With the initial brief only thought possible by applying a sheet material, the successful application of a pure white Sika Comfortfloor Pro by specialist contractor Industrial Floor Treatments (IFT) not only met the demands of this niche project, but also exceeded them, allowing the designers a minimalist and no-fuss vision of the space to be brought to life. It was also imperative that the chosen material had minimal VOCs, due to the large number of other trades involved in the installation.
The use of Sikafloor®-Comfort Regupol, a polyurethane rebound foam shockpad, offered further noise suppression and absorbency prior to the application of the final coats. This had to be cut to fit throughout the various rooms of the ground floor.
‘I had chosen white resin flooring for the ground floor early in the design stages. In combining my love of design and interiors with music I wanted to create a very clean and versatile space for musicians to work in. I loved the idea of resin flooring because of the tactile yet hard wearing nature of it. It is perfect for a recording space and its slightly reflective quality creates a relaxing feel,’ commented Fiona McNab, Owner, Tape Studio.
With sustainability key to any building project, Sika’s ComfortFloor systems are extremely tough and durable and can have a life expectancy to match and potentially exceed more traditional sheet applied floor finishes. Its long life expectancy and the ease of maintenance through simple refresher coats contributes to the major share of the life cycle costs
Sika’s flooring systems are designed to fulfil an almost endless combination of functional and aesthetic requirements and meet all industry requirements for mechanical and chemical resistance, impermeability and fire resistance.
As an alternative to traditional hard wearing finishes, Sika flooring systems can serve any number of specifier demands on a wide range of projects. Joint free and easy to maintain, they are an ideal choice to meet the high aesthetic requirements of commercial and public buildings and can be used in schools, offices, retail, leisure as well as meeting the strict hygiene standards of the healthcare industry. They are also an ideal choice to meet the demands of manufacturing facilities, airports and shopping malls where a durable floor is a must.
For further information on Sika’s range of products visit www.sikaconstruction.co.uk or for general enquiries including technical, on or off site support, please call 0800 1123863.
