Session 4: Distressed Flooring – It’s not Chic but It Is Shabby: Specification Strategies to Eliminate Concrete Moisture

In the macro critical path of project delivery, installation of final floor finishes is one of the last items to occur prior to substantial completion. However, due to changes in adhesive formulations driven by concerns over indoor environmental quality, most project 09 flooring specifications require moisture testing before flooring can be installed on concrete slabs. Should/when those moisture tests fail, the project faces burdensome time delays, unexpected costs, or both. This presentation will: (1) give significant discussion to the importance of “design intent” and how losing focus on what the owner expects can lead to potentially catastrophic, consequences (2) examine in depth several misconceptions embedded within the AEC associated with field moisture testing and project owner and design team liability associated with concrete moisture induced flooring failure; and (3) give clear recommendations as to how the specifying professional can eliminate concrete moisture as a project delivery issue while simultaneously protecting the project owner and design team from project delivery delays/cost overruns and future failed flooring.