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Concrete Decor - Index

Concrete Decor - Concrete Decor Magazine, The Journal for Decorative Concrete - Index

Polished Perspectives
These products are generally attached
to a high-speed burnisher and not only
produce high production rates, but
also follow every contour of the fl oor,
fl at or wavy. Most of the equipment
manufacturers, in an attempt to provide
their customers with the ability to polish
wavy fl oors without grinding them fl at,
have developed diamond-plate holders
with springs or couplings to better
follow the fl oor contour. If your fl oor
does have highs and lows, and your
equipment is not capable of fl oating, you
risk creating very deep scratches in the
valley walls.
The “juice,” as densifi er is called,
evolved from the earlier densifi ers
that were created in the mid-1950s to
help eliminate the natural dusting that
occurred within concrete. Through
formula changes based on percentage of
solids, wetting agents and proprietary
adjustments, the chemical base for
polished concrete was created. Each
manufacturer has what they believe to
be their own strengths that set them
80 | www.ConcreteDecor.net | Dec. ’07/Jan. ’08
A 22-color palette of dyes was used to color
the warehouse fl oor of Van Mason Coatings in
Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
apart. Today’s best-known densifi ers are
either sodium, potassium or lithiumbased,
though new chemistries utilizing
amorphous or colloidal silica are
entering the market.
The polished concrete industry,
though 10 years old, is still in its
infancy. New opportunities for its
uses arise daily. Three years ago,
“sustainability” was just entering our
conversations, and now it presents us
with our largest growth opportunity. It
is not as simple as specifying “polished
concrete,” as even within our group
we do not agree what constitutes the
process and look. We need to open our
eyes and ears as to what the customer
wants, not what we think they need. For
all of us to take full advantage of these
new opportunities, our industry needs
to come together, just as the carpet and
hard surface industries have, and each
individual has to be open to learning
opportunities, both within and without
our industry. Good luck in the second
decade.
Peter Wagner, CSI, is vice president of
sales and training for AmeriPolish. He has
more than 20 years in the fl ooring industry
and is in his eighth year in the polished
concrete industry. He can be reached at
pbwagner@ameripolish.com.
In our next issue Peter will offer Ten Years
After, Part Two: Now that we’ve come this far,
how do we reach our full potential?