Is Epoxy Coating or Concrete Polishing Right for Your Industrial Plant?

An indus­tri­al facil­i­ty can­not func­tion prop­er­ly or safe­ly with­out stur­dy floor­ing. Con­crete floors are built tough, but they’re also vul­ner­a­ble to impact, pres­sure, mois­ture, chem­i­cals, and oth­er fac­tors. With­out prop­er pro­tec­tion, your indus­tri­al floors will require con­stant over­sight, and even then, it won’t be enough to pre­vent every type of dam­age or dete­ri­o­ra­tion that might befall them. This is why invest­ing in high-qual­i­ty pro­tec­tive floor­ing solu­tions is cru­cial. Of course, there are mul­ti­ple solu­tions avail­able. Two of the most pop­u­lar floor­ing options for indus­tri­al set­tings include epoxy coat­ing sys­tems and con­crete pol­ish­ing. The for­mer involves installing addi­tion­al lay­ers over the exist­ing floor, while the lat­ter requires grind­ing down the con­crete and apply­ing a den­si­fi­er for added strength. Both options have their pros and cons, and one might be bet­ter suit­ed for your pur­pos­es than the other.

With that in mind, which floor­ing solu­tion is best for your indus­tri­al plant: epoxy coat­ing or con­crete pol­ish­ing? Here are some things to con­sid­er before deciding.

How to Decide Between Epoxy Coat­ing and Con­crete Pol­ish­ing for Your Indus­tri­al Plant

What’s Your Budget?

Total cost is one of the most impor­tant fac­tors to weigh when com­par­ing epoxy con­crete floor coat­ings and pol­ished con­crete solu­tions. Both sys­tems will cost your busi­ness one way or anoth­er, but both are actu­al­ly among the most afford­able floor­ing solu­tions. The exact cost of either approach depends on the size and scope of your floor and the con­di­tion of your con­crete. If ini­tial costs are your main con­cern, it’s best to com­pare quotes for both process­es to get the best idea rather than rely on broad­er averages.

Con­sid­er Your Schedule

Time is mon­ey, espe­cial­ly if your indus­tri­al plant has to oper­ate all the time or, at the very least, can’t be put on hold for too long. When a floor­ing project inter­feres with your stan­dard oper­a­tions, your bot­tom line can take a major hit. Know­ing this, the dif­fer­ences in dura­tion of epoxy vs. con­crete pol­ish­ing and restora­tion must be tak­en into account. Once again, the pre­cise timetable depends on mul­ti­ple fac­tors. Epoxy projects some­times take less time to com­plete than con­crete pol­ish­ing, but they often require addi­tion­al down­time for dry­ing and cur­ing. With state-of-the-art dia­mond grind­ing equip­ment, a con­crete floor can be pol­ished quick­ly, and the floor can be used direct­ly after the job is done. Addi­tion­al­ly, a well-pol­ished con­crete floor requires far less main­te­nance than an epoxy coat­ed floor. If you can’t afford to endure pro­longed down­time at your facil­i­ty, pol­ish­ing might be the opti­mal solution.

Think Long-Term

When com­par­ing floor pro­tec­tion solu­tions, it’s vital to keep the big­ger pic­ture in mind, too. The longer your floors last, the big­ger your return on invest­ment. A pol­ished con­crete floor can endure for decades when cared for prop­er­ly. Epoxy sys­tems can last a long time, too, but they usu­al­ly require resur­fac­ing peri­od­i­cal­ly espe­cial­ly in high-traf­fic spaces like indus­tri­al plants. These main­te­nance costs add up over time, so even though a pol­ished con­crete floor costs more upfront, it will wind up sav­ing you mon­ey in the long run.

The Ver­dict: Is Con­crete Pol­ish­ing Bet­ter Than Epoxy?

Indus­tri­al plants can ben­e­fit from both epoxy coat­ings and con­crete pol­ish­ing solu­tions. One option isn’t inher­ent­ly bet­ter than the oth­er, which is why it’s so impor­tant to deter­mine your own needs and goals before mak­ing the call. At Kaloutas, we offer both epoxy and con­crete pol­ish­ing solu­tions for indus­tri­al and com­mer­cial facil­i­ties. Let us help you deter­mine which type of floor­ing is best for your indus­tri­al plant. 

To learn more about us and all that we do, con­tact us online or give us a call at 978−532−1414 today!