The background
Lidl wanted to build a 624,000 sq. ft regional distribution centre at the Eurocentral logistics park located east of Glasgow in Scotland. The new facility will replace the retailer’s current Livingston warehouse.
The facility was designed to meet the demands of a BREEAM target of ‘very good’, which means it will have a high level of energy and water efficiency, and a lower impact on the environment. The development is subject to planning permission.
The challenge
Sourcing a local concrete producer that could meet the criteria for the concrete specified – maximum water/cement ratios and maximum air contents, all while maintaining consistency in workability throughout several sequential large pours. Expecting to be using in excess of 300m3 per day, over a period of 3 months. The criticality of continuous mix consistency using all the same raw materials was key. This project, being the largest distribution centre constructed for Lidl in Scotland, it’s important that the facility’s concrete floor can withstand the intended traffic for years to come.
Our solution
Tarmac being the locally preferred concrete supplier carefully analysed what raw material packages would provide the all-round best solution.
The best solution was a concrete mix combined with MasterFinish SLB 101, a water reducing admixture for the production of industrial floor slabs with power floated concrete finishes. This provided Stanford’s with a quality Ready-Mixed Concrete delivered from a local concrete plant, 5 miles from site.
MasterFinish SLB 101 provided a significant water reduction from the mix design, whilst still allowing the concrete to be very workable. Within MasterFinish SLB 101‘s chemical make-up there are particular compounds which ensure the concrete does not entrain too much air. This ensured that the concrete delivered to site was within the limits required to achieve the intended power float finish.
