A new flooring product inspired by a material used to create the Olympic village in Beijing will provide a more sustainable alternative to concrete.
Launched by Concreate, the sister company of V4 Woodflooring, it is the first product available on the British flooring market which uses magnesium oxide cement in a decorative engineered panel to create a sustainable, cost-effective and aesthetically pleasing alternative to a poured, polished concrete floor.
Magnesium oxide cement is thought to be the oldest form of concrete and was used by the Romans to create The Coliseum. It is derived from naturally-occurring magnesium carbonate, which is used as a substitute for calcium oxide, which has to be extracted from limestone to create concrete, which uses a huge amount of energy, resulting in a large carbon footprint.
Using magnesium oxide reduces the carbon emissions produced in the manufacturing process and the result is a durable, light-weight concrete, used to make the structural core of the Concreate floor panels. The result is beautiful, polished, engineered floor panels that can be fitted on any subfloor in any interior, from retail and commercial premises to residential living spaces, including kitchens and bathrooms.
This amazing lightweight surface cuts down on the amount of building materials need to support other more conventional poured or tiles concrete systems which are far thicker and heavier. This of course further reduces Concreate’s carbon footprint.
Concreate is perfect for low energy, underfloor heating systems, with its thermal mass storing the heat to reduce energy bills.
Traditional concrete is presently the world’s second most consumed substance – behind only water – and its manufacturing process accounts for 12 per cent of the world’s total carbon emissions. Increased use of magnesium oxide concrete could have a huge impact on this figure – more than 200 per cent of the Co2 emitted in the kilning process of magnesium oxide cement is reabsorbed into the product in less than a year; while traditional concrete absorbs just 33 per cent of its Co2 emissions in 100 years.
Chris Vincent, Managing Director of Concreate and V4 Woodflooring, said: “We are very proud of this new and innovative product and firmly believe it could transform not only people’s homes and businesses, but also provide a more sustainable solution to traditional concrete flooring, which is cleaner, quicker and easier to fit. Concreate is beautiful, versatile and comes in a range of colours and finishes perfect for any kind of home or business and can even be fitted over under-floor heating.”
For more information, please visit: http://www.concreateflooring.co.uk/