The floor is one of the last things to be finished on an office refurbishment, and there is a good reason for that.
The floor is one of the last things to be finished on an office refurbishment, and there is a good reason for that. A freshly sanded and sealed floor is easily marked, so it needs to go in once the messy trades are done but before the space is furnished and handed over. Get that timing right, along with the coordination around it, and you protect both the finish and the programme. Get it wrong, and you risk a damaged floor or a delayed handover.
Here is where floor restoration sits in a typical refurbishment and how we work alongside everyone else on site to keep it running smoothly.
Floor work has a sweet spot in any refurbishment programme, and it comes near the end. The floor should go in after the trades that create mess, moisture and heavy traffic have finished, but before the furniture, IT, and soft fit-out arrive. Sand and finish too early, and every trade that follows will walk over, drop tools on and scuff your new floor. Leave it too late, and it starts to hold up handover.
A wood floor is sensitive to its environment, so a few things need to be in place before we sand or finish anything. The building should be weathertight, the wet trades such as plastering and screeding should be finished and fully dried out, and the heating or air conditioning should ideally be running so the humidity has settled. If we are installing new timber rather than restoring an existing floor, it also needs time to acclimatise to the room before it is laid. Skipping these steps is the most common cause of problems down the line, from cupping and gapping to a finish that never quite cures.
We are used to slotting into a main contractor's programme rather than working in isolation. In practice that means attending pre-start meetings, providing method statements and risk assessments for the works and staying in close contact as the dates shift, which on a live refurbishment they always do.
Coordination with the other trades matters just as much. Sanding creates dust, and finishing needs a clean, undisturbed area to cure, so we agree with the site team when we get the space to ourselves. Equally, we plan our work so we are not holding anyone else up. It is give and take, and after nearly twenty years of commercial work we are good at it. This kind of coordination is a standard part of our office floor work, whether it is a single suite or a full multi-floor refit.
Finishing the floor is not quite the end of our involvement. A newly sealed floor needs a little time for the finish to reach full hardness, and it should be protected until the building is handed over. We use breathable protection rather than plastic sheeting, which can trap moisture and mark the finish, and we advise the site team on how to keep it covered while the last of the fit-out goes in. It is a small step that saves a lot of touch-up work at the end.
Where part of the office stays in use, we phase the work floor by floor or wing by wing so the rest of the space keeps running.
Because we work out of hours as standard, we can fit around a live programme without eating into anyone's working day.
We use breathable protection rather than plastic sheeting, which can trap moisture and mark the new finish.
If flooring is part of an upcoming fit-out or refurbishment, the earlier we are involved, the more smoothly it tends to go. We are happy to advise on sequencing at the planning stage and to work directly with your principal contractor. We offer free, no-obligation surveys across London and the Southeast. Call 0800 917 7770 or request a quote.
