Kemtile’s Akeel Ahmed talks about the benefits of laying a new floor during the festive shutdown and how a funeral car manufacturer took full advantage with 4000m2 of high performance, durable epoxy flooring installed between Christmas and New Year – completely downtime free.
Christmas shutdowns are a crucial time for industrial manufacturers who are in operation all year round.
Scheduling downtime becomes increasingly difficult with today’s advanced manufacturing practices emphasising lean practices and quick response times.
Even when you plan in a maintenance project there is generally only a small window of opportunity and then the pressure is on to quickly complete it.
So larger projects like installing new floors must often be completed during available weekends, holidays or other “off times” during the production schedule.
At Kemtile we work closely with our clients to minimise disruption to that schedule and often the biggest chunk of downtime available is the traditional shutdown between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
When you have an open week or more availability, a significant amount of flooring work can be completed with careful planning and execution.
We have over four decades of experience of laying floors at Christmas and an experienced team taking orders right now for 2025.
Here are some things to consider:
The right team
It’s crucial for your chosen flooring contractor to work with you to get the results you need at Christmas. We offer a single source solution at Kemtile so everything from turnkey to product to install and aftercare all in one place. And a proven track record at this time of year. We know what can be achieved in a week or so and will give the right advice, bespoke to your situation.
An appreciation of the conditions
A Christmas shutdown is not without its unique challenges. And in many cases if the heat is on to complete a flooring job, it tends to be not on! So, working at one of the coldest times of the year needs to be carefully thought though.
We tend to adjust the flooring product and application techniques to cope with the low-temperature environment or use heaters to maintain a stable, warm temperature during and after installation.
It’s worth noting that colder temperatures can slow down the drying and curing process for adhesives and finishes, so we try to use fast-curing products and acclimatise (pre-condition) materials to the indoor temperature and humidity if needed for a few days before install.
All materials are properly protected against harsh weather conditions by being stored inside pre-install.
Top tips for success
We recommend planning as far in advance as you can.
Six to eight weeks out from Christmas is the ideal time to get in touch so we can make a site visit and see what can be achieved.
We have often taken a phased approach to larger jobs so tackling the most in need areas first when the factory is completely closed then working with the customer to schedule the rest of the works into January and beyond.
Booking us in so that get materials ordered as early as possible will help guarantee availability and allow for any potential delays from suppliers at a busy time.
New Year, New Floor for funeral car factory
A leading funeral car manufacturer based in Westhoughton brought us in towards the end of November with a brief to lay over 4000m2 of flooring which had to be agreed, specified and installed prior to the factory reopening on 3rd January.
The company – which manufactures hearses – needed a high performance, chemical-resistant, anti-slip flooring solution to withstand heavy duty wear and tear from vehicles – some of which can weigh up to 3-4 tonnes.
The timings meant there was a two-week window, including the Christmas break to get on with the job.
We prepared 4000m2 of flooring ahead of install, then put down 2000 litres of Stonproof CT5 crack bridge. This is an essential treatment to prevent dynamic movement of cracks.
We then laid 4000m2 of Stonclad GS TX2 in pewter and also installed TX8 to some ramps in black with yellow demarcations.
We managed access, agreed the approach and stuck to the length of time for preparation, execution and finishing of the flooring within the window and hit the deadline.
Unlike us, many contractors take the holiday time off, so to get good people at a key time of year means acting fast to secure them.
Call us on 01925 763045 to get immediate advice on tackling your flooring project this Christmas.
