Precast

A spate of fires in Montana several years ago inspired Stewart Hansen to find a way he could build homes with all the character of traditional log homes, and all the fire-resistance of concrete.

The solution was to develop concrete log homes, which his company, Missoula-based Concrete Logs LLC, is now doing successfully into its fourth year.

With 30 concrete log homes on the market, Hansen said the company is now developing between 10 and 15 new concrete log homes each year.

Concrete Logs LLC sells just the exterior wall system, not the entire house, and charges between $70 and $80 per square foot. Finished turnkey costs can run anywhere from $130 to $500 per square foot depending on the customer’s preferences.

Using forms cast from actual wood logs, Concrete Logs LLC has also placed a premium on energy efficiency in its homes. Hansen said a recent test conducted by the National Center of Appropriate Technology indicated Concrete Log homes are seven times as airtight as traditional wood-log buildings and six times as airtight as traditional wood-frame buildings. A recent 10,000-square-foot custom home in Colorado has monthly utility bills of $322 per month, he said.

Pittsfield, Massachusetts-based Unistress, a division of Petricca Industries, plans to construct a 22,100-square-foot facility in which it will do its own metal fabrication.

Unistress is a manufacturer of concrete materials including precast, prestressed concrete for parking garages, roads, bridges, buildings and other concrete projects. With the new facility, Unistress will no longer need to source its steel from outside Massachusetts.

The project received $4.5 million in tax-exempt bond financing from MassDevelopment, a quasi-public agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, because Unistress was able to demonstrate that the project will trigger job growth.

The plant will manufacture metal components for use in concrete slab production.

Foundation pouring began this week for the new Adams County Correctional Center in Mississippi. Flintco, Inc. is the general contractor on the project. Como, Mississippi-based Cross Concrete is the concrete contractor.

U.S. Concrete recently announced it’s acquisition of Middleburg, Pennsylvania-based Architectural Precast, L.L.C. (API), a designer and manufacturer of architectural and structural pre-cast concrete products serving the Mid-Atlantic region.C U.S. Concrete Acquires Architectural Precast “The combination of API’s architectural and structural pre-cast products with our existing ready-mixed concrete products will allow us to provide our customers in our Atlantic region with a full range of products and services,” said Michael W. Harlan, U.S. Concrete’s president and chief executive officer. “We are very pleased that we have been able to retain the current management team at API, which has significant experience and expertise, to continue to run this operation.”

Century Group has recently started production of precast concrete products in its new facility in Princeton, North Carolina. Features of the new facility include 30,000-plus square feet of production area, which houses a concrete batch plant, laydown yards and dry storage and fabrication facilities.

“The relocation of our precast concrete manufacturing operations occurred on schedule and with minimal loss in production,” said Rob Robinson, Century Group’s General Manager. “The North Carolina Division staff did a great job in making the transition and move from Raleigh to the new Princeton location. We are very proud of our manufacturing team and excited about the new opportunities we will have with expanded production capabilities.”

The new Princeton manufacturing facility will increase Century’s production capacity for precast concrete steps, stair treads and concrete railroad grade crossings.

“We are very excited about our new facility,” said George Vincent, President/CEO of Century Group. “The Princeton location will provide greater manufacturing capability, a great workforce and better logistics for shipping of product in the eastern part of the U.S.”

Internationally recognized architect Edward Mazria will speak on “Precast Concrete’s Role in Sustainable Design” during the keynote speech at the 53rd annual Convention & Exhibition sponsored by the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI). The event is being held at the Phoenix Convention Center October 21-24, 2007.

“Precast concrete’s markets are continuing their upward momentum,” says PCI Chairman of the Board Bob Konoske. “Our customers are informed and they continue to seek out progressive thinking and solutions that resolve today’s design and construction challenges. This year’s convention will continue our efforts to enhance specifier preferences, deliver innovative materials and processes to the marketplace and produce the best precast solutions.”

Topics to be addressed at the event include sustainability, blast resistance, new techniques for parking-structure design, globalization trends, architectural design, GFRC cladding and productivity improvements. A number of these programs have been approved for continuing-education credit hours, providing opportunities for attendees to maximize their professional skills.

Eagle Roofing Products, a division of Burlingame Industries, is being recognized as the preferred roof tile manufacturer of choice by industry professionals and architects.

A variety of Eagle’s concrete roof tile products were recently showcased on 12 homes, winning this year’s Gold Nugget and Builder’s Choice Awards.

Eagle Roofing Products were used on the nine homes that won Gold Nugget Awards, an annual honor saluting the best architecture and community planning in 14 Western states and the international market. They also had been selected to be utilized on 60 percent of the winners, more than any other concrete or clay roof tile manufacturer.

“We are extremely proud to continually be specified as the roof of choice by some of the best architects and builders in the industry,” said Kevin Burlingame, president of Burlingame Industries. “The building industry’s recognition and respect for the overall design of these projects reflects Eagle’s commitment to producing quality roof tile and accessories that complement the aesthetic beauty of any style of home or commercial property. These accolades are further proof that award-winning homes are built with award-winning products.”

The company’s concrete roof tile products also were specified and installed on three winning home designs in this year’s 27th annual Builder’s Choice Awards.

Despite the falling prices of other construction materials, the price of concrete continues to rise, although modestly, compared to previous years.

Jim Haughey, chief economist with Reed Construction Data, notes the price of pre-cast concrete grew 4.9 percent compared to last year while the cost of cement rose 4.7 percent. However, those increases are modest compared to jumps in prior years. In 2005, for example, prices of concrete products jumped 17 percent.

Haughey cautions, however, that the overall decline in prices may be offset by rising construction labor costs, especially in the retail sector, where it is difficult to find laborers with a retail specialty.

Hanson Pursues Tennessee Precast Market With AcquisitionUK-based Hanson Building Products, whose U.S. headquarters is in Dallas, expects to strengthen its position in the pre-cast structure market with its acquisition of Lenoir City, Tennessee-based East Tennessee Precast.

Joan Blecha, Hanson’s president for the southeast region, told PBF the acquisition allows Hanson to operate in a growing geographic market while overcoming challenges associated with different kinds of regional pre-cast.

“They pour product we don’t pour,” Blecha said. “And there’s always a different process in doing that, but it’s a really nice blend because they’re in the market and we’ll be able to bring product to them that they’ve not produced in the past.”

Key to the deal for Hanson, Blecha said, was the knowledge of the local employees in working with the local market and Tennessee regulations pertaining to the make-up of pre-cast in the state.

Lenoir City is 25 miles west of Knoxville, where East Tennessee Precast began building sanitary sewer and stormwater precast structures in 1998.

Nearly 50 East Tennessee Precast employees will become Hanson employees and will also have opportunities for further training and advancement.

The East Tennessee Precast facility will be part of Hanson's Southeast region, headquartered in Green Cove Springs, Fla., servicing Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. More than 30 facilities throughout the Southeast region produce several products, including those used for community and roadway development such as reinforced concrete pipe, drainage structures, modular bridges and other precast concrete product.