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Looking to the Future

Looking to the future, as 2021 slowly draws to a close, we would like to take this opportunity to thank our supply chain and all our new and existing clients for their business and support throughout 2021 it has very much been a pleasure to work with and for you all.

As we all know 2021 has presented us all with some unique and interesting challenges but together, we have successfully worked through them.

Looking to the future and with 2022 just around the corner, our order book continues to look healthy and our plans to continue to invest in our people and in the latest equipment that helps improve and widen our offerings are now all set.

We continue with our plans to organically grow our labour force selecting and training only the very best people ensuring always that in doing so our commitment to provide only the very best in service delivery remains constant.

We believe that as the wider construction sector continues to flex and respond to invigorated market forces and needs that we as a small but established SME are well-positioned to provide the necessary support that will be generated through increased sector demand.

We look forward to working with you in 2022

 

Please feel free to contact Churchill Concrete Technology Limited via our contact form at with all your concrete maintenance enquiries.

Sustainable Concrete Repair Mortars

Sustainable Concrete Repair Mortars now offer a reduced carbon footprint.

All sectors of the built environment and construction industry continue year on year to create working practices and initiatives that significantly improve the size of their carbon footprint and doing so help contribute greatly towards societies shared ambition of achieving global climate reduction.

Sika UK has recently launched a range of Sustainable Concrete Repair Mortars, They offer bagged concrete repair mortars that will help to contribute towards the construction sectors continued drive for the use of low impact concrete products.

The range of newly manufactured repair mortars have been developed with the meaningful ambition of achieving the highest performance standards that are coupled with realistic
lower application efforts that in turn produce achievable reductions in repair carbon
footprint and can lower the potential of residual crack behaviour whilst
providing even greater protection against CO2 ingress and continuing to provide the normal reliable excellent finishing capabilities.

The repair mortars have been developed to provide a higher long-term sustainable repair
solution using recycled materials within their manufacturing process resulting in the ability
to produce up to 70% less particle emission than similar more traditional pre-bagged high
build repair mortars.

Research has shown that in the correct environment up to 1.5kg of C02 per 25Kg of bagged
mortar can be saved by using the newly developed range of repair mortars.
Should you wish to use any of these products on any of your projects or require further details of the reduced carbon footprint repair mortars then please feel free to contact us

Concrete Maintenance

Why is Concrete Maintenance so Important?

As Governments around the globe wrestle with finding the best solutions to combat the coronavirus pandemic a similar conundrum is more than likely experienced by many when deciding upon the most appropriate timing and methods that should be adopted when considering the maintenance of concrete within a structure.

Timing of your concrete maintenance is of the upmost importance. Started too early and the process may need to be repeated again; if undertaken too late the process could involve huge amounts of repair costs or even experience greater consequences.

Very often the spalling of concrete is considered by many as whilst being unsightly to not have any real detrimental effect to the integrity of that structure. 

As we all know concrete is one of the most widely used building products that is used in connection with the construction of major structures.  As with most products, concrete, if left unmaintained will over time deteriorate and so will from time to time require maintenance and or repair. The recent and sad events experienced in Miami, serve as an example of this. 

The maintenance of concrete in its static state can quite simply range from straightforward cleaning to remove dirt and other deleterious build-ups that are created from within the environment to the re-application of specialist protective coatings, intrusive and non-intrusive testing that enables the performance of the concrete within a structure to be accurately monitored and checked through to repair and or replacement of key elements of concrete that form the structure.   

Here at Churchill Concrete Technology, we have the expertise and know-how available to help, advise and guide you around the timing of and provide the most appropriate and economic concrete maintenance regimes. Whether that be a straightforward cleaning solution using our environmentally friendly state of the art cleaning equipment, or accurate and effective surveying and testing solutions, the application of protective coatings, installation of corrosion control measures or the repair and replacement of damaged or deteriorated concrete surfaces.   

Please feel free to contact Churchill Concrete Technology Limited via our contact form at www.churchillct.co.uk with all your concrete maintenance enquiries.

Superheated Steam Stone Cleaning Services

Our Superheated Steam Stone Cleaning Services use the latest technologies providing innovative cleaning and specialist restoration solutions.

