CREJ

January 2017 — Property Management Quarterly —

Page 13

ne of the challenges build-

ing and facility managers

face on an almost daily

basis is how to keep the key

components of their aging

facilities operating economically.

Often replacing a component isn’t

possible due to the way the build-

ing is constructed around the part

in question. Also,

often the time-

frame to get a new

one isn’t practi-

cal. Even when a

new component

is available, once

you factor in cost,

you must decide if

the replacement is

your best option.

Advanced-poly-

mer composite

rebuilding and

preservation sys-

tems often provide

alternatives to

replacement or costly conventional

repair methods. These types of

systems have been used for many

years by the military and nuclear

power industry; however, few facil-

ity and commercial property man-

agers realize they are available.

These options are often “green,”

because they provide the facility

manager the ability to repair rather

than replace a piece of equipment,

thereby keeping material out of a

landfill.

One recent project where these

alternatives materials came into

play was a historic and iconic

100-plus-year-old water tower,

which was experiencing issues as

a result of severe deterioration of

the concrete footers supporting it.

Over the decades, numerous patch-

ing and coating projects were done

using various concrete compounds.

While in the short term each of

these fixes temporarily made the

bases look better, due to the fact

concrete shrinks as it cures, the

repairs eventually cracked, flaked

and failed. Also, the new concrete

and cementitious materials used

didn’t bond well to the older cured

concrete, which further contributed

to the degradation of the concrete

footers.

As part of a large-scale restora-

tion effort, the owner of the water

tower sought new technologies

and options. Based on research, the

owner elected to use an advanced

polymer-based material that not

only gave the appearance of con-

crete but also delivered a bond

strength to the existing concrete

material that strengthened and pro-

tected it from further decay. Addi-

tionally, the repair material selected

would bond to the steel bases that

sit on the concrete, thereby stopping

water from entering the existing

gap between the steel and con-

crete, which in the past had caused

severe corrosion to the steel as well

as damage to the concrete as a

result of freeze-thaw cycling. While

the material selected was more

expensive than conventional modi-

fied concrete patching material,

the owner realized that short-term

fixes yield short-term results and

elected to invest in a solution that is

designed to last.

The applicability of these con-

cretelike polymer-based materials

is widespread. The bond strength of

these type of systems to concrete

often is greater than concrete’s abil-

ity to bond to itself. These types

of materials also bond to metallic

surfaces, which is beneficial when

setting, securing or repairing areas

around handrails and metal stair

noses. There is zero shrinkage

during the curing process; conse-

quently, the material can be easily

formed. Also fast set-up times make

these systems applicable in a wide

range of applications.

Another area where these com-

pounds are seeing a great deal of

Sustainable, economical solutions to replacement

Maintenance

John

McDonough,

FMP

District manager,

Enecon Corp.,

Denver

The applicability of concretelike polymer-based materials is widespread and can be beneficial when setting, securing or repairing areas

around handrails, metal stair noses and footers.

Please see ‘McDonough,’ Page 19

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