FloorSciences™
a National Technical Flooring Consulting Agency
Focused on Preventing and Solving Problems with
Commercial & Industrial Floors and Concrete Slabs
Utilizing Science, Advanced Technologies, & Expertise
Providing Professional Services Nationwide
With extensive experience in QA/QC and forensic failure analysis, 𝗙𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀™ is able to partner with our clients to prevent and solve complex issues related to floor coverings and coatings, and concrete slabs utilizing science, technology, and expertise. We take pride in maintaining a national reputation for a high level of professionalism and objectivity to provide reliable data and solutions.
𝗙𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀™ works on new construction, renovation, and forensic failure projects nationwide during the pre-installation, installation, and post-installation phases of projects. We are nationally recognized as a leading concrete floor testing and forensic inspections agency. Our reports are thorough with accurate data and unbiased, informed, scientific findings.
𝗙𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀™ takes floor consulting to the next level with advanced technological capabilities that includes a wide range of analytical testing and evaluation services only available from a very few flooring inspection companies in the nation.
🔸 High-tech ultrasonic gauge utilized to non-destructively and accurately measure the dry film thickness (DFT) of coatings on concrete, including moisture mitigation coatings.
🔸 High-tech electronic precision metrology instruments utilized in the measurements of flooring products and gaps.
🔸 High-tech electronically controlled hydraulic pull tester utilized to determine the tensile bond strength of underlayments and coatings to concrete slabs and other cementitious substrates.
🔸 High-tech ground penetrating radar (GPR) concrete subsurface scanning utilized to locate post-tensioning cables, rebar, conduit, pipes, and other embeddings in a concrete slab prior to drilling or coring.
🔸 High-tech GPR concrete subsurface scanning utilized to measure slab thickness. Accurate internal relative humidity (RH) concrete moisture testing (ASTM F2170) requires accurate concrete slab thickness measurements at each test location.
The ASTM F2170 standard mandates that the bottom of the test holes and sleeves be within a tight tolerance of a specific percentage depth (20 or 40%) of the concrete slab thickness. Without accurate concrete thickness measurements, the in situ RH concrete testing could produce inaccurate data that can result in flooring failures and compromise flooring product warranties.
Most testing agencies use an assumed slab thickness and perform all tests on that project based on that assumption when there can be significant variations of thickness within a concrete slab resulting in erroneous data.
Accuracy matters is why FloorSciences™ measures the slab thickness at each test location to accurately tests based on the specified percentage depth of the actual slab thickness.
Professional Services include:
🔸 Ambient relative humidity (RH), temperature, & CO2 remote monitoring
🔸 Cementitious underlayments & toppings:
🔹 Delamination surveys
🔹 Quality assurance & quality control (QA/QC) testing & evaluation
🔹 Tensile bond strength to concrete surfaces testing
🔸 Claims & litigation support:
🔹 Consulting
🔹 Expert witness
🔹 Reports: well documented & detailed
🔸 Concrete coatings:
🔹 Dry film thickness (DFT) nondestructive ultrasonic measurements
🔹 Quality assurance & quality control (QA/QC) testing & evaluations
🔹 Tensile bond strength to cementitious substrates testing
🔹 Testing & analysis
🔸 Concrete cores:
🔹 Drilling & extractions
🔹 Lab testing
🔹 Water vapor retarder inspections under slabs
🔸 Concrete slab evaluations:
🔹 Delamination surveys
🔹 Ground penetrating radar (GPR) subsurface scanning (2D+3D)
🔹 Moisture testing
🔹 Moisture mitigation system testing & analysis
🔹 Surface pH testing
🔹 Sweating slab evaluations
🔹 Thickness measurements utilizing nondestructive GPR
🔸 Construction safety consulting
🔸 Educational seminars
🔸 Flooring systems & components:
🔹 Construction materials testing (CMT) of flooring products
🔹 Inspections & evaluations
🔹 Forensic floor failure investigation & analysis
🔹 Measurements of products & gaps utilizing high-tech electronic precision metrology instruments
🔹 Performance evaluations
🔹 Punch list inspections
🔹 Quality assurance & quality control (QA/QC) testing & evaluations
🔹 Site condition surveys as relates to flooring systems
🔹 Sub-floor evaluation, including cementitious underlayments
🔸 Architectural/construction photography
Quality Assurance & Quality Control (QA/QC)
The success of a flooring system (floor coverings, floor coatings, underlayments, moisture mitigation systems, adhesives, etc.) installation relies on adherence to manufacturers’ guidelines, relevant industry standards, architectural specifications, and other construction documents. Experts with FloorSciences™ can conduct quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) construction material testing (CMT) and observations of the flooring system components based on the relevant standards and project documents.
Concrete Sub-surface Scanning
FloorSciences™ is one of the very few flooring consultancy agencies in the nation with in-house capability to perform ground penetrating radar (GPR) subsurface concrete scanning to locate post-tensioning (PT) cables, reinforcement, conduit, and other embeddings, allowing us to perform internal concrete relative humidity (RH) moisture testing (ASTM F2170) and core drilling in these slabs.
