April 27, 2015
Verdict is In: PENETRON Makes Courthouse Floor Look New Again
The renovation of the Old Federal Courthouse in Jacksonville, Florida, was urgently needed to preserve a historical landmark. The floor preparation system from PENETRON Specialty Products (PSP) helped the project finish in February in time for spring.
Old Courthouse new again: After a comprehensive renovation of the floors, the 1933 building is now home to the state attorney general’s office.
The Old Federal Courthouse in Jacksonville is a landmark building that opened in 1933. It was replaced by the new Bryan Simpson United States Courthouse in 2008. The $31 million renovation of the former federal courthouse is the last major component of the $350 million Duval County Courthouse complex construction. The new county courthouse opened last year.
The old federal courthouse was renovated for the State Attorney’s Office. After numerous delays in the bidding process and construction, the renovation project was completed by Morganti in February 2015.
“When you renovate an old building with historic requirements that have to be met, there are always plenty of challenges, because things you did not know were there become apparent during the floor prep work,” said Pete Trainor, PENETRON Specialty Products Vice President of Sales.
There were plenty of challenges for the floor installer, David Allen Company, and the PENETRON team when they began preparation and treatment of the 44,000-sq ft (4,090 m2) below-grade basement floor. The existing floor substrate was in very poor condition and the floor elevations were erratic; these had to be adjusted and blended to allow for a flat finished floor surface. In addition, the old electrical conduct trenches were filled, mortar beds removed, and the existing terrazzo either removed or encapsulated. Hundreds of feet of footage with cracks were cleaned and filled, and the elevator thresholds were adjusted to meet ADA compliance (demolition of existing features was very limited due to historic guidelines).
The PSP floor treatment was done with the VB 225 moisture vapor reduction system, PRIMER STX 100 acrylic primer, and RENEW WS self-leveling overlayment wear surface – which saved additional preparation steps (and labor costs). All the interior work had to meet strict historical guidelines; final flooring was a clear sealer and Tremco Vulkem coating system.
“At the end, we exceeded the specified materials in all categories and saved Morganti and the City of Jacksonville dollars in the process,” adds Mr. Trainor.
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