A 3PL DC floor in JAFZA, Dubai Industrial City or DIP isn't a paint job — it's an asset on the balance sheet. Here's how to specify one that survives a 10-year operating lease.
The four loads that destroy under-spec floors
- Hard-wheel forklifts — modern reach trucks have polyurethane wheels at 80–95 Shore A; they'll crater a 1 mm coating in months.
- Pallet drop impact — a fully-loaded Euro pallet at 1 m drop = 4–5 kJ. Random drops happen daily.
- Racking-leg point load — high-bay racks transmit 2–4 tonnes through a 100×100 base plate.
- Battery-room acid spillage — sulphuric attacks epoxy quickly. Specify acid-resist primer locally.
The right spec by zone
| Zone | Spec | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Pick & pack aisles | 2 mm self-level epoxy | Aisle line-marking integral |
| Reach-truck aisles | 3–4 mm self-level epoxy | Top-coat refresh year 5 |
| Loading bay | 4–6 mm epoxy screed | Hard-wheel + impact zone |
| Battery / charging | 3 mm epoxy + acid primer | Bunded floor, sloped to drain |
| Office & mezzanine | 0.5 mm coating | Decorative; light traffic only |
Where the JAFZA / DIP / DIC operators get it right
The smart Gulf 3PLs we've worked with do four things consistently:
- Phase the work so a 50,000 sqm DC re-floors over 8–12 weekends without missing a shift.
- Specify by zone, not by blanket — the loading bay gets 6 mm screed, the office mezzanine gets 0.5 mm.
- Buy a top-coat refresh contract on year 4 — 10% of the original cost extends life by 6 years.
- Track the warranty paperwork — at lease-end the landlord pays for the floor.
The Gulf-specific gotchas
Slab cracking from heat cycling
Slab temps above 50°C, then chilled by HVAC at night, drive shrinkage cracks within months. Always crack-stitch before you resin.
Sand-blasted aggregate exposure
If the slab was wash-finished, the top 1 mm is rich in aggregate that sits proud after grinding. Diamond grind to CSP-4 to ensure resin adhesion.
Want a JAFZA / DIP-specific specification? Send us your aisle layout and we'll quote within 1 to 2 working days.