Precast Concrete: The

Architects’ Solution

Outline
• Introduction
• Manufacturing Process of Precast
• Benefits to Architects
• Benefits to Owners
• Benefits to Contractors
• Design and Use
• Summary

Introduction

Precast Concrete – concrete cast

elsewhere than its final position (ACI)

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 Introduction

• Architectural Precast - Precast concrete

that will remain visible when in its final
position, thereby contributing to the
aesthetics of the structure or site.

• Structural Precast - Precast concrete that

supports or transfers loads other than its
own weight (e.g. floor & roof loads).

Above Ground Applications

• Buildings and structures
• Site amenities/accessories
• Retaining & sound walls
• Bridges
• Traffic and security barriers
• Road repairs
• Fencing

Buildings - Commercial

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Buildings - Residential
Foundations & Walls

Buildings - Residential

Buildings – Floor and Roof

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Buildings - Trim

Buildings –Modular

Buildings – Structural
Elements

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Buildings – Structural
Elements

Site Amenities &

Accessories

Site Amenities
&
Accessories

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Sound
Walls

Retaining
Walls

Bridges

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Bridges

Traffic Barriers

Security Barriers

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Road Repair

Fencing

Underground Applications
• Water and wastewater
• Stormwater
• Sanitary
• Utilities

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Water &
Wastewater

Stormwater

Sanitary

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Utilities

Manufacturing
• Forms
• Types of Concrete
• Materials
• Mix Design
• Properties
• Stripping
• Curing
• Storage and Shipping

Manufacturing - Forms
• Wood – most common for architectural,
good details, limited number of uses per
form
• Metal – Most common for underground,
durable, reusable for years
• Fiberglass – great detail and finish,
expensive
• Formliners – resin, elastomeric, plastic,
wood, steel, plaster

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Forms - Wood

Forms - Wood

Forms - Metal

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 Forms - Metal

Forms
What to watch for:
• Forms require drafts and chamfers
for ease of removal
• Proper form preparation, seal joints
• Proper cleaning and maintenance

Types of Concrete
• What is Concrete?
• Different types:
– Conventional wet-cast
– Dry-cast
– Lightweight
– High-performance
– Self-Consolidating Concrete (SCC)
– Architectural

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 Types of Concrete - SCC

Types of Concrete - SCC

Types of Concrete –
Architectural
• Face mix
– Minimum thickness after consolidation
one-inch or 1.5 x max. agg. size
– Similar thermal and shrinkage
coefficients
– Similar w/cm ratios and proportions

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Manufacturing - Materials
• Coarse and fine aggregate (stone
and sand)
– 60-70% by volume, 70-85% by mass
– Properly Graded
– Gap Graded

• Note: natural materials will vary

Manufacturing - Materials
• Cement
– Grey - color may vary
– White - more stable for colors
• Water - must be potable or meet
ASTM C 1602
• Admixtures
• Air

Manufacturing – Mix Design

Water-cementitious ratio, lower the
better (0.40 – 0.45)

I I
TypeType
Type I

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Manufacturing – Mix Design
Water-cementitious ratio – by volume

300 lbs 4.81 ft3

= 0.50
600 lbs 3.05 ft3

240 lbs 3.85 ft3

= 0.40
600 lbs 3.05 ft3

Hardened Properties
• Appearance
• Strength
• Durability
• Moisture penetration
• Abrasion resistance
• Dimensional stability

Appearance
• Precast concrete can be made in
many:
– Shapes or designs
– Colors
– Textures
– Finishes
– Combinations of the above

*Repeatable due to quality control

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Strength
• Maximum stress concrete can
withstand before failure

• Concrete is good in compression,

but weak in tension

Durability
• A product’s ability to survive in its
exposure environment for its intended
service life.
• Ability to resist internal and external
attack
– Corrosion of reinforcement
– Freeze/Thaw resistance
– ASR

Moisture Penetration
• Porosity - a ratio of the total voids in a
mass to the total mass itself
• Permeability – is a measure of the flow
of a liquid or a gas through a substance
• Water resistant – reduces wetting, but
permits passage of moisture under
hydrostatic pressure
• Water proof – impervious to water in
either liquid or vapor state

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Abrasion Resistance
• Ability to resist damage caused by
rubbing
• Important for:
– Floors
– Hydraulic Structures
– Bridges
– Parking Garages

Dimensional Stability
• Concrete experiences volumetric
change due to:
– Temperature
– Moisture
– Chemical
– External forces

What Effects Concrete’s

Hardened Properties?
• Water-Cementitious ratio
• Quality materials and mix design
• Good production practices
• Proper curing procedures

*All of which you get with precast concrete.

These are more difficult to ensure in field
conditions.

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Stripping/Form Removal

• Must have appropriate stripping

strength
• Forms must be removed properly
and completely
• Always lift pieces level and as
designed

Curing
• Why cure?
• Proper curing temps, procedures
• Concrete is the only material that
gains strength over time
• Curing affects color
• Curing affects strength
• Why precast is cured better than
concrete cast on site

Storage and Shipping

• Storage yards
• Shipping time
• Erection of products

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 Storage and Shipping

Storage &
Shipping

Storage and Shipping

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 Benefits to Architects
• Design flexibility
• Aesthetic versatility
• Quality control
• Superior strength
• Green - sustainability
• Readily available
• Saves time and money

Design
Flexibility
• Concrete can be
made into any
shape that can
be formed
• Modular
• High level of
detail
• Finishes are able
to simulate
almost any
material

Aesthetic Versatility
Wide variety of colors

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 Aesthetic Versatility

Exposures:
None – skin, paste only –as cast
Light – matrix predominant (Acid, AB)
Medium – 50/50 matrix and course
aggregate (Acid, AB)
Deep – coarse aggregate predominant
(AB, EA)

