Production Facility in Czech Republic Selects Stonhard to Protect Floors and Walls in Aggressive Chemical Environment

FK System is located in the city of Brno in Czech Republic. They specialize in surface treatment, specifically, the cleaning, blasting, pickling and passivation of alloyed stainless steel. FK System was founded in 1992 by Frantisek Kalny prior to Czechoslovakia’s split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Shortly after the company was established, Kalny’s sons joined the family business and ran it successfully for the next 30 years. In 2019, they reached their goal of completing a new production facility in Brno.

To properly construct and run this new production facility, FK System required a flooring solution that would withstand aggressive acids. The customer expectation was simple, Stonhard would need to provide a functional, highly chemical-resistant solution to ensure proper protection of the floor and high walls. Based on the chemical specifications and observations, Stonhard identified the right system to fulfill all expectations, providing the facility with a long-term floor and wall solution.

Cleaning and pickling stainless steel exposes the floors and walls to aggressive, concentrated acids. Stonchem 800 Series products are highly cross-linked vinyl ester resin, providing a broad chemical resistance as well as excellent thermal stability to withstand thermal shock and chemical attack. Stonchem 800 products are best against exposures to concentrated organic acids, moderate to strong inorganic acids, alkalis, and most solvents.

Stonhard provided immersion samples for chemical resistance testing to validate its claims that Stonchem 800 products would withstand the chemical exposure at FK System. This testing is available for potential Stonchem customers upon request. After verifying the chemical resistance was correct, Stonchem 878, a 3.5mm vinyl ester lining was selected by the company with the support of Stonhard’s technical service experts. This system includes a mortar base, embedded engineering fabric, mortar coat, and a mineral composite topcoat, which provides resistance to thermal cycling, crack movement, permeation, and abrasion. This system was applied on both floors and walls to provide superior protection in FK System’s facility.

In the other parts of the factory, where less aggressive chemicals are used, Stonhard installed Stonclad UT on the floors and Stonclad UR on the walls. Both were finished with Stonseal UT7 topcoat. Both systems are high-impact resistant mortar systems which exhibit excellent abrasion, thermal shock, thermal cycling, and chemical resistant characteristics. Stonhard’s wide product range provides the best solutions for each environment. 

This Stonhard installation continues to provide excellent results in daily aggressive conditions with heavy mechanical, thermal, and chemical loads. FK System is fully satisfied with the solutions and implementation provided by Stonhard.

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