Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/178290
settings. It reduces the quantity of screed required by 20 to 30 per cent, which represents a signi icant material cost saving. But because it also acts as a thermal break, Bekotec has been shown to reduce the cost of heating and cooling a building as well. "When you lay it down, it causes heat to radiate upwards," Kempster says. "That means a more ef icient delivery system, even when compared to other radiant heat systems." Last year, Schluter Systems Canada used Bekotec in Vancouver's Jameson House project – a 144,000-square-foot green building on West Hastings Street. "Bekotec was used for sound attenuation and radiant heat, and it required no supplementary cooling system," he says. "In summer, cool luid is run through the hydronic systems to cool the of ices and residences." The company has shown that by using Bekotec, the costs of heating and cooling a space can be reduced by three-quarters when compared with conventional heating and cooling systems like electricity or oil-burning heaters. Polymer Floors At Sika Canada, the company's polymer loors and cementbased overlayments are increasingly LEED-orientated, with lower VOCs and, where possible, recycled content. "We're trying to reduce VOCs and strong odours during construction by improving existing technologies and, in some cases, introducing new resin types that are more environmentally friendly," says Gary Sharratt, national technical services manager. "The nature of loors hasn't changed much over the years but the way we construct and inish them, with newer, friendlier resins, has evolved in the past ive years. It's being driven by the need for sustainable and healthier solutions together with quicker installation times." Sika has taken existing loor systems and revamped them for the future, introducing state-of-the–art material technologies such as polyaspartics. These are overlayment materials that cure within hours, making it possible to apply multiple Hard Surface Flooring p.20-25Hard surface.indd 23 coats in a single day. "Until recently, they've been very expensive but as volumes have grown the price has dropped dramatically," Sharratt explains. He says the price tag has dropped 30 to 40 per cent since Sika started selling these resins, and it continues to fall from one year to the next. "In the next few years, you'll see polyaspartics being used more in commercial, industrial and institutional buildings, because they have good UV stability, excellent installation speed and can be used as top coats for decorative loors traditionally inished in slower-curing epoxy-type material," Sharratt says. Villa Casino, Burnaby, B.C. Photo courtesy Apex Granite & Tile. Instant Curing Polyurethane looring will be worth looking out for in future months, and UV Cure technology, characterized by its low-VOC content and rapid curing ability, is likely to spark interest in the institutional and commercial looring markets. "You put it on the loor, drive over it with a high-intensity light and the loor cures instantly," Sharratt says. "It's useful in schools and hospitals where repairs need to be done quickly so the space can go back into service." UV Cure is one of the newest technologies to be available in the marketplace, but it's likely to become a popular product, adding a high gloss to vinyl, tiles, quartz looring or any other hard surfaces, he says. In areas with high levels of pedestrian traf ic and where the comfort of personnel is a major preoccupation, Sika's ComfortFloor® will be the technology to watch for. Featuring low-VOC and low-odour resins as well as 86 per cent recycled content sound dampening mats, this technology will provide an unprecedented level of acoustical and foot comfort to employees working in commercial, institutional or industrial environments. SikaBond elastomeric wood loor adhesives at Sika Canada have also seen reductions and elimination of solvents in the materials as products have become more environmentally friendly. "To further reduce our carbon footprint and to reduce the man hours required to install wood looring, Sika Canada has introduced an all-in-one wood loor adhesives with moisture- and soundreduction capabilities," says Bob Cuggy, application ield manager for sealing and bonding. "All of our wood loor bonding systems contribute to LEED certi ications in the building process." APRIL 2012 /23 3/26/12 2:18:56 PM