A Comprehensive Guide To Ready-Mix Concrete
Ready-mix concrete (RMC), as you possibly already know, has many outstanding benefits. First, experts control variables like workability, compressive strength, slump, and cement-water ratio, thereby guaranteeing a high-quality product. Moreover, since this cement is ready-to-use, it reduces time wastage and high labor costs associated with concrete mixing. And that is without mentioning that this material is incredibly versatile; you can use it in various applications, including road developments, driveway construction, and civil engineering projects. If you are sold on using RMC, try any of the following types of ready-mix concrete:
1. Central-mixed concrete
Central mixed ready-made concrete has numerous essential materials in its makeup, including sand, cement, and water. Contractors mix and batch these components in a stationary mixer. The mixer is located at and used from the main plant site. Once mixing and batching is complete, operators discharge it into a specially-designed truck mixer. This mixer, which the contractor uses to integrate and deliver ready-mix concrete, is mounted on the truck's chassis. Therefore, the truck's primary function is enabling mixing and transportation of RMC from the central plant to your construction site. Most project owners who prefer using central-mixed concrete argue that it cuts truck mixer drum deterioration. Plus, the concrete is associated with higher production capability.
2. Transit-mixed concrete
Select transit-mix concrete if you want a ready mix construction solution that doesn't involve central plant mixers. This RMC is manufactured through a simple process involving loading all essential raw ingredients into the truck mixer. That means contractors can batch construction materials into the truck mixer and drive to the job site with a slowly-rotating drum. Or they can mix the concrete in their yard before hauling it to the construction site. Nowadays, experts and project owners prefer mixing concrete in the yard because it lets batch teams monitor the batch's slump and air content and make adjustments if need be. But some companies also offer a variety of transit-mixed concrete called mixed-in-transit. As the name suggests, technicians using this technique keep the mix in constant rotation while the product is in transit.
3. Shrink-mixed concrete
Generally, cement experts partially mix shrink-mixed RMC in a central mixer. Then they discharge it into a truck mixer design to push the process to completion. The truck may do so at the job site or central plant. Either way, complete mixing is facilitated by the truck mixer's high-speed revolutions. But the time needed to execute the task depends on the mixing duration and the central mixer vessel's size. Shrink-mixed concrete is suitable for any project owner or stakeholder wishing to increase the load capacity of the cement-carrying vehicle.