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Why Sika PurCem is the Toughest Floor for Food Processing Units
Imagine walking into a food processing facility at 5:00 AM. The air is cold, the concrete beneath your feet is damp from the overnight sanitation cycle, and within hours, this floor will endure the weight of heavy pallet jacks, the splatter of acidic fruit juices, and the scorching blast of steam from pressure washers. Now imagine that floor cracking, peeling, or—worse—harboring bacteria in those cracks.
For plant managers, this isn’t just an inconvenience. It’s a nightmare of production downtime, failed health inspections, and costly repairs.
This is precisely why Sika PurCem is the toughest floor for food processing units. It’s not merely a coating; it’s a complete reimagining of what an industrial floor should be.
What Makes a Floor “Tough” in Food Processing?
Before diving into the science, let’s understand the battlefield. A food processing floor faces four relentless enemies:
- Thermal Shock: One moment, the floor is at -10°C in a freezer section; the next, it’s blasted with 80°C steam during cleaning. This rapid expansion and contraction destroys conventional flooring.
- Chemical Assault: Daily exposure to organic acids (lactic, citric, acetic), caustic cleaners (sodium hydroxide), sanitizers, and fats.
- Mechanical Abuse: Heavy forklifts, steel-wheeled trolleys, dropped tools, and constant foot traffic.
- Hygiene Requirements: The floor must be seamless, non-porous, and incapable of supporting bacterial growth.
Traditional epoxy floors often fail here. As one brewery operator shared on industry forums, their epoxy flooring was “peeling and flaking away after just two years” despite being marketed as chemical-resistant . Epoxy’s rigid nature simply cannot flex with temperature changes or absorb impact without cracking.
The PurCem Difference: Hybrid Technology
So what makes Sika PurCem different? The answer lies in its unique chemistry.
Sikafloor® PurCem® systems are polyurethane cement hybrids—a sophisticated combination of an elastic resinous binder that reacts with cementitious fillers . This isn’t just marketing terminology; it represents a fundamental engineering breakthrough.
Think of it this way:
- Epoxy is like glass: hard, rigid, but brittle.
- PurCem is more like advanced athletic gear: tough enough to resist impact yet flexible enough to move with the substrate.
This hybrid nature delivers the best of both worlds: the chemical resistance of polyurethane and the thermal stability and compressive strength of cement.
Thermal Shock Resistance: The Hidden Killer of Floors
If there’s one reason why Sika PurCem is the toughest floor for food processing units, it’s thermal shock resistance.
Thermal shock occurs when a floor experiences sudden, extreme temperature changes . In food facilities, this happens constantly:
- Steam cleaning sends temperatures soaring to 150°C in seconds.
- Walk-in freezer doors open, exposing the floor to sub-zero conditions.
- Hot spills from cooking vats meet cold concrete.
Sika PurCem systems are engineered specifically for this environment. They maintain physical integrity across a temperature range from -40°C up to 120°C (-40°F to 248°F) . At 9mm thickness, these floors are even steam-cleanable without damage .
The reason? PurCem has a coefficient of thermal expansion similar to concrete . When the concrete substrate expands or contracts with temperature changes, the PurCem floor moves with it—rather than cracking or delaminating like rigid epoxies.
A dairy processing facility in New Zealand chose Sika PurCem precisely for this reason. The project team needed a flooring system tolerant to winter conditions and “green” (freshly poured) concrete, capable of withstanding the rigorous cleaning protocols of milk powder production .
Chemical Resistance That Stands Up to Daily Abuse
Walk through any food processing plant, and you’ll see the chemical arsenal:
- Acids: from citrus juices, vinegar, wine, and dairy fermentation
- Caustics: sodium hydroxide-based cleaners used for sanitization
- Solvents: degreasers and equipment cleaners
- Fats and Oils: from meat processing and frying operations
Sika PurCem resists a remarkably wide range of these substances—including organic and inorganic acids, alkalis, amines, salts, and solvents .
What’s more, the system carries certifications that matter. Sika PurCem meets EN1186, EN 13130, and prCEN/TS 14234 standards for contact with foodstuffs . It’s also compliant with USDA flooring requirements and accepted by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency for use in food plants .
For facilities operating under HACCP-based Food Safety Programmes, this certification is non-negotiable.
Real-World Performance: From Crab Processing to Supermarkets
Theory is valuable, but proven performance matters more.
The Cromer Crab Company in the UK faced a deteriorating floor in their central food preparation area. The solution needed to be hard-wearing, easily cleaned, and—crucially—installed quickly to minimize operational downtime .
