| Some would say that MAPEI Corp., the leading manufacturer of flooring installation systems, and David Allen Co., a leading tile, stone and terrazzo contractor for over 80 years, helped create Southpoint Mall into an ¿unusual¿ mall. More precisely, RTKL Architects from Dallas, Texas designed the mall, located in Durham, North Carolina, to simulate a ¿Euro village¿ by creating different facades for each store front. French and Portuguese limestone and German greenstone were chosen for the interior floor extending 145,000 square feet. Above, black chimney tops and brick-faced store fronts enclose the mall, creating the feeling of a stroll through the narrow streets of 18th century England. Martin Howard, Vice President of David Allen Company, was responsible for making the mall¿s flooring installation a success within the short time allotted. ¿It was important we use installation products that would reduce our risk; the stone was in large pieces and we wanted assurance we¿d get complete coverage under each stone application.¿ In light of this, David Allen Co. chose MAPEI¿s Ultracontact¿, a full-contact mortar cement known for its complete coverage on large, modular tile. ¿Within a short time of using the Ultracontact, we realized it was the product we were looking for.¿ It was successfully used in all of the mall¿s stone installations, including Nordstrom¿s marble floor. Every interior floor application was done with MAPEI¿s installation systems which are guaranteed to perform for the life of the installation. Included in this particular project, the system involved MAPEI¿s PRP 315, waterproofing membrane; Planipatch¿, a fast-setting patching compound; Ultraplan¿, a self-leveling fast-setting underlayment; Ultracontact; and Ultracolor¿¿ sanded grout, the most color consistent grout available to the industry. The stone installation was a combination of honed and polished stones that were brought directly from the countries of origin. The Portuguese and French limestone was honed to resemble a cobblestone street. The accents around the honed stone were done with the German greenstone. This same stone was used on all the elevated platforms at each of the mall¿s intersections. The six-month long project began in September of 2001 and had its inaugural opening on March 7, 2002. Three weeks after opening, Southpoint welcomed its 1 millionth visitor through its doors. Today, the mall continues to host an overwhelming amount of visitors. MAPEI has been supplying systems for tile and stone installation, floor covering installation, and concrete restoration for 65 years. Its products are distributed in over 80 countries, and the company is a single source supplier of flooring installation systems for residential and major commercial projects. Visit their website at www.mapei.com for technical data information or call 1-800-42-MAPEI for the nearest location. David Allen Company is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina and has branches in South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. With over 80 years of experience in the contracting business, David Allen was founded by David G. Allen in 1920 and is now regarded as one of the most capable and respected marble, granite, tile, and terrazzo contractors in the US. For more information on David Allen Company visit www.davidallen.com. |
