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  • Cement Admixture
  • SikaGrind®

Performance Enhancer for Portland Limestone Cement (PLC)

The motives to replace clinker with supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) are well known. However, granulated blast furnace slag, natural pozzolanes, qualified fly ash and further SCM have a limited availability; the total potential replacement of the global clinker production is less than 30%. Limestone is increasingly being used as a component in Portland-Limestone cements: Sika offers an additive to enhance grinding and performance.
The evaporation of cement additives dosed on hot clinker
  • Cement Admixture
  • SikaGrind®

Addressing the Unwanted Impacts of Grinding Aids

Grinding aids and strength enhancers are well known for their ability to increase cement mill productivity, and the mechanical strength of mortar and concrete. However, little information is available on the potential drawbacks of their usage. To close the gap, Sika Services addresses the possible impacts on health and safety and the environment, and on cement properties in production and use.
Workers applying wood floor adhesives
  • Flooring
  • Construction Adhesive
  • Adhesive
  • Article

The Science Behind Wood Floor Adhesives

The task of wood floor adhesives is to firmly bond the organic wood floor elements to the generally inorganic screed. The adhesive must hold the wood in place, connect it to the underlying screed and transfer stress originating from the natural expansion and contraction of the wood to the generally rigid screed. The undesired but natural movement of the wood can become visible in cupping, joint formation, or in extreme situations failure of the adhesive or screed.
  • Cement Admixture
  • SikaGrind®

Progress with Grinding Aids for Vertical Roller Mills

The effect of grinding aids on the comminution of cement is based on the dispersion of fine particles. It is a misunderstanding that grinding aids for vertical roller mills (VRMs) should stabilise the material bed between the rollers and the table by adhesive forces between the particles. Grinding aids reduce the polarity of the cleaved surface and the attraction forces between particles.
Screed evaluation method: Cross-hatch testing for surface strength
  • Flooring
  • Article

Screed Evaluation Methods

A prerequisite for a sustainable and beautiful wood floor is a strong and dry screed. Therefore this screed has to be carefully accessed. The first source of information is the architect, engineer, or main contractor who will have all of the information about the build-up and nature of the floor. The second source is the screed contractor who can provide the screed details and if appropriate, any subfloor heating protocols. If, as so often in renovation projects most of this information is not available, there are a few simple methods that can be used to evaluate the screed.
Steel metal fire protection coating black background
  • Protective Coating
  • Industrial Coating
  • Passive Fire Protection
  • Article

Fire Protective Coatings for Load-Bearing Structures

Passive fire protection is a vital component of any fire safety strategy for buildings. Built into the structure, it safeguards people’s lives and limit the financial impact of damage to buildings and their contents. Sika provides comprehensive solutions for fire resistant constructions such as tunnels, commercial and residential buildings and steel structures especially. Fire resistant coatings for load bearing structures enable to build secure buildings.
Architectural concrete facade with joint sealing
  • Facade
  • Joint Sealing
  • Building Envelope
  • Article

Considerations for Facade Joint Design

The facade is the face of buildings. In contemporary architecture, the facade is of special interest expressed by large dimensions, unconventional shapes and high material diversity. Especially with these unique shapes and connections, joint design is demanding and prone to mistakes. For integral joint specification, following some rough guidelines will result in a long-lasting and tight building envelope.
Man applying SikaScreed on floor
  • Flooring
  • Article

Potential Screed Issues and Solutions

If the screed is even, strong and dry enough, then only mechanical surface preparation such as grinding and cleaning is required, before wood floor bonding is possible. However there are many situations where the existing or even new screeds are not suitable, and additional treatment is necessary before wood flooring can be installed. Sika has developed complete balanced system solutions for all of the different possibilities that may be found in these situations.
Intumescent material for fire protection
  • Passive Fire Protection
  • Expansion Foam
  • Article

Intumescence and Intumescent Materials for Fire Protection Products

Many passive fire protection products are claimed to be intumescent – what does this mean and when can a product be classed as intumescent?
Industrial floor coating with Sikafloor resin cementitious flooring system in food facility
  • Flooring
  • Industrial Flooring
  • Factory
  • Article
  • Architect

Design Tips for Hygienic Floors in Food and Beverage Facilities

A functional and purpose-built floor is key to a safe and hygienic production environment in food and beverage facilities. Floors that are hygienic, non-slip, easy to clean, and durable provide a safe and attractive place to work. Choosing and installing the right floor are critical to every work environment. This article looks at getting it right the first time — achieving satisfactory and long-term flooring in a food processing environment.
Industrial floor coating with Sikafloor resin cementitious flooring system in food facility
  • Flooring
  • Industrial Flooring
  • Factory
  • Sikafloor®
  • Article

Slip Resistant Flooring in Food Industry for Employee Safety

Employee safety is one of the most important requirements for any workplace. Slips and falls are among the most common injuries at work. They account for about 86% of total injuries, and 90% of these happen because the floor is wet. These injuries are particularly prevalent in the food industry, where they occur four times more often than the average in other industries. Injuries can create significant impacts to all involved. The most significant is the suffering and possible disabling of the person injured. The next is impact on the company — financial, loss of key staff, loss of productivity, and liability.
Man spraying mortar on the wall
  • Concrete Repair
  • Engineered Repair
  • Mortar
  • Sika MonoTop®
  • Article
  • Applicator

Dry vs Wet Machine Applied Mortars for Concrete Repairs

Concrete repairs can be conducted with different systems and methods. In the European Standard EN 1504 Part 9, Principle 3 defines the application of repair mortars by machine as well as by hand. In this article you will learn about the advantages of machine application for both dry and wet spray processes. We also give an overview of how to select the right method and equipment for each type of application together with the corresponding Sika materials.
Application of Shotcrete with Sigunit accelerator
  • Concrete
  • Concrete Admixture
  • Shotcrete

Sprayed Concrete

Successful sprayed concrete requires the combination of many aspects of modern concrete technology especially concrete admixture chemistry, together with modern materials handling technology. The increasing demands for cost-effectiveness and the protection of health and the environment mean that sprayed concrete has been in continuous development. Thanks to more than one hundred years of experience, expert knowledge and a focus on performance and economy, Sika is able to provide the newest generation of sprayed concrete solutions.
Architectural textured concrete wall produced with Sika concrete admixtures at Limmat building in Zurich
  • Concrete
  • Concrete Admixture
  • Architect
  • Article

Architectural Concrete

The ability to appreciate concrete as an aesthetically versatile construction material has led Sika to many innovations in architectural concrete. The flexibility of concrete in design enables the designer to create structures not possible with other construction materials. Combining this flexibility with Sika’s over one hundred years of experience and expertise in concrete formulation and optimization allows structures of true architectural value to be realized.
Fireman extinguish the fire with water
  • Joint Sealing
  • Sealant
  • Passive Fire Protection
  • Article

International Standards and Classifications for Fire Testing

Sika’s passive fire protection solutions are designed to be able to seal all different types of building joints and penetrations, in order to help keep fire in defined compartments for a certain period of time, thereby allowing people to evacuate safely. Sika passive fire protection solutions comply with the most relevant national and international standards (including EN, UL, EAD (ETAG), ASTM, AS, Certifire), in order to confirm that they meet the highest fire resistance requirements and consequently can help save people’s lives.
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