Amica Retirement and Care Home Flooring

Amica was tired of the maintenance frequency associated with the consistent failure and degradation of their existing flooring within the kitchens, service areas, hallways and surrounding spaces. Applied Industrial Flooring was contacted for a flooring assessment at the Amica Care Homes across Southern Ontario in their hunt for a durable, industrial flooring solution to install in their kitchens and servicing areas. 

Retirement care homes have traditionally opted for sheet vinyl floors, as they are a low-cost flooring option. Sheets are welded together in an attempt to seal the seams and replicate a more “seamless” flooring option. This is not a reliable infrastructure, especially around stainless steel drains and vents, where adhesion to the metals can create issues. Welded seams often let go around drainage areas and become very difficult to repair. Furthermore, liquids can get underneath the vinyl sheet flooring and can’t be rinsed easily, leading to microbe growth, bacteria and odours. 

Retirement and care home facilities operate 24/7, 365 days per year, and interruptions also cannot be afforded when servicing or replacing floors. Kitchen failures or extended shutdowns for repair or installations destroy the capacity to provide service to those depending on these facilities. 

Polyurethane floors are a fantastic option for facilities like this, and we selected a Polyurethane (UCrete) Concrete system for Amica because their adhesive properties become one with the underlying concrete creating a monolithic substrate, greatly reducing the ability for de-lamination or liquids trapped between floor and underlying concrete. This flooring system is optimal for cart wash and wash down areas, commercial kitchens, health and medical service areas, bathrooms, garbage disposal areas and other highly-aggressive environments with frequent exposure to skidding, dragging, dropping, high-pressure hoses, and strong chemical usage.