Industrial stone cleaning processes are a specialist operation that should only be undertaken by experienced professionals in this area. The continued advancements in technique plus the technological development of equipment have resulted in a broader appeal throughout the construction sector. Controllable power washing using superheated steam rather than high-pressure cold-water jets impacting against the hard substrate can provide far greater longer-term benefit to the end-user.

In responding to our client’s needs we have invested in new, cutting edge Stone Cleaning equipment. This investment combined with our expert team has been providing new and improved services for all of our customers. This recent investment is an important and significant addition to our existing cleaning and surface preparation equipment, and we have been receiving great feedback.

Our new equipment produces an operator controllable stream of high-pressure superheated water and steam that will quickly and efficiently. This enables us to remove, in a safe and highly environmentally friendly manner, all types of graffiti, grime, moss, algae, fungi existing decorative and bituminous coatings, oil, and grease from all types of stonework, masonry, concrete, and metal profiled building façades.

The equipment operator has full control of the pressure and water temperature to enable exact and optimal sympathetic cleaning and surface preparation to differing façade substrates with accurate and targeted precision cleaning delivered through the latest technology ceramic nozzles.

The benefits of superheated steam stone cleaning

The advantages of using superheated steam to clean and prepare surfaces are that the microspores that allow algae and fungi to propagate are eliminated, leading in many cases to a one time clean. Additionally, the logistical problems associated with over-saturation to the façade substrate, large volumes of contaminated water runoff and or splashback of contaminated water and or traditional blast media rebound are all eliminated.

Our stone cleaning equipment will meet the most discerning of specification requirements and is highly portable and provides an extremely efficient and economical solution for any façade cleaning requirements that you may have.

Please feel free to contact us for any advice or to discuss your exact cleaning requirements.

Concrete Condition Surveys

What is a concrete condition survey?

Concrete Condition Surveys are a valuable and positive instrument throughout the concrete structure risk management life-cyle. These surveys are generally undertaken to provide either:

  • Accurate information upon the likely extent and type of concrete repair works that may be required.
  • In-depth detailed information of how the concrete that forms a particular structure is performing

It is the case that through the early involvement of experienced concrete professionals that both potential repair and or maintenance regimes, budgets and specifications can be fundamentally shaped to provide detailed proactive practical assistance for the end-user. Concrete condition surveys generally fall into two categories:

  • Non-intrusive visual/delamination survey.
  • Detailed intrusive/ electro screening surveys.

Visual / Delamination Survey

Visual /delamination surveys are the most common type of concrete condition survey and are ideal to physically assess and identify deteriorated and damaged concrete surfaces such as cracking, spalling, rust staining, and the like. They are usually complemented using close-quarter careful hammer sounding testing to locate weak and hollow spots across the existing concrete surface. Physical defect details are recorded and referenced, and a quantified assessment of repair works can be established.

The survey can usually be carried out using traditional access techniques or through the use of drone technology.

Detailed intrusive / electro screening surveys

Detailed intrusive / electro screening surveys are commonly used to help better inform how the concrete forming the structure is performing. They are also used to help shape design and maintenance considerations. Ultimately offering accurate assessments of why a particular concrete element may be failing.

By their nature, these surveys are far more detailed than visual surveys and seek to use a combination of scientific and laboratory equipment and analysis. A detailed intrusive survey provides for the physical capture of concrete samples to carry out in-depth relevant tests for things like carbonation depth and chloride ion contamination. Specialist Electro screening or impulse radar scanning equipment provides for the accurate measurement of concrete cover to steel, bar layout and configuration. Half-cell potential and corrosion rate monitoring equipment can be used to determine the risk profile of reinforcing bar corrosion more accurately across a whole structure without the need to break away large areas of concrete to inspect that bar.

All of the above survey techniques can be readily carried out by our experienced teams here at Churchill Concrete Technology. Please feel free to contact our friendly team, we are here to help.

New Year Greetings for 2021

New Year Greetings for 2021 from all the team at Churchill Concrete Technology.

As the new year begins, we would like to take this opportunity to send our very best wishes to everyone that we have carried out business with during the past year.

We know that 2020 was a very strange and difficult time for everyone and like you all we look forward to better times to come.

