How to ensure quality tested readymix concrete for your construction site?

admin 15 February 0 Comments

The construction industry is the base on which the entire human transaction takes place on a daily basis. We need buildings for housing, working, administration, entertainment, travel and what not. Almost 99% of these constructions are concrete structures. With the advancement of technology, readymix concrete has almost replaced traditional on-site concrete to a large extend. But it is essential to ensure the quality of readymix before it is used for construction, as safety is of utmost importance in construction.

Divisions of quality control

This can be divided into three sections like forward control, immediate control and retrospective control based on the time of checking.

Forward control – It deals with the measures of quality control to be followed before the manufacturing process and includes storage of materials, monitoring of material quality, alteration of mix design, plant maintenance etc.

Immediate control – It deals with controlling the quality of concrete during production or closely following production such as correct reading of batch data, accurate weighing, assessment of uniformity, cohesion, workability, water content and making corresponding adjustments at the plant to ensure concrete quality.

Retrospective control – This mainly include the quality control procedures at post-production stage like sampling of concrete, testing and monitoring of results, weighbridge checks of laden and unladen vehicle weights, stock control of materials and rectification of identified faults.

Methods for quality assurance

These are a few methods used to analyze the quality of a readymix concrete before delivering to sites.

Concrete slump test – Slump testing helps to assess the flow characteristics of newly mixed concrete. Slump test is done by placing the concrete into an inverted cone and using a metal rod to fill the concrete properly after each stage. After the cone is full, it can be lifted off the working surface by using angles on each side of the cone that causes the concrete to slump on the ground due to gravity. The total difference between its original height and slumped height is then measured and is noted as the slump result.

A slump ranging from 4-5 inches can be considered an ideal balance between consistency and workability. Anything less than four is difficult to work with, while anything greater than five will segregate during placement.

Air content test – Air content testing helps to determine if the concrete has the required air content specifications as per standards. In order to conduct the test, a circular metal base is filled with three lifts of concrete and is stamped using a metal rod. Once the base is full, a metal lid that has a pressure guard attached to its surface is placed on top, and all parts are locked together. A hand pump is then used to pressurize your device to a particular calibration point, and is then allowed to stabilize for a while. After the stabilization process, the pressure is released and the concrete air content can be noted from the dial attached to the device.

Comprehensive strength test – This is used to determine if the concrete delivered in a construction site meets the required strength and durability as per specifications. For this, laboratory tests are conducted on unrepresentative cylinders of concrete from the project site. These cylinders are usually created on-field during concrete placement and are chosen from random locations during the concrete pouring process. It is then allowed to cure on the field for a few days before getting picked up and delivered to a laboratory for further testing.

Which is the best readymix company offering quality concrete?

Readymix concrete is emerging as a highly useful replacement for traditional concrete reducing the time, space, money and effort used for construction. But it is absolutely necessary to choose a quality readymix of established standards to ensure maximum safety and durability in construction. The absence of proper and effective quality monitoring systems in most of the batching plants are creating a degradation in product quality of concrete. Hence, it is mandatory to apply scientific quality monitoring techniques in every readymix concrete manufacturing plants.

GRM is the best readymix company in Dubai following a scientific quality monitoring system in our inhouse laboratories, before delivering the products to work sites. We have also won various certification and awards for our dedicated service and strict adherence to quality control. If you are looking for a perfect readymix for construction, kindly contact us via phone, email or website chat service.