Penetron Crystalline Technology Secures Retro Park Museum

Inaugurated in September 2018 during Novokuznetsk’s 400th anniversary celebrations, the Retro Park, an automobile and technology museum, specified Penetron crystalline technology to ensure a stable and waterproof below-grade foundation.

Novokuznetsk is a city comprised of just over half a million inhabitants in Kemerovo Oblast in south-western Siberia, north of the country’s borders with Kazakhstan and Mongolia. Located in the Kuzbass Basin, the heart of Russia’s coal-mining region, the city’s new Retro Park, a museum showcasing a classic car collection and “retro” technology, has quickly become a popular tourist attraction.

The Retro Park museum was founded and financed by Alexander Govor, a local businessman, patron of the arts, and enthusiastic collector. Based on Mr. Govor’s private collection, the museum exhibits over 40 vintage automobiles, vintage motorcycles and even two historical Soviet-era jets. The collection includes the Benz motorcar, the world’s first automobile, as well as a number of unmistakably classic models from the USA, England and the Soviet Union. Prior to inauguration of the museum, Mr. Govor had many of the automobiles repaired and renovated to museum quality in Germany, then shipped to Siberia.

Located centrally in downtown Novokuznetsk, the Retro Park is the largest automobile museum in Siberia. The site is adjacent to the Radisson Park Inn and just minutes away from the Dostoevsky Memorial Literature Museum, a local cultural highlight.
 

High Water Table Demands Impermeable Concrete

“This is a special moment for a very personal reason,” adds Igor Chernogolov, President of Penetron-Russia. “Like Dostoevsky’s wife, Novokuznetsk is my wife’s hometown. I’m very pleased to see how the city continues to develop and grow. It’s also special that the Penetron System is part of this project – my sincere thanks to Alexey Prilepskiy, Director of Penetron Novokuznetsk, for a perfect job!”

The Retro Park collection is housed in a modernist style building with a black reflective exterior. The high water-table at the construction site made a durable waterproofing solution a priority. Penetron crystalline technology was specified to provide total impermeability for all below-grade concrete structures supporting the glass-encased, cube-shaped building above.
 

An Effective and Economical Admixture

PENETRON ADMIX, an effective and economical permeability-reducing concrete admixture, was added to the concrete mix for the basement structures. Easily mixed in during batching and unaffected by climatic conditions, PENETRON ADMIX becomes an integral and permanent part of the concrete matrix. The admixture provides comprehensive protection against concrete deterioration caused by chemical attack, freeze-thaw cycles and corrosion, and can withstand high hydrostatic pressure.

PENEBAR SW swellable waterstop was used to effectively seal the construction joints in the basement structures.
 

Ongoing Success Story

“The Retro Park is only the most recent Penetron project we’ve recently completed in Novokuznetsk,” says Alexey Prilepskiy. “The Radisson Park Inn across the street from the museum is also a Penetron project. PENETRON ADMIX was specified to treat the concrete for the foundation slab of this 172-room luxury hotel.” A sure sign that we’ll have more Penetron news from Novokuznetsk soon.