FlexiDry Fast Drying Floor Screed at the Athletes Village, London 2012

Online, January 31, 2011 (Newswire.com) - FlexiDry fast drying floor screed is currently being installed in five of the residential plots at the Athletes Village in varying depths and differing dry times. The ability to use one product on a project which offers different dry times is unique to the market place and means there is no need for the design approval of different products; a simple site instruction can be sufficient.

The Athletes Village development is publicly owned with investment from the Olympic budget. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is overseeing the delivery of Athletes Village with Bovis Lend Lease appointed as the development and construction manager.

The Athletes Village will provide thousands of beds for athletes and officials during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. After the games, it will transform into a residential community featuring an Education Academy, community and healthcare facilities, and numerous parks and open spaces all located within a short train journey to central London. It also sits adjacent to the future facilities of the Olympic Park and a major new retail development, Westfield Stratford City, where FlexiDry fast drying floor screed has also been installed.

Work on the first phase of the redevelopment project, the construction of Athletes Village, including up to 2818 homes, with 1379 of these affordable, started in 2008 with handover to the Olympic Delivery Authority scheduled for early 2012.

The second phase which involves the refurbishment of Athletes Village and the development of a further 500,000 square metres of space, including a major new commercial sector, will get started after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and is expected to be complete by 2020.

The Athletes Village will be converted into its legacy condition with residents who have bought or rented homes moving in during 2013. Along with the best health and community facilities and some stunning parks and green space, people living nearby will benefit from a host of new opportunities - from higher standards of basic education to vocational training and a huge number of new jobs.

FlexiDry floor screed is currently adopted by most major contractors due to its reliable dry times (with a choice of 3, 7, 14 and 21 days) which do not totally depend on a controlled temperature of 20 deg C and 50% RH. This gives project planners confidence and reliability removing the need for expensive surface DPM's.

Unlike some other fast drying floor screeds, FlexiDry screeds do not require curing under polythene for seven days immediately after they have been installed. Not only does this reduce the total drying time of the floor by a week, it removes the associated H&S risks giving rise to trips and falls. This also means a second visit to site to clear the polythene from the area is not necessary saving costs and the environmental impact of the disposal of the polythene.

The benefits of using FlexiDry fast dry screed means the screed installation can be scheduled a later time in the building programme which allows heavy MEWP access etc. to be completed beforehand. This reduces the potential for damage caused by such heavy traffic on site and minimises the requirement for protecting the screed saving further costs and also reducing the risk of remedial action.