Tremco illbruck movement joint solutions

Tremco illbruck is highlighting the importance of movement joints to fill building gaps to ensure safety in the structure, withstand traffic and provide long term durability.

Tremco illbruck specification manager Simon Foy says joints that fill building gaps are sophisticated and extremely important.

Complex modern buildings are rarely a single structure.

The design team has to consider how gaps will grow or shrink.

In an airport for example, a link bridge can be unused one minute and then occupied by 2-300 people.

This is inevitably going to cause deflection in any material.

Other issues include aesthetics, fire protection and the possible need for waterproofing.

Tremco illbruck's approach is to offer the best solution through an honest approach which doesn't always mean the most expensive.

Take the case of a movement joint that goes across the floor until some partitions are added, offices or a toilet block perhaps.

To follow the line the architect may cut the movement joint right on the corner.

If you move the partition to either side of the joint, you can hide the joint inside the partition and still get it running straight across the floor.

The honest approach gives Tremco illbruck credibility.

This means that Tremco illbruck's staff are as at home in the designer's office as they are on the contractor's site.

The movement joint supplier needs a lot of information to get things right, as there are usually several options...

- Rubber insert joints for external areas where waterproofing is important.

- Colour matching to make the joint as inconspicuous or as prominent as desired.

- Movement joints come in a variety of sizes.

- Big heavy duty joints.

- Numerous cover plates available to accommodate a range of traffic conditions and aesthetic requirements.

Some clients will go for the cheapest option but most opt for a durable, high quality product.

You get what you pay for.

Properly engineered metal movement joints will last at least the life of the floor.

In certain installations, movement joints may need to have waterproofing properties, such as Tremco illbruck's Hydrospan, or the top of the range Superspan mechanical movement joint.

Typical applications include wet areas of factories, hospitals, chemical plants and even car park external areas.

If water is a really serious issue, a membrane can be laid to prevent water penetration.

At Heathrow Airport there is even a fire blanket under the waterproof membrane.

Most clients start off wanting a standard product but then find there is an awkward obstruction, like a column or something similar in the way meaning a more complex solution will be required.

The idea with movement joints is to tailor the product to meet the customer's needs rather than continually pushing a new product.

For example, Compriband has been around many years.

It has a fleece vapour barrier, a sort of woolly bandage that helps bond the adhesive and the concrete slab.

Another special installation type is where the movement joint will be located above a tunnel or underground system, which often happens in London, where acoustics can be a major issue.

The savings overall from buying cheap, are usually quite small but the costs can be horrific if the system fails a few years down the line.

If you can afford the best system you are likely to get the most life out of that system.

These days health and safety can be a nightmare so few building operators want to take the risk of having unfilled gaps in their buildings.

The sole purpose of the building joint is to bridge the two structures safely.

It provides linkage so that people can walk or push trolleys over, safely.

A damaged movement joint exposes the construction gap beneath, damages the aluminium, the floor finish and, if not remedied, this damage can snow ball.

The whole floor and even the structure can be affected.

Movement joints do not hold the building together they simply make it safe to travel across the gap.

Some might say they seem to be of very little importance but without a proper movement joint the functioning of the whole building can be called into question.

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