INDUSTRIAL CONCRETE

MWM Construction & Rigging has been providing concrete work for our industrial clients for more than 10 years. Whether it’s pouring a concrete slab for storage tanks or pouring a foundation meant to support a 200 ton press, we can meet your concrete needs.

Every building needs a solid foundation, and nothing is more solid than concrete. The purpose of a building foundation is to evenly distribute and transfer the weight, or load, of the building into the ground. Building foundations can vary in complexity depending on the building load and the soil below.

Simple, shallow foundations transfer the building’s loads through a spread footing pad or a continuous footing pad into the ground below. Usually in this case, the soils below are granular or stiff clay soils.

More complex foundation systems work to transfer the load deep into the ground below. The load is transferred using either a deep concrete column in the ground, called a caisson, or a steel column driven into the ground, called a pile. The building is built on top of concrete caps and grade beams that encase the top of the caissons and piles. The building loads are transferred down into the deep foundation system, into either a strong layer of soil below or a layer of bedrock.

After laying the foundation, a concrete floor slab must be laid. The building’s concrete floor slab is typically a simple concrete slab placed directly onto the ground. The challenges for the slab depend on the proposed floor finishes (such as tile, carpet, or polished concrete) and the moisture mitigation that is therefore involved. Most floor slabs have a 6 to 15 mil. thick plastic vapor barrier to keep moisture from migrating up from the sub-base below to the surface of the slab. In some instances, depending on the construction schedule, admixtures can be added to the concrete to trap the internal moisture inside the slab and keep it from reaching the surface.

INDUSTRIAL PRESS FOUNDATIONS

Heavy industrial concrete projects usually involve large equipment foundations which often have deep excavated pits. MWM Construction & Rigging Construction has experienced experts to design and build these large, deep, and complicated foundations while meeting demanding production schedules. We work in your plant’s production environment and operate to minimize interruptions.

Heavy industrial equipment foundations can vary greatly in size and complexity. Larger press foundations have a concrete pit in which the base of the press sits. These presses have large dynamic loads, so the foundations are designed to have thick concrete bases, walls, and pedestals for the press to bear on. Large steel weldments are commonly embedded in the concrete. Additionally, many presses are installed with isolation material, pads, and/or bearings which dampen the presses dynamic loads. These all need to be taken into consideration when designing press foundations.

For all press foundations, the large concrete base serves to transfer the press loads into the soils below. Therefore, a soils investigation report is necessary and is prepared by analyzing soil borings. The pits for press foundations are deep enough that they usually require an earth retention system which must be designed to take into consideration the surrounding building foundation loads. The experts at MWM Construction & Rigging Construction can help you understand all the requirements and details to properly design and construct your concrete press foundation.

These complex foundations require special attention and engineering because of how heavy the equipment is and the work the equipment accomplishes. Slitter line foundations support the machinery that slits larger steel coils into narrower coils for further steel processing. These foundations commonly have a looping pit which varies in depth from 10’ to 40’ deep depending on the size of the slitter and the thickness of the material that is being slit.

The pits can be very complex to construct. They require an earth retention system or another construction method to deal with the soil retention during construction. They are also often deeper than the water table, which means they require a specially designed dewatering system. MWM Construction & Rigging has experienced experts to design and construct concrete foundations for slitter lines. Their concrete expertise combined with our industry knowledge and experience make us the right choice to construct your slitter line foundation.

SOIL ASSESSMENT & PERCOLATION TESTS

Large industrial equipment foundations often require major excavations to depths of 15 feet or more to ensure adequate bearing capacity. The Chicagoland area, in particular, was built on swampland with high water tables and has a mixture of clay, bedrock, and sandy gravel, with each presenting potential concrete foundation problems. A construction site with bedrock might require drilling or blasting. A location with gravel or sand is easy to excavate but might fill up with water after digging only a few feet.

A geotechnical investigation based on soil borings is a critical step that needs to be taken during the planning phase. The geotechnical report will help to determine soil bearing load capacity, water pumping requirements, and where that water can be displaced to ensure compliance with environmental standards. When constructed, the industrial foundation may require waterproofing with an exterior membrane system, and integral concrete waterproofing, along with water stops at the construction joints.

Experienced industrial concrete foundation contractors who specialize in designing and constructing earth retention systems should be contracted for this specialized work to ensure the stability of surrounding soils and building structures and to ensure compliance with OSHA’s safety standards.

PRECISION TOLERANCES FOR HEAVY INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT FOUNDATIONS

Because of the tolerances of the parts produced and the large dynamic loads that are created in the operation by this type of industrial equipment, it’s important that the concrete contractor can construct the foundations to a high level of geometric concrete tolerances. Layout of the foundation is critical and proper techniques need to be used to ensure the equipment will have a precise and level surface to sit on and be anchored to.

The industrial machinery manufacturer supplying the equipment will specify specific load-bearing requirements, detailed elevations, and geometric information particular to the machine being installed to ensure stability and proper operation. Often, the machinery manufacturer requires heavy steel embedded into the concrete foundation to properly distribute and support the equipment loads. These large embedment’s are set using cranes, and support within the concrete foundation must be supplied.

Mistakes made in setting steel embedment’s and constructing concrete to proper tolerances can result in problems down the road including machine malfunctions. Repairs to equipment or foundations based on faulty foundation construction can be expensive and cause production shut downs.

LOGISTICS PLANNING

Halting production lines for weeks at a time to accommodate construction and renovation simply isn’t an option for industrial manufacturers.

However, an experienced industrial concrete contractor will help develop a logistics plan that will maximize uptime and throughput during construction. At Raffin Construction, we not only specialize in industrial concrete, but we understand the complexities of working alongside a facility’s production and the importance of maintaining operations and safety standards. Through proper design, phasing, and sequencing, we work with project owners to determine logistics and timing to minimize disruptions and keep everyone safe.

CONTACT US FOR YOUR INDUSTRIAL CONCRETE NEEDS TODAY

Choose MWM Construction & Rigging for a seamless, efficient, and high-quality industrial concrete contractor experience. To discuss all your requirements, please complete our contact form or call us at 828-305-7520 for further advice and assistance.

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