Aesthetic Versatility
Wide variety textures and finishes:
• As cast- form finish
• Abrasive blast
• Acid etched
• Exposed aggregate – surface retarder
• Grinding/tooling
• Veneers
• Cast stone
• Formliners

As-Cast

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Abrasive Blast / Acid Etch

Exposed Aggregate

Exposed Aggregate

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Polished Finish

Veneer

Veneer

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Cast Stone

Formliners

Quality Control
• Controlled and monitored
environment
• Shelter from weather
• Consistent – quality materials &
trained labor
• Quality control personnel
• Documentation of production for
each piece
• Certified plants

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Superior Strength

• Precast concrete has superior

strength over many other cladding
materials such as:
– EIFS, masonry, metals, wood, glass, etc.

• Precast concrete can be

multipurpose i.e. used as a primary
structural material, shear walls, etc.

Green and LEED

• Precast concrete can relate directly

to four LEED credits and a total of
eight points
– Site credit 6 – Stormwater management
– Site credit 7 – Heat Island reduction
– Materials & Resources credit 4 –
Recycled content
– Material & Resources credit 5 –
Regional Materials

Saves Time and Money

• Speed of Erection
– Rapid enclosure
• High level of detail
• Able to duplicate almost any material
– Excellent to match older materials or
existing architecture

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 Benefits to Owner
• Durability/extended service life
• Low maintenance - life cycle costs
• Fire resistant – non combustible - passive
resistance
• Noise deadening
• Thermal benefits
• Security
• Speed of construction – quicker
occupancy
• Reduced construction costs

Durability/Extended Service Life

• 100 year service life is possible

Durability/Extended Service
Life
• Low permeability/porosity
• High strength
• Resistance to storms, hurricanes,
UV, rot, mold, pests

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Low Maintenance

• No painting
• No warping
• No rusting
• No breakage
• No moisture infiltration or mold
• Reduced joints

Low Maintenance

Fire Resistant

• Non-combustible
• Reduces insurance
• Saves lives
• Fire ratings easily achieved

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 Noise Deadening

• Reduces sound transmission from

both outside and inside sources
• Concrete is a good sound insulator

Thermal Benefits

• Reduced air infiltration

• Reduced utility costs
• Acts as thermal mass

Security
• Extremely
difficult to break
into
• Pest entry – no
vermin, termites
• Terrorist threats
• Hard to steal

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Speed of Construction

• Reduce building enclosure time and

overall construction time
• Quicker Occupancy = making money
faster

Speed of Construction

Speed of Construction

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Saves Time and Money

• Can reduce overall project costs

– Precast can be less expensive than
traditional materials
– Less site labor reduces costs

Benefits to Contractor
• Low site impact
• Reduced weather dependency
• Speed of enclosure
• Saves time and money

Low Site Impact

• Site Impact – a combination of

storage space required, site access
and duration of that access,
limitations on other trades during
that access
• Precast can be delivered to the site
as needed
• Other trades can start sooner

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Low Site
Impact

Reduced Weather Impact

• Precast can be erected in all temperatures
and in most conditions

Reduced Weather Impact

• Site weather conditions do not effect

the manufacturing process
• Rain only helps curing

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Speed of Enclosure

• Buildings can be erected and dried-in

faster than conventional
construction

Saves Time and Money

• Precast products can be made while

the excavation and foundations are
being performed on site.

Design and Use

• Design & cost reduction
• Total precast construction
• Mock-ups and samples
• Colors and finishes
• Piece design and componentizing
• When not to use precast

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Design and Use – Design &
Cost Reduction
• Start with the overall geometry of the
structure, not the panel
• Use repetition – Master mold
concept, forms are expensive, allow
enough time not to need extra molds

Design and Use – Design &

Cost Reduction
• Big pieces are better then small ones
– reduce handling and erection time
• Multiple finishes can increase cost
• Must be constructible
• Consider site conditions
• Involve precaster early in the
process – initial design phase

Design and Use – Total Precast

Construction

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Design and Use – Total Precast
Construction

Design and Use – Total Precast

Construction

Design and Use –Mock Ups

• Build a full scale mock up of a typical
section on the site
• Build mock ups early in the project
• View in sun, shade, wet, dry
• Use for variation control and acceptance
• Establish patching and repair procedures
• Evaluate the effects of weathering
• May help identify other construction
issues

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Design and Use – Colors and
Finishes
• Visual characteristics are usually
determined by the architect
• How color is achieved
• Recommendations:
– Match paste, sand and stone
– Use white cement or blends
– Use slightly darker matrix with deep exposures
– Rounded aggregates help with weathering and
uniformity

Design and Use – Piece Design

& Componentizing
• Size & geometry by engineer,
precaster
• Open and closed piece design

Open Closed
• Returns

Design and Use – Piece Design

& Componentizing

• Stress concentrations, handling

• Joints and corners

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 Design and Use – Piece Design
& Componentizing
• Larger pieces are better
• Repetition of pieces = reduces costs
• Involve the precaster early in the
design process
• Consider constructability and
shipping
• Tolerances

Design and Use

• When not to use precast
– Mass pours or when monolithic pours
are required i.e. dams, nuclear reactors
– Slabs on ground

Summary
Precast Concrete:
• Offers a virtually endless array of colors,
finishes and textures
• Can allow you to be creative in design
• Can reduce construction times, delays and
project costs
• Is extremely durable – 100 year service life
• Reduces overall life-cycle costs
• Is produced in a quality controlled
environment
• Can qualify for LEED credits

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Everybody Wins
with Precast
Concrete!

Thank You!

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