Coating delamination is a hazard to food plants and their managers. You work to keep your facilities clean and up to code. You scrub your floors with hot water, only for thermal shock and sudden temperature changes to cause your concrete floor coating to peel.
At CustomCrete we understand these challenges and our team of industrial flooring experts have a solution for your specific situation. If your space is subject to wide swings in temperature and requires flooring that can take heavy use and abuse, urethane concrete is the solution for you.
Urethane concrete, also known as urethane cement, polyurethane cement, polyurethane concrete, and cementitious urethane, is a heavy duty industrial flooring solution that resists temperature changes and heavy use. For this solution, polyurethane and cement is applied to a concrete surface to make it stronger, safer, easier to clean, and longer lasting. A surface coating is often applied with quartz aggregate. This adds slip resistance and wearability, eases cleaning, and customizes the look of your flooring.
Here's a quick breakdown of expected costs. It covers both per square foot and for a standard 5,000-square-foot area found in commercial kitchens, production lines, and breweries. Larger areas often mean lower costs per square foot. Smaller areas tend to raise the price per square foot, as the mobilization costs are spread over a smaller area.
As a disclaimer: Every job is different. This article assumes a standard project using a basic selection of urethane concrete products. It should provide a rough estimate for projects, not a guaranteed quote. There are many types of urethane concrete. It's impractical to list every option and price here. This is just a baseline tool to give you some idea of the costs so you can start to make an informed decision. With that in mind, let’s dive into the essentials...
Price Ranges for Different types of Urethane Concrete
Slurry: $7-$12 per square foot.
Total for 5,000 sq ft: $35,000 to $60,000.
Slurry application is a standard option with resistance to thermal shock. It is cost-effective when compared to other options. It sits as a thinner coat, between 1/8 and 3/16 inch on top of your concrete slab.
Trowel: $10-$15 per square foot.
Total for 5,000 sq ft: $50,000 to $75,000.
Trowel application is the strongest, super heavy-duty urethane coating available. Going on as a 1/4 to 3/8 inch coating on top of your concrete slab. It is applied with a trowel, typically without a topcoat.
Note: Additional strength and wearability can be added to the top coating with iron aggregate.
Rake trowel: $12-$18 per square foot.
Total for 5,000 sq ft: $60,000 to $90,000.
Rake trowel uses a toothed "rake" to create a uniform coating on top of your concrete between 3/16 and 1/4 inches. It is a more heavy-duty option to resist thermal shock and wear and tear. It is also the most common solution used, offering the most control over texture and customization.
Decorative Flake or Quartz: $15-$20 per square foot.
Total for 5,000 sq ft: $75,000 to $100,000.
Decorative flake or decorative quartz are applied over urethane cement to provide color, texture, and traction. There is a wide selection of options available to best suit your aesthetic and functional needs. Flake or quartz is topped with a seal coat to provide a clear gloss finish and hold the particulates in place.
Additional Costs Industrial Floor Coatings can Incur
While the above ranges give you a good starting figure, the final cost of your project will depend on several other factors as well:
Size of the Area
Larger projects typically reduce the cost per square foot, while smaller jobs will increase pricing per square foot. For larger areas, material costs decrease, and labor efficiency improves. Our crew can work continuously without frequent stops or a need for moving equipment. This leads to lower labor costs per square foot.
Conversely, smaller projects may need more precision and time. Many edges, obstacles, or tight spaces can increase the cost per square foot as our crew must work around these. Additionally, the fixed costs of mobilization, equipment setup, and cleanup are spread over a smaller area, which increases the cost per unit for smaller jobs.
Surface Preparation
Concrete needs to be profiled between CSP (concrete surface profile) between 3 and 5. For floors with certain surface imperfections and gunk, such as old epoxy, vinyl glue, and carpet glue remnants, a process called shot blasting or scarification will be employed to prepare the surface for the new treatment. The more prep we have to do, the more costs we associate.
Project Complexity
The more intricate the application process, the higher the potential cost. If we have to work around fixtures, around or under large machines, tight corners, or narrow thruways, this will tend to increase the pricing. A tank area with fixed equipment, twists, and obstacles will increase complexity. More labor for our team increases the costs. A simple warehouse with no obstacles will be less complicated, take less time, and cost less money.
Accessibility
For Urethane flooring CustomCrete focuses primarily on large food preparation spaces, factory floors, refrigerated areas, warehouses, and commercial flooring. This means mostly open spaces without a great deal of obstruction. Our equipment requires more labor to set up if your project is on a high floor or obstructed.
For example, if your space is located in a high-rise building with limited elevator access, our team will need to factor in additional time and labor to move equipment and materials to the site. Conversely, if there is a loading dock, freight elevator, or ramp available, this will bring prices down for your project. Easy access allows us to set up quickly, minimizing delays and reducing labor costs, which ultimately translates to a lower cost for your project.
Additionally, if the site has sufficient space for staging equipment and materials, this further streamlines the process and can lead to more savings.
Finding the best solution for your needs with CustomCrete
At CustomCrete, we’re here to help you find the best solution for your project. We want you to have all of the information you need going in. Whether you need basic protection or heavy-duty durability, we can guide you to the right choice for your situation, and these tools are here to help you even if you don’t go with us.
Ready for a quote?
If you’re ready to get a precise quote for your project, the next step is simple: Contact us for a quote. We’ll walk you through the options and make sure you get exactly what you need without any surprises.
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