Specialist contractors specified Sikafloor-20 N PurCem. The results were transformative:
- Foot traffic permitted after just 12 hours of application
- A 9mm thickness provided strength to withstand the most arduous usage
- Quartz broadcast created slip resistance for staff working with sharp tools
- Different colors were used to mark food prep, packaging, and storage areas—enhancing hygiene practices
Similarly, Drake Supermarkets in Australia installed Sikafloor 22 PurCem in their central meat processing facility. Operations Manager Phil Shayler noted the floor was exposed to “full daily traffic” from heavy wheeled trolleys, impact from utensils, and chemical hot water wash-down—and still “looks as good as when it was installed” .
Even more telling? The Coles and Woolworths Groups (Australia’s largest supermarket chains) also use Sika PurCem in their food preparation areas nationwide .
Seamless Hygiene: No Place for Bacteria to Hide
In food processing, a floor is not just a walking surface—it’s a critical food safety barrier.
Sika PurCem flooring is seamless, meaning no grout lines, no joints, and no places for bacteria, mold, or fungi to hide. The system achieves the highest performance ratings according to ASTM G21 (resistance to fungi) and ASTM D3273 (resistance to mold growth) .
This seamless nature also means:
- Easy cleaning without residue trapped in cracks
- No standing water in damaged areas
- Simplified sanitation protocols
As Sika’s technical documentation notes, these flooring systems are “non-tainting and odorless during application” and meet the lowest VOC emission rate guidelines . For food facilities sensitive to contamination, this is crucial.
Installation Advantages: Working With, Not Against, Construction Schedules
Food processing facilities can’t afford weeks of downtime. Every day the floor is curing is a day production is halted.
Sika PurCem offers significant installation advantages:
The dairy processing facility in Tokoroa, New Zealand, specifically chose Sika PurCem because it was “tolerant to the winter site conditions” and caused “minimal disturbance to other activities” during installation .
Cost Performance: Lower Total Cost of Ownership
Let’s talk numbers.
When evaluating why Sika PurCem is the toughest floor for food processing units, the initial price per square foot tells only part of the story. A brewer who installed Sikafloor PurCem 22N reported their previous epoxy flooring failed within two years, requiring complete replacement .
By contrast, Sika PurCem offers:
- 20+ year service life in properly maintained facilities
- Repairable surface—damaged areas can be patched, and new PurCem bonds to existing PurCem
- Reduced downtime due to faster installation and fewer repairs
- Lower maintenance costs due to chemical resistance and durability
As one industry guide notes, “cutting corners on materials that aren’t built for thermal shock environments can result in significantly higher costs over time, disruptions to operations, and safety risks” .
Slip Resistance: Safety Without Compromise
Food processing floors must be safe for workers, even when wet or covered in food residue.
Sika PurCem systems offer customizable slip resistance. The Sikafloor® PurCem® HB-22 system, for example, achieves R13/V6 slip resistance ratings according to DIN 51130 —among the highest ratings available.
This slip resistance is achieved through careful aggregate broadcast during installation, creating a controlled texture that provides grip without becoming difficult to clean .
Environmental Considerations
For facilities pursuing LEED certification or simply wanting to reduce environmental impact, Sika PurCem delivers:
- Very low VOC emissions, tested according to AgBB guidelines
- Conformity with LEED v4 MRc 2 (Environmental Product Declarations) and MRc 4 (Material Ingredients)
- Water-based formulation that minimizes solvent use
- Long service life reduces material consumption over time
The Bottom Line
When your facility operates around the clock, when food safety is paramount, and when the cost of floor failure is measured not just in repair dollars but in lost production and damaged reputation—the choice becomes clear.
Sika PurCem combines:
- Thermal shock resistance that epoxies can’t match
- Chemical resistance certified for direct food contact
- Seamless hygiene that bacteria can’t penetrate
- Mechanical strength for the heaviest industrial traffic
- Installation flexibility that respects production schedules
- Proven performance across decades and continents
From dairy processing in New Zealand to crab preparation in the UK, from Australian supermarkets to Canadian food plants, Sika PurCem has earned its reputation as the toughest floor for food processing units.
Ready to Transform Your Food Processing Floor?
At Sika Chemicals Pakistan, we understand the unique challenges of food processing environments. Our team can help you select the right PurCem system for your specific operation—whether you need heavy-duty thermal shock resistance, specialized chemical protection, or customized slip resistance.
Contact us today at 03329015232 or email sikachemicals26@gmail.com to schedule a consultation. Let us show you why Sika PurCem is the investment that keeps your facility running safely, hygienically, and profitably for years to come.
