Flexcrete was chosen for the concrete repairs and decorative anticarbonation protection of the main mill building at the European Oat Millers, the second largest oat miller in the UK and Europe.

The Bedford site houses a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant but the 1940’s thin walled concrete mill structure required significant refurbishment work as it was suffering from carbonation and chloride contamination. As the site is a busy manufacturing plant, it was important that there was only minimal disruption during the remedial works.

Cemprotec MCI® 2020, a surface applied migratory corrosion inhibitor, was used to provide protection from the risk of corrosion. All exposed steel reinforcement was treated with Steel Reinforcement Protector 841 before areas of spalled and defective concrete were reinstated with Monomix, a structural grade, waterproof repair mortar that can be applied up to 80mm in a single application, even in overhead situations.

Monolite, a low density repair mortar, was also used in areas where lightweight, cosmetic repairs were required. To prevent rapid drying out of the mortars, Curing Membrane WB was applied as a fine mist spray to the surface immediately after finishing.

The appearance of the external façade of the building needed to be enhanced and it was also necessary to provide overall anti-carbonation protection. Surface imperfections and voids were first filled with Monolevel FC fairing coat before overcoating with Monodex Smooth, a high build decorative coating which provides concrete substrates with outstanding protection against carbon dioxide diffusion.