March 2007

The Problem:

A well respected Architects’ Practice based in South East London contacted RIW to provide waterproofing solutions for a proposed new Data Centre for a leading global financial firm in Basingstoke, Hampshire.

The requirements were as follows:

• Provision of a high performing waterproof membrane beneath Raised Access Floors, to contain water in the event of fire setting off sprinkler systems and other leaks.
• Provision of a surface applied membrane to act as a dust sealer, to bund concrete floors in plant, tank rooms and also to provide a finish
• Waterproofing to concrete slab directly beneath the roof, to provide an extra layer of protection in the case of leaks

As such, the selection of the most appropriate high performance waterproofing system was imperative.

Firstly, the manufacturing quality of the chosen membrane had to be of a very high standard due to the sensitive nature of the computer equipment being protected. Ideally, the product would have a proven track record and be supplied by a reputable manufacturer of structural waterproofing systems.

The membrane had to be simple and quick to apply, but most importantly it had to fit in with the ‘fast track’ nature of the construction program.

It was vital that there were no unnecessary delays due to concrete drying times prior to the waterproofing being applied in order to sustain the fast track construction program.

For this reason the membrane had to be suitable to be applied onto relatively green concrete without the curing process being affected. Furthermore, it was important that the membrane cured rapidly to avoid unnecessary down time and allow the following trades to access the floor area as soon as possible.

The membrane had to be high-performance but simple to apply, as the consequences of any delays would have been hugely problematic and costly for the project contractor.

The Solution:

RIW Toughseal, a high performance liquid applied waterproofing system based on epoxy resins was chosen because it could be applied soon after the surface of the concrete was dry, avoiding unnecessary delays in the fast track program. The fast curing time enabled the RIW Toughseal to be applied at times just 24 hours after concrete was poured.

The introduction of a liquid applied waterproof membrane such as RIW Toughseal as an unprotected surface membrane provides a high performance watertight containment system preventing the passage of water into the sub floor and rooms below eliminating extensive consequential losses and inconvenience.

Plant rooms

The plant rooms were waterproofed to contain any leaks or spillages of liquids from faulty tanks, plant or pipe work. RIW Toughseal also provides a surface applied waterproof containment system that is chemical and abrasion resistant. Plant rooms in basements should have a containment system installed to prevent contamination of the surrounding ground and groundwater.

Raised Access Floors

RIW Toughseal also acts as a good quality waterproof membrane / dust sealer providing a high performance impact resistant and waterproof floor finish under a raised access floor preventing the passage of water into the sub floor and rooms below.

RIW Toughseal is applied directly to the sub floor and is compatible with commonly used epoxy adhesives allowing the pedestals to be adhered directly to the membrane, thus eliminating the necessity to puncture the waterproofing with fixings.

RIW Toughseal has been specified and applied extensively as a fully bonded and seamless watertight containment system under Raised Access Floors on prestigious projects such as GCHQ Cheltenham, MOD Whitehall and many buildings at Canary Wharf to protect some of the most sensitive computer rooms & equipment in the UK.

Further information on the subjects discussed in this article is available by contacting us at technical@riw.co.uk or by visiting our website at www.riw.co.uk.