Don’t allow a flooring inspection or testing firm risk damaging concrete embeddings because they do not have the proper advanced instrumentation to locate what’s embedded or directly under your concrete slab prior to drilling into or coring your concrete slab.
Concrete Internal Relative Humidity (RH) Moisture Testing (ASTM F2170)
Being an industry leader at the forefront of utilizing advanced technologies is not new for FloorSciences. Shortly after the ASTM F2170 test method for determining internal relative humidity of the air void space in concrete slabs using in situ probes became a new standard in the U.S., we recognized it’s efficacy and was an early adopter in 2003.
At that time, very few companies had the high-tech instrumentation to conduct concrete moisture testing using this method, and it was primarily only European flooring manufacturers that included it in their U.S. specifications. Now almost all flooring and coatings manufacturers recognize this test method in their specifications.
Although this test only determines the internal relative humidity of the air voids or capillaries of the concrete slab, it is generalized as a concrete moisture test.
Dry Film Thickness (DFT) of Concrete Coatings (ASTM D6132)
The thickness of a high-performance or protective coating can be crucial in the properties needed to fulfill their intended function, such as adhesion, chemical resistance, durability, flexibility, hardness, water vapor permeability, and wearability. This is especially true for concrete moisture mitigation systems.
As a leader in the flooring inspection and consultancy industry, we have the capability to determine the dry film thickness (DFT) of concrete coatings utilizing high-tech non-destructive ultrasonic instrumentation. These concrete coatings include those that become the finished floor surface and those used as part of a flooring system such as with concrete moisture mitigation systems.
Tensile Strength Bond of Concrete Coatings & Toppings (ASTM C1583 & D7234)
Sufficient tensile bond strength of concrete coatings, underlayments, toppings, and the tensile strength of the concrete slab itself can play a crucial role in the success of a flooring system.
Utilizing high-tech electronic hydraulic instrumentation, we are able to determine the greatest perpendicular force or strength (in PSI) of the weakest plane within the flooring system. This includes concrete coatings, cementitious underlayments and toppings, or within the concrete slab itself.
Market Sectors
The largest market sectors for FloorSciences™ are healthcare and education, but we also have worked with Fortune 500 companies along with other building owners, developers, attorneys, architects, engineers, designers, general contractors, floor covering and coating contractors, manufacturers, specification writers, management companies, tenants, and distributors.
We work in a wide-range of Market Sectors, including:
🔹 BioSciences / Life Sciences
🔹 Broadcast Media
🔹 Commercial / Corporate / Office
🔹 Education
🔹 Government
🔹 Healthcare
🔹 Hospitality
🔹 Industrial
🔹 Institutional
🔹 Medical Manufacturing
🔹 Multi-Family Housing
🔹 Pharmaceutical
🔹 Retail
🔹 Senior Living
🔹 Sports & Recreation
We have worked on projects with some of the nation’s largest and most well respected General Contractors and Construction Management Firms, including:
🔹 Ajax Building Co
🔹 Batson-Cook Co
🔹 BE&K Building Group
🔹 Brasfield & Gorrie
🔹 Choate Construction
🔹 Conlan Co
🔹 Cousins Properties
🔹 DPR Construction
🔹 Gilbane Building Co
🔹 HITT Contracting
🔹 Hoar Construction
🔹 Holder Construction
🔹 MEJA Construction
🔹 New South Construction
🔹 NV5 Global
🔹 Skanska USA Building
🔹 Turner Construction
🔹 Warren Hanks Construction
🔹 White-Spunner Construction
🔹 Winter Construction
Commercial Flooring Categories we have experience in analyzing includes:
🔹 Bamboo
🔹 Carpet: broadloom & tile
🔹 Cementitious toppings & underlayments
🔹 Cork
🔹 Hardwood: engineered & solid
🔹 Laminate
🔹 Linoleum: sheet & tile
🔹 Luxury vinyl plank (LVP)
🔹 Luxury vinyl tile (LVT)
🔹 Resins: acrylic, epoxy, polyurethane
🔹 Rubber: sheet & tile
🔹 Terrazzo
🔹 Vinyl composition tile (VCT)
🔹 Vinyl (PVC): sheet & tile
FloorSciences’ Principal Technical Consultant, Walter Bell, is active in the industry and a member of these great Industry Organizations:
🔹 American Concrete Institute (ACI) Georgia Chapter
🔹 American Society for Health Care Engineering (ASHE) of the American Hospital Assn. (AHA)
🔹 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP) – member of multiple technical committees for coatings
🔹 Association of Medial Facility Professionals (AMFP)
🔹 ASTM International – member of multiple technical committees for flooring, coatings, concrete, & forensics
🔹 Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM)
🔹 Society of American Military Engineers (SAME) – Natl & Atlanta Post
🔹 Structural Engineers Association (SEA) of Georgia
🔹 World Floor Covering Association (WFCA)
Connect on LinkedIn with Walter Bell, Forensic+QA/QC Technical Consultant at FloorSciences™
🔸 Principal: linkedin.com/in/walterbell-sciences
🔸 Company: linkedin.com/company/floorsciences
