March 18, 2021: "We often times are so busy that we don't feel able to get away and see things from a different perspective. To be able to see and understand what goes into the developing and testing of concrete mix designs, the blending of mix at the batch plant and how it gets transported to the jobsite and all the QA that occurs in between was pretty eye-opening, even for someone like me who thought he knew a lot about concrete. I would encourage anyone in this industry to take the time at the next field trip opportunity to broaden your understanding (and appreciation) of the people and processes that make our work possible."
Mark Yarish CSI, NCARB, Senior Associate, orcutt | winslow
Concrete is one of those materials we take for granted -- the laying of the foundation is a critical step in the building process but how often do we think about what happens before the material makes it to the job site? We see the specs and we see it being poured and finished but before that there are a myriad of steps that are the responsibility of the ready-mix producer. The ready-mix producer is responsible for the appropriate selection and use of the materials – cement, course and fine aggregate, water, admixtures and supplementary cementitious materials as well as getting all of that material into a truck, mixed with appropriate performance characteristics for the job conditions. The selection and handling of materials and conditions impacts the quality of the concrete as does the testing. Aside from producing the concrete the ready-mix producer is also responsible for testing multiple samples from any number of projects in addition to also working with 3rd party testing facilities. The world of concrete is highly complex and very competitive. A small group from the CSI Phoenix Chapter had a personal tour through a quality control lab and batch plant with CalPortland QC Director, Lauro Rivas, PE. Lauro and all his fellow QC Directors and Managers in the AZ concrete industry welcome your questions generally or specifically if you need assistance on upcoming projects. You can reach out to Lauro directly at lrivas1@calportland.com or you can contact me, Lisa Barnard, LEED AP, WELL AP and Chair of the CSI Phoenix Technical Committee for questions or connections to other ready-mix producers in AZ.
CSI Phoenix CalPortland lab tour, March 18 Part 1
CSI Phoenix CalPortland lab tour, March 18 Part 2
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