2020 VISION: Merkrete provides vision and versatility at Hollywood Eye Institute

The Hollywood Eye Institute celebrated the grand opening of its brand new 8,500-sq. ft., full-service optical center and office location in Cooper City, Fla., in August 2020. When patient visits consistently increased over the last few years, Dr. Shareen Greenbaum recognized the need for a larger facility to accommodate the growing population of Broward County. Greenbaum desired a modern space with an eye-catching aesthetic that captured the Eye Institute’s commitment to innovation in helping patients experience the visual world. The groundbreaking ceremony and construction of the new facility commenced more than a year earlier in June 2019. 

Architect, designer and general contractor, Barr Architecture, Inc./Barr Commercial Construction from Davie, Fla., designed the new facility by embracing the spirit of optic science through showcasing light and views of the local landscape. The building’s exterior features transparent glass paneling, gorgeous natural stone tiled accent pillars, and a patient drop-off area at the main lobby’s glass-enclosed two-story atrium, which features clean lines, industrial appeal, custom lighting, and accent pillars that match the exterior, bringing the outside indoors. With clinical space for the diagnosis and treatment of most eye diseases and other vision-related ailments, the state-of-the-art center includes several exam rooms and eye lanes, special testing suites, minor procedure rooms, a contact lens room, physician offices and a full-service optical center. Reception, registration, and lobby areas are intuitive and patient friendly with clear sight lines throughout the building. Support offices for insurance verification, surgical scheduling, and other administrative tasks adjoin the space.

Hollywood Eye Institute doctors are looking forward to serving Cooper City and the surrounding areas for all ophthalmology needs. 

“The opening of Hollywood Eye Institute’s new office is a step toward realizing our goal of expanding our practice by offering more services to the community,” said Dr. Greenbaum. 

Vision and functionality come together

Hollywood, Fla.,-based flooring contractor, material supply and distribution company Tile & Floor Pros, LLC, known for its flooring installation and tile and stone expertise, was responsible for the multifaceted installation. Distribution and Supply Manager Andre Barcus worked directly with the owners of the property in choosing and supplying all the natural stone, porcelain tile, mosaic, carpet tile and baseboards. Santiago Cruz, Foreman, and his crew installed approximately 10,000 sq. ft. of various tile and stone, including large-format porcelain plank tile on the floors and
12”x24” tile on the walls with mosaic accents. Additionally, about 4,500 sq. ft. of natural stone was applied in both interior and exterior vertical areas, providing an elegant accent on all pillars and entryways to the building. 

“For those types of vertical installations, we count on Merkrete’s 820 DUSTLESS Merlite over Hydro Guard SP1,” Barcus said. “This easy-to-use system has excellent physical properties in adhesion, slip resistance, resiliency, crack resistance – and is waterproof. For many of our projects we rely on Merkrete for their technical expertise.”

• 

• 

Merkrete views a versatile solution

Healthcare installations tend to present many interesting challenges for the designer and installer to overcome. These settings place tremendous stress on the tile or stone application, creating a challenging environment not only for the finished tile or stone, but also for the installation system materials. Tile & Floor Pros, with technical assistance from John McIntyre, Merkrete Technical Representative, assessed the job requirements and provided the proper installation system for each specific application throughout the build. This, combined with the precautions put forth due to the coronavirus, presented some new challenges.

Since specifications called for crack isolation and waterproofing in parts of the installation, combined with an aggressive project schedule, work began using Merkete Hydro Guard SP-1. Using a liquid-applied, fast-drying product, Hydro Guard SP-1 combines crack isolation up to 1/8” and a waterproof system that enable crews to prepare the substrate for setting tile at a faster pace. Hydro Guard SP-1 offers excellent elongation, adhesion and high-strength properties, providing a 100% waterproof membrane that also prevents the transfer of substrate cracks to the finished ceramic or stone tile surface. 

“Merkrete’s liquid membranes have been a staple in the industry for many years, and we rely on its performance,” said Barcus.

With a properly-prepared, crack-prevention and waterproofed substrate to work on, the installers began setting various sizes of large porcelain tile and planks. Most of the entryways, hallways and lobby areas contained 12”x24” and 9”x36” porcelain tile and mosaic accents, requiring a flat surface and a proper setting system to maintain a flat and level installation.

There is no doubt that large tile and planks present their fair share of installation challenges. Planks in particular demand tighter tolerances to maintain the beauty of the tile and overall aesthetic of the installation. So, selection of the setting material is critical, especially when installing large-and-heavy tile (LHT). LHT mortars are not for leveling or truing the substrate. Instead, they are intended to help fill the irregular space between the tile and the underlayment. Tile & Floor Pros’ preferred mortar is Merkrete’s 820 DUSTLESS Merlite and 720 DUSTLESS LHT Mortars for these types of applications. 

 “The smooth and creamy material makes for easy spreading, especially when speed is a factor,” said Cruz. “820 DUSTLESS Merlite is lightweight and works great for both floors and walls offering high strength and flexibility.” Both products feature Merkrete’s patented DLT^® DUSTLESS Technology providing less dust and a cleaner working environment.

The project also needed an adhesive for installing commercial carpet and the convenience of being able to supply Sika products was an advantage. About 5,000 sq. ft. of commercial carpet squares were installed using SikaBond^®-150 Premium Floor Adhesive, a one-component, solvent-free, universal pressure-sensitive dispersion adhesive.

One of the challenges in this project involved the strict timeline due to the coronavirus pandemic, so it was critical that Noé Martinez, Tile & Floor Pros President, chose a company that would be able to get the products delivered and the job completed on time. 

“Fortunately for this project’s requirements, we have plants and distribution right here in central Florida, so our turnaround time and ability to get our products to the jobsite quickly were no problem,” says McIntyre. 

“We have been using Merkrete products for several years,” said Martinez. “As a matter of fact, we now use Merkrete on most our tiling projects because we have the trust in the performance and delivery of their materials, job after job.”

With increased clinical and office space than offered by the old location, and the capacity for additional staff, Dr. Shareen Greenbaum’s new, modern, state-of-the-art facility will serve Broward County’s growing patient population for many years to come. 

---