Sometimes, when you think a concrete floor coating job is going to go according to plan, you get a curveball thrown at you. That’s when you need a great vendor/partner to back you up and help to help ensure a successful outcome and happy customer.
Here’s what happened when Premier Polymers took on a multi-faceted floor coating job for a pet resort and in came that curveball just before the December Holidays.
Strange Discoloration
In late 2019, Premier Polymers was contracted to apply the concrete floor coatings for Fetch Pet Resort, a pet boarding facility in southern New Jersey. The pet resort was moving into a 10,000 square-foot facility that previously housed a fitness center.
Ed Shaffer, owner of Premier Polymers, said he expected the job to go smoothly. “The evaluation of the floor was fairly simple,” said Shaffer. “WearCOAT® 100 pretty much was going to give them the right answer to all their questions.”
As a pet facility, it needed floors that would stand up to daily punishment of paws, excrement and strong cleaning chemicals. WearCOAT® 100 topcoat fit that need perfectly.
Prior to applying the topcoat, of course, Shaffer had to prepare the floor and determine which primer of CFI’s primers to choose. Some cracks had to be filled, and one section of the building sat below grade, so for that area he chose CFI’s WearCOAT® 1080 moisture mitigating primer.
It was during the topcoat application where the job hit Shaffer with a little surprise.
“It was leaving a weird, dark discoloration,” Shaffer said, adding that the customer brought it to his attention. “It was very noticeable. I’ve applied WearCOAT® 100 for years and I’d never seen this before.”
CFI’s technical coatings specialist Sean Fullerton looked at the job and consulted with CFI president Kevin Klotz. After going back to the lab to test the material they had shipped, it was determined that there were no problems or contaminants in the coating. (Complying with CFI’s ISO 9001 certification, the company retains samples of products supplied for every job.)
That was good news, but the larger issue was that the customer wasn’t satisfied with the results. The “resort” concept of the facility meant that the floors had to be finished in different, pleasing colors. One section, for example, was designed to resemble a beach house, so the floors were finished in colors to represent the ocean and sand.
Discoloration in the floor was not acceptable, no matter what the cause. The job also needed to be done quickly so the facility could open on time. Lacking time to uncover the problem with the floor, CFI provided Shaffer with WearCOAT® 2020 polyaspartic midcoat to recoat the floor.
Upon adding that new mid-coat layer, then applying WearCOAT® 100, all the discoloration issues disappeared. “Everything came out great, and the customer was very happy,” Shaffer said.
Holiday Delivery
The other issue with the Fetch Pet Resort job came as it was nearing the end. Shaffer and his crew were applying a coating system on an outdoor section, and it was just before Christmas. The coatings being used were WearCOAT® 2020 Quick Cure Polyaspartic and WearCOAT® 2035 Slow Cure Polyaspartic.
The cool temps were making the coatings thicker than expected. “It was getting so cold that I wasn’t getting the yield that I needed,” Shaffer said. “As a result, I discovered I was going to run out of material.”
Fullerton was ready to help. This time, he went to the CFI manufacturing facility to wait for an additional order of products. Knowing that Shaffer needed the material and the project had to get done, he delivered them the same day to the jobsite himself. As a result, Shaffer and his crew finished the job on Christmas eve. It was a relief for everyone.
That level of commitment meant a lot to Shaffer. “Sean spent most of his day waiting for the coating, then delivered it in his personal vehicle,” Shaffer recalled. “Along with fantastic products, it’s that kind of service that makes CFI my go-to for floor coatings.”
That, combined with CFI’s help on the discoloration issue, allowed Shaffer to complete the job and make sure his customer was satisfied. “At a moment’s notice, they jumped in and made sure I had everything I needed to finish the right and on time,” Shaffer said. “Even on Christmas Eve.”
Contact Us
At CFI, we are always happy to help contractors out of tough situations. If you need help with your coating job – even if it’s not our product – click to reach Customer Service or call +1-215-723-0919.
