Rising to the Occasion
Concrete placing system pumps and places 120,000 cubic yards of concrete for 50-story building.
"The output varied due to the density of the mix design and on the weather," explains Cancio. "The mix included superplasticizers to meet pumpability and workability requirements needed for concrete finishing purposes, and dense aggregate to meet the strength demands of the project. In the winter this mix was more challenging to pump because the aggregates could not be maintained at Saturated Surface Dry (SSD) condition due to freezing temperatures when aggregates absorb lots of free water, leaving us with a somewhat sticky paste.
"Luckily, we were able to depend on our powerful pumps and great concrete finishers to pump out the harsh, high strength mixes."
With the BSA's simple and reliable closed loop free flow hydraulics, C&C was able to provide a smoother and more controllable pumping method in the varying weather conditions on the site.
"As part of the free flow hydraulics design, the pump has a fully adjustable volume control to allow for very slow pumping while retaining full concrete pressure of 3,190 psi, making the BSA ideal for this type of job," adds Jovanny Cabral, General Manager for the C&C Dallas, Texas branch.
Capable of pumping up to 133 cubic yards per hour, the BSA trailer pump is powered by a 500 hp Caterpillar engine.
In addition, the TK 50, featuring a powerful 96 hp Deutz TCD2012L04m engine, averaged outputs up to 10 cubic yards per hour of the harsh mix throughout the project.
"Able to pump up to 54 cubic yards per hour at 1,150 psi, the TK 50 features a gradual reduction from hard-chromed material cylinders to the outlet, providing an even flow of material, and ultimately providing us longer life of the pump," says Cabral. "As an added bonus, the pump's angled hopper is easy to fill, clean and maintain, which helped us stay on track with the job's aggressive pour schedule."
Not only did the pumps' performance on this project exceed our expectations, but C&C's four-arm Multi-Z placing boom did too; according to Cancio, it placed the concrete precisely with no delay.
"The maneuverability and precision of the placing boom is incredible," says Papito Saavedra, the head of placing boom operations for C&C for this project. "Capable of reaching up to 108 feet, seven inches horizontally and 116 feet, four inches vertically, we never had to worry that it wouldn't be able to reach the exact point of placement."
All in a Day's Work
"We knew our equipment and experience would stand up to the grueling demands of this job," notes Cancio. "We have used the same equipment to do the tallest buildings in Miami and Austin as well. Having a great combination of people to work with from the owner and developer and general contractor, to the ready mix concrete company in addition to the right equipment on every project we do, makes the job even more successful and rewarding for everyone involved.
"The right personnel and our reliable equipment is what has allowed us as a company to participate on jobs where we do not have permanent offices like Oklahoma, the Carolinas, Alabama, and New Orleans, which offers our customers more flexibility."
