Industrial structure aesthetically upgraded

Located in the middle of a residential area in Assendelft in North Holland, the façade of the district heating plant of local energy utility HVC Group has now been not just repaired but also aesthetically upgraded. Thanks to MC-Color Proof vision and MC-Color Flair pure, the once barren façade has been transformed into a minor work of art.
In Assendelft, a town between Alkmaar and Haarlem in the middle of the Saendelft Ost residential area, there is a small natural gas-fired power station belonging to energy utility HVC Group. While the adjoining administration building had already been visually integrated into the surrounding area with an appealing façade design, this district heating plant itself was a dreary concrete block that had also been defaced by unsightly urban graffiti. In consultation with the municipal administration, the operator decided to repair the building exterior and in so doing to dramatically improve it visually. The contractor VTG Beton from Velsen Noord started on the repair and refurb work in October 2018. The company, which specialises in concrete rehabilitation, had already successfully implemented various projects with MC products – hence this further collaboration in Assendelft.

 

Façade repaired with Nafufill KM 220

After expert substrate preparation, the first step was to reprofile and level the entire outer façade of the building using Nafufill KM 220 fibre-reinforced fine cement mortar in a wet spraying process. This created the perfect surface for the further sealing and coating work required. Nafufill KM 220 is resistant to temperature, frost and de-icing salts, offers high resistance to carbonation and impresses with its excellent application properties, with possible layer thicknesses ranging from 2 to 30 mm.

 

Colourful coating

In the next step, the façade was treated with MC-Color Flair pure, the preventive concrete protection coating for outdoor surfaces exposed to the elements. Offering outstanding surface protection, the pigmented coating was applied in various shades of green to provide an appealing background for the artistic animal and plant motifs subsequently painted onto the façade.

The ready-to-use, self-crosslinking copolymer dispersion is colour-stable as it is likewise UV and weather resistant. Similarly, it is open to water vapour diffusion and carbonation-retarding as well as being resistant to temperature, frost and de-icing salts.

 

Durable protection

In the final phase, the surfaces were provided with high-quality surface protection in the form of MC-Color Proof vision. The two-component, transparent high-performance coating keeps the colour design fresher for longer and offers permanent protection against graffiti, dirt and grime. Roller-applied, it too is UV-stable, weather-resistant and carbonation-retarding while also being open to water vapour diffusion. Since the refurb there is nothing left to remind onlookers of the former grey concrete block. To the delight of the client, the community and, of course, local residents, a colourful, oversized work of art has been created that provides for a significant upgrading of the living environment.