Industrial and Commercial-Grade Concrete Polishing.
Enhance operations, increase brightness, and protect your concrete flooring foundation with this durable, low maintenance option.
Enhance operations, increase brightness, and protect your concrete flooring foundation with this durable, low maintenance option.
Maintenance managers like polishing for durability, long-lasting performance, and easy upkeep. Operational and safety managers like the brightness, enhanced lighting, and strong slip-resistance. And when it comes to selecting a professional, reliable polishing contractor, they choose Painters USA—we’ve polished acres worth of concrete in a wide range of industrial and commercial facilities.
The major benefits of Concrete Polishing
Polished concrete floors can be used as soon as the process is done, no additional time needed for drying or curing. And Painters USA has worked on many projects without shutting down the facility by isolating and coordinating work, area-by-area.
Polished concrete can be a budget-friendly option as the process involves low material costs. Factor in minimal daily cleaning requirements and long-lasting performance, concrete polishing can save money and time in the long run.
Polished concrete floors can be very glossy, making them look slippery. Yet as long as the surface is dry, polishing will maintain and even enhance the natural slip-resistance of concrete, plus the added brightness enhances visibility.
Polishing significantly boosts the sheen and reflectivity of concrete, creating a lighter, brighter space that looks better and feels safer and nicer to be in. Plus staining and other elements can be incorporated for design versatility.
Polishing revitalizes and extends the useful life of concrete floors for long-term performance and reduced energy and natural resource consumption. Polished concrete typically contains no VOCs, and the glossy surface maintains a lighter space to conserve power.
Happy concrete polishing customers
Happy concrete polishing customers
Happy concrete polishing customers
Concrete polishing and more for Chicago-area PCA facilities
As a major producer of containerboard and other packaging / paper products, PCA’s plants require safe, durable flooring. Satisfied with past painting and industrial cleaning services, the maintenance manager of the Chicago Full Line Plant chose Painters USA for concrete polishing services to bring a section of flooring up to par with the rest of the facility.
Project highlights
Painters USA removed an area of old epoxy coating that was failing and inconsistent with the surrounding polished concrete flooring.
Performing a series of grinding, polishing, and burnishing stages, including a concrete densifier, the concrete was hardened to protect and beautify the floor.
With conveyor belts and other equipment in the area, Painters USA finished the flooring project with epoxy yellow line striping to enhance operator safety.
The plant maintenance manager appreciated Painters USA’s project scope and schedule that outlined important details like timing and crew size.
As work was done mostly outside of normal operating hours, PCA’s plant staff were grateful they didn’t have to supervise Painters USA’s professional, employee crews.
Other than a few hours on Friday afternoon, the project was completed over the weekend when the plant was closed, ready-to-go again on Monday morning.
Revitalizing and protecting a machine-tooling production facility in northern Illinois
HCC has been in the equipment business for 100 years, designing and manufacturing agricultural equipment components for North and South American markets. The company relies on the safety record, quality work, and one-stop convenience of Painters USA for all their painting and concrete flooring needs.
Project highlights
Vendor management and the ease of working with one reliable vendor for multiple services, not only concrete floor polishing but also ceiling and wall painting, was a key reason the company chose Painters USA.
No business wants safety-related problems in their facilities, including incidents for which an outside contractor is responsible. The proven safety record of Painters USA offers HCC extra assurance and one less thing to worry about.
We often perform our work during normal business operations as we wind our way through different sections of the company’s production facility, but we also work weekends or night shifts if needed.
Removing old sealers, exposing concrete aggregate, and polishing it to create a dense, durable surface brings new life to a long-used concrete substrate. Polishing brightens and protects the surface from use and abuse.
If you want to see an old facility look modern, bright and new again, just follow the Painters USA crew as it cleans and paints the ceiling and walls and grinds and polishes the concrete floor. You may need shades.
Polished concrete is as maintenance-free and easy as it gets for many industrial facilities. This saves time and money by extending budgets and reducing downtime, the holy grail of all facility managers.
Strengthening forklift aisles for long-lasting endurance
Polished concrete is a durable, cost-effective flooring option for high-traffic areas like forklift aisles. Dayton Superior, the creator of Symonds concrete forming systems, turned to Painters USA for concrete polishing and line striping to protect and mark the concrete surface of their forklift aisles in a Chicago facility.
Project highlights
Concrete polishing is a practical, cost-effective choice for high traffic areas in many industrial facilities like forklift aisles and walkways, where endurance is key but performance coatings may be too costly and time-consuming.
Concrete polishing uses less product than other flooring options like epoxy coating systems. The primary consumables used in the polishing process include the abrasive material, concrete densifiers and sometimes a sealant.
Deploying large, well-trained and well-coordinated crews allows us to complete big projects, including one high-ceiling facility that required us to build custom scaffolding onsite for cleaning, surface prep, and repainting.
Questions you should be asking
Concrete polishing is the process of mechanically grinding and honing a concrete floor with specialized equipment using industrial diamond polishing pads. The process cycles through progressively finer grits, as well as a densifier chemical for dust-proofing and hardening. The finished result is a durable, reflective surface that is easy to clean and maintain under the right circumstances.
It depends on a number of variables, such as the current condition of the concrete slab and the area size. The good news: Once the polishing process is completed, the floor is immediately available for a return to normal operations, no additional drying or curing time required. As a point of reference, we are polishing loading docks for a food distribution company that can only shut-down for 6-hour windows. The process allows them to start loading again immediately.
Functional benefits include: Strength and durability, good resistance to basic wear and tear, easy cleaning, minimal downtime. Visual benefits: Smooth, glossy surface that reflects light for added brightness. Polished concrete also can be customized with dyes and additives for design considerations.
Because polishing results in a glossy finish, a common misconception is that they are slippery. As long as the surface remains clean and dry, polished concrete generally has good traction. For extra protection against slips, trips, and falls, special anti-slip conditioners can be applied.
The bright, shiny surface of polished concrete looks like it has a glossy coating, but the concrete essentially remains bare. Grinding and hardening gives it the appearance of a coated finish.
The number of steps can vary from a few to several, depending on the desired outcome. The steps basically go from base grinding to a honed / satin level with a low-luster, matte finish to polishing levels for increasing sheen and light reflectivity. High-shine floors, with a mirror-like finish, generally take more steps to achieve.
Gloss is a generic description for what is technically referred to as specular gloss, or the measure of light reflected by the surface. Gloss is measured in units that range from 0 – 100 at different angles. The most-used measurement angles are 20, 60 and 85 degrees and the concrete polishing industry has traditionally used 60 degrees.
Polished concrete is a viable option for many light industrial environments and commercial settings. It may not be optimal for certain environments, such as facilities with heavy wear and traffic or where strong acids or other chemicals are used routinely, as they can etch the surface and dull the finish. Also, the condition of the existing concrete slab is important—floors that are cracked, blemished, stained or uneven may not be a good candidate for concrete polishing. Painters USA is happy to assess your circumstances to help you choose the right solution for your facility.
Other helpful resources
Ready to take the next step?
Speak with one of our Flooring Engineers to find a solution that works best for you. We’re dedicated to meeting your return-to-service deadlines, without sacrificing safety or performance.
Speak with one of our Flooring Engineers to find a solution that works best for you. We’re dedicated to meeting your return-to-service deadlines, without sacrificing safety or performance.
