Inaugurated in December 2020, in time for Tunisia’s busy winter season, the Novotel Berges du Lac is ideally located close to the heart of the Tunis business district. The builder specified Penetron crystalline technology to provide the needed resistance to high groundwater for the below-grade – and top-floor – concrete structures.
Just minutes from the city center and business district, and virtually across the street from the Tunis-Carthage International Airport, the Novotel Berges du Lac, the 2nd Novetel built in Tunisia, offers an ideal location for business travelers. With 126 rooms and suites on nine floors (plus a two-level basement), the hotel also includes a business conference center and amenities such as an outdoor swimming pool with a solarium terrace, fitness room, bar and restaurant.
“All of the underground elements of this construction project – the below-grade parking garage and basement floors – were exposed to a high water table due to the hotel’s location right on the Lac de Tunis, a saltwater lagoon located between the city of Tunis and the Mediterranean Sea,” explains Kadem A. Omer, Chairman of the Board of Penetron North Africa. “The Penetron System was specified by the contractor to ensure the hotel’s foundation structure would remain stable for a long time.”
Concrete Durability Extended for Decades
The local Penetron experts proposed a combination of PENETRON ADMIX and PENEBAR SW swellable waterstop strips to prevent any leaks and resulting deterioration of the concrete structures.
Water and waterborne contaminants – such as chloride ions in seawater – can penetrate concrete through capillary absorption and hydrostatic pressure, leading to concrete deterioration and increased maintenance. Penetron crystalline technology waterproofs the concrete matrix by generating a crystalline network that permanently seals microcracks, pores and capillaries against the penetration of water or liquids. Once mixed into the concrete during batching, PENETRON ADMIX becomes an integral and permanent part of the matrix. The PENEBAR SW waterstop strips provide a permanent seal along the construction joints, leaving the below-grade floors and pool totally waterproof.
“Recent breakthrough tests have shown that PENETRON ADMIX can extend the service life of concrete structures, even in environments more severe than Tunisia, by 60 years or more,” adds Kadem A. Omer. “This will extend the lifespan of the concrete structures at the Novotel by decades!”
2nd Novotel in Tunisia: The Novotel Berges du Lac was inaugurated late 2020. Penetron crystalline technology secured the hotel basement areas, the underground parking areas and the pool and spa areas.
