Asking the Right Questions Before Quoting
As a professional installer involved in industrial flooring projects in Malaysia, whenever a client sends us a Bill of Quantities (BQ) requesting a price for PU flooring, our first reaction is usually not to quote a price immediately.
At Epoxy Ninja, we believe that the right questions must come before the price.
Before preparing any quotation, we normally try to understand the floor design, the intended usage, and the expectations of the project. Pricing is always determined by variables. Without understanding those variables first, any number provided is meaningless.
A Recent Retrofit Kitchen Inquiry
Recently, a client approached us with an inquiry for PU flooring in a commercial kitchen.
Naturally, when we hear “kitchen”, several things immediately come to mind: waterproofing, floor slope, drainage layout, and stainless steel floor traps. These elements are closely related to how a kitchen floor should be designed.
So our first step was simple fact-finding. We asked if there were drawings showing the drainage channels and floor trap layout.
During the discussion, we learned that this was actually a retrofit project.
(What retrofit means can easily be found online, so we will not elaborate too much here.)
However, what caught my attention was the foundation design of the floor system.
The Polyfoam Foundation Detail
The design proposed a polyfoam foundation with a new concrete topping slab above it.
Polyfoam foundations are actually very common in retrofit projects across commercial and industrial flooring projects in Malaysia. They help reduce structural load, lower construction costs while allowing space for new drainage pipes and sometimes even provide insulation benefits.
However, the support condition created by polyfoam blocks can influence how the new concrete topping slab behaves after it cures, particularly when the slab thickness is relatively thin.
When I reviewed the drawing, I felt the design might be overly optimistic.
The new concrete slab proposed above the polyfoam was only about 100 mm thick.
Based on past experience, this raises an important concern.
Many years ago, we encountered a very similar retrofit project where polyfoam was also used as the foundation. After the 100mm new concrete was cast and cured, the surface condition looked like this:
The concrete surface developed widespread spider cracks.
What Flooring Contractors Usually Anticipate
This type of cracking is not uncommon when a concrete topping slab is cast above polyfoam blocks.
Polyfoam has very low stiffness compared to concrete. When a concrete slab is placed on top of it, the slab is effectively resting on a relatively soft and discontinuous support system. Each polyfoam block is placed next to another, and joints naturally exist between them.
Because of this stiffness mismatch, the concrete slab may experience minor movement during curing and drying. As the concrete shrinks, stresses are distributed randomly across the surface rather than concentrated along a single line.
The result is often a spider-web pattern of cracks across the slab surface.
From a flooring contractor’s perspective, once we know that part of the foundation consists of polyfoam blocks, we can already anticipate the likely condition of the concrete surface that will eventually be handed over to us.
Based on past experience, the new topping slab may develop numerous shrinkage cracks after curing. While many of these cracks are hairline, dealing with them is not always straightforward.
Crack repair itself can already consume a significant amount of time and manpower. Surface preparation also becomes far more demanding. Thorough inspection and quality control are required before any PU flooring system can be safely installed.
More importantly, if the underlying concrete surface contains uncontrolled cracks or defects, the risk of flooring failure increases. For contractors involved in industrial flooring Malaysia, understanding the substrate condition is critical.
Why the Substrate Still Matters
Now imagine installing a PU flooring system directly on top of such a surface – simply because the BQ says “PU flooring”.
In reality, the situation may not be that straightforward.
If the cracks are not properly controlled or treated, the PU flooring system may not be able to be installed immediately. Additional preparation or remediation may be required before the flooring system can be applied safely.
This is why flooring contractors should never rely solely on the BQ description. Understanding the foundation design beneath the floor is just as important as the flooring system itself.
