Bolidt: Car Park Vredenburg P5 Utrecht

The Hoog Catharijne shopping centre in Utrecht is being completely modernised and expanded with an additional 35,000 m2 of retail space. Included in the renovation is the construction of the Vredenburg P5 car park: a five-level underground facility. The existing car park had two parking levels and already was one busiest car parks in the Netherlands. With the increase in Hoog Catharijne’s retail space, Vredenburg P5 will be used even more intensively. The parking surfaces must, therefore, be long-term resistant to high volumes of vehicle and foot traffic. That is why real estate company Klépierre chose the Boligrip® flooring systems. These extremely hard-wearing synthetic floor finishes from Bolidt have been specially developed for different parts of the Vredenburg P5 car park, making them user friendly and very attractive in terms of maintenance.

The Hoog Catharijne shopping centre will be entirely renewed: brighter and more spacious thanks to a transparent design with ample use of glass, high ceilings and outside views throughout. The new shopping centre will also be better connected to the city centre and Utrecht Central Station. The renovation is needed to ensure that the development of shopping facilities in the centre keeps pace with the increasing number of inhabitants. When finished, Hoog Catharijne will have 67,000 m2 of retail space; an expansion of 35,000 m2.

Large display cabinet

The now open Vredenburg P5 car park under Hoog Catharijne and Vredenburg square is ultra modern: the building features a LED system that guides motorists to vacant spaces. Another interesting feature is the large display cabinet containing remnants of Vredenburg Castle. The underground facility has a 1,300 car capacity.

Bolidt was involved at an early stage to advise on the most suitable type of flooring, which had to be long-term resistant to heavy vehicle and foot traffic. Klépierre selected the Boligrip® flooring systems on the grounds of durability. These extremely hard-wearing synthetic floor finishes from Bolidt offer triple functionality: they protect the concrete underneath, improve safety due to their slip resistance and are highly aesthetic.

The Boligrip® flooring systems were installed in both the entrance tunnel to Vredenburg P5 and on the car park floors. Bolidt supplied and installed a total of 50,000 m2 of floor finish in every space of the car park, including the entry and exit points and the technical rooms.

Tailored to intensity of use

In order to best meet the requirements in each part of a car park, Bolidt has developed a range of specific synthetic floor finishes. The finishes for Vredenburg P5 were chosen based on the intensity of use. The part of the car park that is subject to the highest levels of stress, the entrance tunnel and entrance area, was surfaced with Boligrip® WR. This robust and extremely durable floor finish is easy to clean, provides excellent grip and is guaranteed not to require any major maintenance work for 15 years. Because of its high water storage capacity, Boligrip® WR was also installed on the exterior ramp.

Bolidt installed a variety of versions of the Boligrip® flooring systems in the other parts of the car park. The finish chosen for the lowest level was a purpose developed damp-open version of the Boligrip® 50 system. This flooring system allows any ground water vapour from below to evaporate, thus preventing the synthetic floor from blistering. At the same time, its surface is impermeable to harmful liquids, such as petrol, diesel and windscreen washer fluid. This keeps the concrete in optimum condition. Finally, all the floors at the entry and exit points were finished with the aesthetic Bolidtop® FiftyFifty system, because this floor finish has an attractive appearance and is easy to keep clean.

Everything under one roof

When building a car park in the busy centre of a city, it is essential to have a strict schedule in place. In such a large-scale project, which involves many different parties, every supplier must work to the agreed time and standards. By keeping everything from the development and production to the application of the synthetic flooring systems under one roof, Bolidt is not dependent on third parties. This also proved a great advantage during the construction of Vredenburg P5. The use of its own specialised application teams not only enabled Bolidt to deliver the desired quality, but also to be flexible when needed and, as a result, to fully meet all the agreements that were made. The project was completed in excellent collaboration with contractor BAM, who was responsible for constructing Vredenburg P5. The working conditions were good and BAM gave Bolidt all the room it needed to do its job. In addition to the flooring systems for the Vredenburg P5 car park, Bolidt also provided the synthetic floor covering for the adjacent largest cycle parking facility in Europe.

Vredenburg P5 in numbers

Floor space Hoog Catharijne shopping centre: 67,000 m2
Parking surface: 50,000 m2
Parking spaces: 1,300
Levels: 5
Bolidt flooring systems: Boligrip® W-R, Boligrip® 50, Bolidtop® FiftyFifty

About Bolidt

Bolidt is the ultimate specialist in synthetic flooring for garage businesses. Bolidt understands that the automotive industry sets strict requirements for aspects such as assembly, maintenance, repairs and sales. Garage owners require a floor that prevents environmentally-harmful substances such as petrol, oil and diesel from permeating the substrate. Falling tools and high mechanical loads must not cause any problems either.

Bolidt has over 50 years' experience in the development, production, and application of synthetic flooring, and is a frequently sought-after partner for companies in the automotive industry worldwide. Garage businesses rely on Bolidt's innovative flooring because of its exceptional functional qualities such as high mechanical and chemical resistance, long service life, ease of maintenance and aesthetics.