Creating a safe, OSHA-approved manufacturing facility for your pharmaceutical company can sometimes be tricky. In addition to the requirements for equipment, raw materials and packaging standards, you must also meet the stringent qualifications for a production facility floor that keeps your final product pure.
In order to choose the pharmaceutical lab floor coating, there are a few important elements that you should consider.
1. Substrate condition and material
Before you even begin the process of putting together your manufacturing facility, you need to have a good idea of how stable and durable your underlying substrate is. Although there are a number of floor coverings that can “fill” and fix weaknesses in the base material (such as a polyurea floor coating or a pharmaceutical floor epoxy for labs ), it is vital to know whether your desired pharmaceutical lab floor coating is the right choice for your concrete or block substrate. Also, keep in mind whether you will cover both indoor and outdoor spaces.
2. Traffic in the floored area
What kinds of traffic will be in the treated areas? If you are needing floor coating for a loading area where there is a lot of industrial and forklift traffic, pharmaceutical floor epoxy for labs can be durable and long-lasting. If you are going to require pharmacists and chemists to wear booties to cover their shoes, you can install one coat of a floor epoxy paint for pharmaceutical labs that will last for decades.
3. Types of chemicals that will be in contact with your pharmaceutical floor coatings
In a chemical plant of any nature, one of the biggest concerns is meeting health and safety requirements. A simple pharmaceutical floor epoxy for labs may not give you the kind of durability that a stronger polyurea or urethane might. You should know the kinds of chemicals that will be used on a regular basis, so you can choose a flooring that will resist damage and provide the easiest clean-up. Chemical-resistance treatments (like the one found in Prime Cast 2111) are options you can also consider.
4. Heat requirements for your pharmaceutical floor covering
You should also consider how much heat and cold you will be exposing your pharmaceutical lab floor coating to. While you can consider a floor epoxy paint for pharmaceutical labs that won’t have much heat or cold disparity over the life of the floor, more diverse temperature requirements will need a more flexible material. A urethane broadcast system (like Prime Armor 3412) is designed to deal with intense heat and cold without cracking.
5. Safety requirements and regulation standards
Keep in mind the OSHA requirements and FDA regulations concerning the products that you are manufacturing. It is important to note that there is a “zero-dusting” requirement for pharmaceutical lab floor coatings. In addition to choosing a floor coating that will not create any dust, you should consider whether or not you will need floors that can have slip-resistant additives. Finally, make sure you understand the residual fumes that may come from a coating like a floor epoxy paint for pharmaceutical labs. It is possible these fumes may change the taste and chemical structure of your compounds.