We remain alert to all current government guidelines and continue to do everything we can to keep our workforce and their families safe. Please view our Health and Safety 2021 documentation available HERE.

In line with government guidelines, we remain open for business, albeit at a reduced capacity, and shall continue to service all business requirements, so please do stay in touch with us if you have any concrete or structural repair requirements… but most all stay safe.

How To Repair Damaged Concrete

Concrete is known as one of the world’s most widely used durable construction products. It does, however, have its shortcomings and can unfortunately from time to time be susceptible to damage. So, how to repair damaged concrete? In most cases, it can be repaired, as long as you have the right skill set and technical know-how.

The repairs that are carried out to damaged concrete generally fall into two categories:

  • Damage arising out of Impact, overloading or fire damage.
  • Latent damage arising out of original design or construction deficiencies.

The recognised industry-wide standard for the repair of concrete is the British and European Standard BS EN 1504. This provides a set of valid working instruments that act as enablers to correctly identify defects and optimize resultant repair solutions. Here at Churchill Concrete Technology all our operatives are trained and experienced in the process and principles of BS EN 1504.

How To Repair Damaged Concrete? Let the experts help!

Once the cause of the damage to the concrete has been correctly identified, an accurate and appropriate repair solution can be readily worked up. A common, but false belief, that problems with damaged concrete can be resolved by removing the damaged areas and replacing with any type of repair mortar. This is not the case, defects should be carefully assessed by experts, and repair mortars carefully matched to the constituents of the original parent concrete.

The most common defect that causes damage to concrete that arises is the effects of Corrosion of Embedded Reinforcement. Corrosion to embedded reinforcing bars commonly occurs either as a result of Concrete Carbonation or through embedded, or induced, Chloride Attack.

When reinforcement steel is placed in concrete an iron-oxide protective film is created. This insulates the steel against the effects of oxygen and humidity and is formed around the steel. This occurs during the natural hydration process of the curing concrete. The protective film protects the embedded steel from corrosion. There are, however, factors that can seek to disrupt the protective layer around the reinforcing bar. These are commonly known as either ‘Concrete Carbonation’ or ‘Chloride Ion Attack’.

Factors that will allow the condition of the cast concrete to be disrupted by either Concrete Carbonation or Chloride Attack include:

  • Design shortfalls (cover and annotation of bar location),
  • Concrete mix specifications (water ratio content, aggregate selection)
  • Placing of concrete (compaction and curing)
  • Poor or perhaps even non-existent maintenance regimes following the initial installation of the original cast concrete.

Churchill Concrete Technology are here to help and advise on anything relating to how to Repair Damaged Concrete.

Only Use Specialist Concrete Repair Products

Concrete repair works should only be undertaken by skilled, trained and experienced operatives, who only use specialist concrete repair products.

There is a myriad of specialist products that are commonly used in connection with concrete repair works. The key to achieving long-lasting economic repair solutions is ensuring that the correct specialist concrete repair product is selected.

Concrete Repair Product Categories

It is the case that professional concrete repair products are generally found to be grouped into the following categories:

  • Specialist pre-bagged mortars and protective coatings
  • Specialist resins, liquids and chemicals
  • Hydrophobic barriers and membranes
  • Specialist anchors, ties and grouts
  • Joints sealants, fillers and bonding materials

How can Churchill Concrete Technology Help?

Here at Churchill Concrete Technology we only use specialist concrete repair products. We have long, established relationships with all the major leading specialist material manufacturers including Sika, Fosroc, Weber, and BASF. These products, combined with our up-to-date knowledge and in-house technical expertise, will ensure the success of your project. After all, Churchill is in the ideal position to provide all our clients with the best possible advice on the most appropriate concrete repair product selection.

Over the years, advances in the technology used in connection with the manufacturing processes of professional concrete repair products have meant that the range, choice and selection of the most appropriate concrete repair product to select can be a technically demanding task.

Whether the repair solution is traditional high build concrete repair, corrosion protection and control systems, waterproofing and leak sealing, surface preparation and specialist protective coatings, high volume free flow sprayed concrete repairs or structural strengthening, the expert team at Churchill Concrete Technology is here to help and waiting to hear from you.