ABOUT TERRAZZO
It is a composite material, poured in place or precast, which is used for floor and wall treatments.
It consists of chips of marble, quartz, granite, glass, or other suitable material, poured with a cementitious binder (for chemical binding), polymeric (for physical binding), or a combination of both.
Metal strips often divide sections, or changes in color or material in a pattern.
Additional chips may be sprinkled atop the mix before it sets. After it is cured it is ground and polished smooth or otherwise finished to produce a uniformly textured surface.
“Terrazzo” is also often used to describe any pattern similar to the original terrazzo floors.
HISTORY
Although the history of terrazzo can be traced back to the ancient mosaics of Egypt, its more recent predecessors come from Italy. The form of terrazzo used today derives partly from the 18th century pavimento alla Veneziana (Venetian pavement) and the cheaper seminato.
Pavimento alla Veneziana had workers place marble fragments next to each other in a mortar base. Terrazzo is also related to the technique seminato for which workers tossed larger marble chips into the cement that was then ground and polished. Together, these methods create the generic form of terrazzo that involves pieces of stone that are bonded to a cement bed.
Terrazzo was first introduced in the United States in the late 1890s, but did not achieve popularity until the 1920s.[2] Until then it was hand polished with a long handled tool called a galera.[2] Due to its likelihood of cracking, terrazzo was used at a small scale in comparison to the large expanses we see today.
Two inventions resulted in its rise in popularity: divider strips and the electric grinding machine.
The invention of divider strips by L. Del Turco and Bros. in 1924 contained the cracking of terrazzo by allowing the material greater space to expand and shrink after installation. This invention made terrazzo a durable and reliable material in addition to allowing for further design work within the floor.[3]
Installers use the dividing strips as guides when they work with different colored terrazzo. The electric grinding machine and mechanization of the production process cut down on costs and time making terrazzo an affordable flooring option.
Art Deco and Moderne styles from the 1920s to 1940s favored terrazzo with the dividers allowing for straight or curved lines that increased the decorative potential.[4] The popularity of terrazzo led to an increase in installers in the 1920s.
The National Terrazzo and Mosaic Organization was formed in 1931 to further professionalize the practice of terrazzo installation.[5]
One of the most well known examples of terrazzo is the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Created in 1958, the walk honors celebrities in the form of a terrazzo star that displays their name.[
STRUCTURAL APPROACH
With its amazing compressive strength, concrete has a history in large-scale construction going back to ancient times – the Romans even used forms in a manner that resembles modern precast manufacturing. Today, researchers continue to study Roman concrete to determine how structures built thousands of years ago have performed so well while withstanding the test of time.
But the Romans never learned to reinforce concrete to compensate for its relatively low tensile strength. Today, there are four major ways to reinforce concrete: rebar, welded wire fabric, prestressing/post-tensioning and fiber. These technologies allow the impressive and versatile uses of concrete we associate with modernity.
FIBER REINFORCEMENT
Properly speaking, fiber reinforcement is not a new technology. The Romans sometimes used horse hair to make concrete less likely to crack. That’s the same basic idea underlying fiber reinforcement – fibrous material is used to increase concrete’s tensile strength.
Historically, fiber has been used in the precast concrete industry to enhance durability, but not as a true replacement for traditional reinforcement. But in recent years, researchers have focused heavily on developing design methods to allow for the use of fiber as primary structural reinforcement.
The establishment of ASTM C1765, “Standard Specification for Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete Culvert, Storm Drain, and Sewer Pipe,” in 2013, and the forthcoming ASTM C1818, “Specification for Rigid Synthetic Fiber Reinforced Concrete Culvert, Storm Drain and Sewer Pipe” has helped lay the groundwork for the use of various fiber types as a reinforcement option in the future.
Generally made from carbon or stainless steel, steel fibers work to prevent cracking in concrete products. Manufacturers have developed varying geometries for steel fibers, which anchor into the concrete in different ways depending on their shape.
While the most common application for steel fibers is floor slab construction, use has expanded in recent years to include other precast products such as tanks
STRUCTURAL & AESTHETICAL
Reinforced by determinated supports
Depending on the requirements, substrates can be lightened or not, insulating or not, and fire resistant.
Our support allows us to do away with epoxy, replacing it with a UHPC concrete recipe developed by our workshops.
This recipe recycles all our stone cutting dust in order to revalue it in a way that does not create waste.
Aesthetically performant
The 3d terrazzo is so named because it allows our workshops to create monolithic units that have no visible joints
This method facilitates possible repairs on the works and recovers the properties of the terrazzo chosen by the architects
The latter offers a wide range of colour choices and a unique possibility to produce 3D works that are compatible with the other surfaces of the room that are made of the same material.