Power Trowel: Improving Food Production Facility Flooring

If you oversee a food production facility, your flooring can help or harm your day-to-day operations. Concrete flooring can minimize risk, and it brings its own unique benefits—but only if the flooring is properly maintained and treated. 

Polished concrete is a great option for many food processing plants. And polishing concrete with a power trowel can save time while helping you avoid costly repairs in the future.

Demands of Food Processing Flooring

The challenge in food processing flooring installation, resurfacing, and polishing is in the variety of demands placed on the flooring. High temperatures, caustic chemicals, varying moisture levels, oils, and more can move through a food processing plant and come in contact with the flooring on a daily basis. And facility managers must always be mindful of how flooring is scrubbed (and how often) in order to prevent the spread of germs and cross-contamination.

Trowel-Grade Concrete Flooring Surface Preparation

How concrete flooring surfaces are prepared is foundational to the success of any flooring project. Without proper prepping, any techniques used to polish, paint, or coat the floor won't be as successful. Prepping options depend on flooring and the condition of the substrate. 

Trowel-grade systems are usually applied in a single application with no topcoat or primer at a 3/16th- to half-inch thickness. Trowel-grade material has one major benefit: It’s one of the  most durable urethane mortar systems available. It installs quickly, and is ready to use sooner than other systems. Many facility managers find it ideal for renovating their warehouse or manufacturing site. 

Trowel-grade systems are suitable for all food and beverage processing applications. The installation process is labor-intensive, but your results are long-lasting and can resist the materials, substances, and cleaners you need to use for food production and processing. 

Polishing for Aesthetics and Protection

Polished concrete flooring is sealed and protected by the diamond grinding and troweling process. Polishing concrete also makes it highly reflective, which is aesthetically appealing and can lower the energy costs in your food processing and production facility. If you opt for concrete polishing, a power trowel can give you the finish you’re looking for without having to wait for drying or curing.

Still, power troweling can take time if you have a large facility. It is important to hire a team that can handle a large-scale project, and one that has the knowledge of your flooring system necessary to complete any resurfacing or polishing without damaging or compromising the integrity of your flooring. 

Caring for Polished Flooring

One of the main benefits of a polished concrete floor is once it's done, it's easier to clean and maintain. Just make sure that any tools and cleaning solutions you need are appropriate for polished concrete. If you're not sure, your flooring team can help.

Painters USA is experienced at resurfacing, treating, polishing, and scrubbing concrete floors for businesses and industrial sites. We’re familiar with the unique demands of the food and ag industry, including food processing plants. 

Our diamond-grinding power trowels get excellent results, and our team can tackle big projects. If necessary, we can polish up to 10,000 square feet of concrete per shift so you and your teams can get back to work as soon as possible. 

Hire the best in the business when your food processing plant flooring needs an upgrade. Call Painters USA for your power trowel estimate today!