Walk in the old town, on beautiful, natural and durable materials
In the historic centre of Koper, a Slovenian town full of memories and historic monuments, around 6,000 square metres (65,000 square feet) of stamped concrete was recently laid by Ideal Work. The work was part of a general redevelopment program in the city, an important tourist destination by the sea, conceived and managed by its public authorities.
The Slovenian technicians needed strong and durable paving with versatile and custom design shapes and colours which could be laid quickly with reasonable supply and installation costs.
In addition to meeting the design requirements, ensuring both a striking visual impact and a surface which was easy to maintain, Ideal Work’s Stamped Concrete system was chosen for its aesthetic versatility: the product can create surfaces which are incredibly similar to natural stone. In this case, we recreated the typical colour of Istrian stone, traditionally used in the area.
In order to maintain the appearance and colour of the surface over time, the Ideal Work Stamped Concrete was treated with a transparent, resin-based, non-yellowing finish.
From a technical standpoint, the Stamped Concrete pedestrian walkways and central dividers installed in Koper are monolithic slabs made from concrete reinforced with polypropylene fibres and electro-welded wire mesh. After being treated with Ideal Work Colour Hardener, the surface is patterned using moulds that can be standard or specially commissioned.
Various moulds were needed for the design of Koper’s historic centre (Palladian Line: Rotating Venetian Marble and Pavement of Paris; Brushed Border + Used Brick Border; Walkway Slate), whilst the colour was chosen to play on the lure of tradition, with widespread use of a specially-crafted colour hardener that tends towards grey with green and yellow hints of Istrian stone. This was alternated with Pewter, a standard colour from our catalogue.
Date: 2009
Place: Capo d’Istria, Slovenia