CHARLOTTE, NC - Major repairs were needed for Ericcson Stadium, home of the NFL Carolina Panthers, before fans could enter it for the next season. Stress cracks had developed throughout the existing black granite floors in the luxury box and food court areas, and the polished granite surface had become a safety hazard for fans. To solve the problem, the granite was replaced with Brazilian black slate tiles, and reinstalled using Laticrete installation systems.

Because Ericcson Stadium is exposed to the elements on the exterior side of the structure, the concrete flooring is subjected to greater movement potential from expansion to contraction, according to James Mounce, Laticrete representative.

The Ericcson Stadium repair involved the installation work of Charlotte's Carolina Stone, Ltd., 8,100 square feet of 16 - x 16-inch slate pieces supplied by Dal-Tile of Dallas, TX, and Laticrete installation systems.

During the restoration process, it became apparent that no crack isolation protection had been provided under the original flooring. Therefore, Laticrete Blue 92 Anti-Fracture membrane, a thin, load-bearing membrane designed to provide stress relief over cracked concrete floors, was installed.

Additional expansion joints were also added and sealed with Laticrete Latasil NS Natural Stone Sealant and low areas were leveled with Laticrete 86 LatiLevel Thin Pour Underlayment.

After the Anti-Fracture and Underlayment were installed, the slate was installed using Laticrete 211 Crete Filler Powder, mixed with Laticrete 4237 Latex Thin-Set Mortar Additive, and grouted using Laticrete Tri-Poly Fortified Sanded Grout.