When it comes to office flooring, Facebook definitely has options. Their choice of concrete as the medium for their newest office floors in New York City demonstrates how quickly fans, designers, building owners and architects popularized this latest decorative trend.
It’s certainly obvious why the social media giant would pick concrete floors. Easy maintenance. Durability. Non-slip natural appearance.
Concrete flooring is hip, cool and unique – no two floors are the same. Definitely something that aligns with this trendsetting company’s reputation for staying on the cutting-edge of technology. So why not the latest advances in concrete for their floors as well?
About the same time Facebook first launched in 2004, decorative concrete also emerged as an innovative construction technique.
While Mark Zuckerberg and his fellow entrepreneurs were connecting people socially across the globe, concrete polishing and its many variations also steadily rose to prominence.
Today, polished and decorative concrete is everywhere – floors, walls, countertops and more! In fact, many concrete contractors today opine that “if you can make it, you can make it better with concrete!”
Facebook hired Paul Huneck, owner of Hudson Concrete Polishing, to complete the new flooring for their NYC office space. Huneck, well-known in Manhattan for the artistry he brings to concrete, demonstrates his team’s skill with mixer and trowel in his floor creations.
This latest example of his expertise transforms plain concrete floors into visually-appealing and functional “artwork” that enhances the overall feel and design of the space.
About Facebook’s Design Choice: Concrete Floors
The team at Facebook desired a floor with a smooth, easy-to-maintain surface. The raw industrial look appealed to them so Huneck’s crew used exposed aggregate with a matte finish to enhance the natural aesthetic of the cement.
Ultimately, Facebook wanted polished concrete; however, they did not want the candy-coated look of shiny floors with highly-reflective epoxy.
Huneck’s solution to reduce shine is simple, although the technique took years to master. Using a process perfected over hundreds of projects throughout Manhattan, he filled scratches, cracks and blemishes with sealer. Then, he applied a clear epoxy designed to enhance the natural-honed surface without darkening the cement’s color.
The Concrete Polishing Process
Although the process of creating a matte finish on polished concrete might sound easy, the reality is that it took Huneck years of trial and error to create the solution.
Fortunately for Facebook, he and the Hudson Concrete Polishing team know the history of Manhattan buildings, and the very nature of cement and its accompanying peculiarities.
See the amazing floors Hudson Concrete created for Facebook’s New York office as well as other photos of additional projects below. Please let us know which floor is your favorite in the comments section below.
Creative contractors like Hudson working with forward-thinking users like Facebook are leading the way.
Photos Below Are Additional Hudson Concrete Polishing Projects
