Norcros Adhesives makes prestigious new wedding venue a reality

One of the newest products from Norcros Adhesives has helped in the creation of a superb new venue for weddings and other large gatherings near Hythe in Kent.

The Port Lympne Hotel, owned by the Aspinall Foundation, adjoins the Port Lympne reserve – a breeding sanctuary for rare and endangered animals. The four star hotel, set in 15 acres of landscaped gardens, has become a byword for luxury and a renowned venue for fine dining and entertainment.

Early in 2020 the owners needed to carry out a refurbishment of the Function Room in order to improve its suitability as a wedding venue. Although solid and in good condition, the original 265 sq m tiled floor required updating. Cerface, the wall and floor tiling contractor based in Gillingham, were the tiling contractor on this job.

Due to the fact that the existing floor was solid and also due to the very tight timescales involved, the decision was taken not to remove the existing tiled surface, but to tile over it.  

The first critical stage was to level the existing floor, which was carried out using Norcros Pro AF Low Prep Self Smoothing Levelling Compound. This new product is ammonia and latex-free, and is suitable for use on most substrates without the need for priming. 

It is specially formulated for use over old adhesive residues including bitumen, historically a problematic material to bond to.  There is no need to prime or remove firmly bonded residues. This greatly reduces the time usually required for preparation of a substrate to be levelled, and also makes it ideal for use in refurbishment jobs, such as on the Port Lympne project. The quick-drying formulation meant that the porcelain tiles used on this project could be laid in just three hours. 

In addition to Pro AF, the other Norcros products used on the job included Prime Bond, Key Bond and 4 Into 1 Wall & Floor Tile Grout.

The whole job was carried out in just over two weeks and the tiling contractor was very happy with the performance of the Norcros Pro AF in particular.

Chris Clark, Managing Director of Cerface said,

“Speed was very important on this job and we were very pleased with how the Norcros Pro AF Leveller performed. It went on very easily and rapidly gave us a very good surface to tile on to. We also had very good feedback from the owners of the hotel, so it was thanks to Norcros Adhesive products that we were able to do a good job that we can all be proud of.”