A complex renovation intervention on the roofs of an important building in Kuala Lumpur to overcome problems with water infiltrations, cracking and spalling concrete
The Sharia Tribunal of the Federal Territories (MSWP) is a body of the Malaysian Federal Government responsible for dealing with judicial affairs and legal cases in compliance with mandates of the Islamic religion in the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan. It refers to one of the two judicial systems in Malaysia: one civil and one religious. The latter, which only has jurisdiction over Muslim citizens, deals in particular with family and religious legal issues such as divorce, marriage, inheritance and child custody.
Islamic courts play an important role in the life of Malaysian citizens because Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country. So, it is no coincidence that they are often found in majestic buildings with architectural lines similar to those of mosques or other religious sites of the east.
And the Syariah Courts of Justice in Kuala Lumpur is just one such example, featuring a complex of buildings around an internal courtyard characterised by light pink façades and white roofs with golden cupolas, surrounded by lush vegetation and, a little further away, the prominent skyscrapers of Kuala Lumpur.
Some of the courtrooms and conference rooms in the Syariah Courts of Justice had numerous water infiltrations coming from the roofs, whose reinforced concrete substrates had been treated in the past with waterproofing products that had then gradually deteriorated over the years, leading to the problems of infiltrations, cracks and ponding water on the surfaces, spalling of portions of concrete and the formation of mould in corners between horizontal and vertical surfaces. In 2019 the owner decided to overcome these problems with a new waterproofing solution and specified that it had to be a polyurea based system. Mapei Malaysia, the Malaysian subsidiary of the Group, proposed a specific, complete system that would guarantee high performance and durability, as well as being supported by numerous prestigious reference projects where the system had been successfully used in the past.
In 2019 the owner decided to overcome these problems with a new waterproofing solution and specified that it had to be a polyurea based system.
A detailed view of the roofs of the Syariah Courts of Justice upon completion of the waterproofing works.
The first step was to remove all the areas of screed that were no longer sound and then install metalwork for water drainage elements along the perimeter of the involved areas. The surfaces were then hydro-blasted and ground with diamond discs to remove any residual crumbling or detached materials and to make sure there would be a good bond for the materials applied after. The waterproofing membrane used for the previous repair work was also removed and the cracks in the substrates were repaired with epoxy resin.
It then came to the moment to apply the polyurea-based waterproofing system proposed by Mapei Malaysia. The first step was to treat the surfaces with PRIMER SN two-component epoxy primer mixed with QUARTZ 0.5 sand. In some of the sections MAPEFLOOR EP 19 MT, an epoxy mortar which is distributed in the Malaysian market by Mapei Malaysia, was also applied to make sure the surfaces were sufficiently level.
Using spray-applied PURTOP 1000 waterproofing membrane on the roofs of the Syariah Courts of Justice in Kuala Lumpur has overcome water infiltration problems caused by failure of the waterproofing system applied previously.
The final stage was the PURTOP 1000 two-component, solvent-free, pure polyurea-based waterproofing membrane, which was applied by spray with a high-pressure bi-mixer pump. Thanks to its high chemical resistance, flexibility and tear strength, this product is particularly suitable for waterproofing both new builds and existing structures such as roofs, including roof gardens and inverted roofs. In this particular case, it will ensure the roofs of the Syariah Court of Justice will have sound, perfectly waterproofed surfaces with no water infiltration for many years and, no less importantly, roofs with a high aesthetic impact in harmony with the majesty of the entire complex that measure up to the functions carried out below them.
