PRE- CAST CONCRETE MEMBERS

(08 April-2020)
AR-402:
Building Construction-IV: B.ARCH
(BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE- IV YEAR)
F/O Architecture & Ekistics, Jamia Millia Islamia
Teacher: Ar. Mohd Arqam Khan, Er Fahad bin Khrsheed

Objectives:
 To give an introduction of Pre cast concrete Members.
 Introduction of Applications.
 Details of Construction.

Pre cast concrete Members

Introduction
Precast concrete is an alternative to cast-in-situ concrete. While cast-in-situ concrete is cast in its
actual location, precast concrete is cast at another location, either at the building site or in a factory,
and is then lifted to its final resting place and fixed securely. This means that unlike cast-in-situ
construction, which is monolithic or continuous, precast concrete buildings are made of separate
pieces that are bolted or connected together.
The concrete is placed into a form, or mold typically made of wood or steel, and cured before being
stripped from the form. Precast concrete is reinforced with either conventional reinforcing bars,
strands with high-tensile strength, or a combination of both.
The architects can consult with producer early in the design phase to determine what components
will work most efficiently and review specific sizes, joint locations, and other details that can create
cost efficient options.

Fig.1 Pre cast system- 3d members

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 Fig.2 Pre cast components members

Pre cast components

Floors and Roofs, Walls, Building Structural Components (beams, columns, etc.), Piles
Transportation Components, Modular Components, Miscellaneous Components.

Precast Beams: There are two main categories of beams

1. Internal beams – where floor loading is approximately symmetrical

2. External beams – where floor loading is predominantly non-symmetrical.

Fig.3 Pre cast internal & external Beam

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Precast floor slabs: The main types of slabs are used in the precast frames are:
1. Hollow cored slab
2. Double tee slab

Fig.4 Pre cast slabs

Precast Columns: For structures of five storey or less, each column will normally be continuous
to the full height of the building. For structures greater than five storeys two or more columns are
spliced together.
The main types of precast columns are:
1. Edge columns – symmetrical in one direction.
2. Internal columns – symmetrical in all directions.
3. Corner columns – not symmetrical at all.

Precast walls: Precast concrete walls serve two functions. One is Stability As walls or boxes
surrounding staircases and lift shafts. Second can be classified as infill or cantilever, Infill walls

Ar. MAKhan , Assistant Professor, JMI, LDS

rely on contiguous composite action with the beam and column frame. Cantilever walls or boxes
act as deep beams to which the frame is attached.

Precast staircases: Three options are available for precast staircases

1. A single precast unit containing all the flights and landings
2. Separate precast flights and landings
3. Parts of the flights and landings are made in one piece.

Fig.5 Pre cast column, wall and staircase

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 Pre cast concrete construction process

1. Production of reinforced cages and main connections:

The precast factory often has specialist workshops for the manufacture and maintenance of moulds,
and for the production of jig-built reinforcing cages and connections.

2. Assembly of moulds:

The reinforced cage is positioned in the partly assembled mould, then the remaining mould
section is completed.

3. Mix being poured:

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Carefully specified concrete is placed into the mould. Many precast works now employ computer
controlled batching plants.

4. Compaction of concrete using poker vibrator:

To ensure that optimum density is obtained and that specified strengths are achieved, concrete is
placed and compacted using high-frequency external vibrators or pokers.

5. Precast concrete being moved to the storage area:

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Once an appropriate strength has been reached, the precast units are moved to the storage area.
Units are usually handled within hours of casting as part of the rapid production cycle. The
product exhibits a high degree of dimensional accuracy and quality of finish. Economies of
production are achieved through the repetitive and automated process.

6. Storage of high-quality units in works area:

The finished precast components are stacked on clean battens or plastic pads positioned to suit
the design of the component. Care is taken to keep the stacks vertical and to ensure that battens
are placed directly above one another within the stack.

7. Transport to site:

Ar. MAKhan , Assistant Professor, JMI, LDS

The components are delivered to site in a pre-determined sequence to ensure that hardened
concrete are ready for instant erection.

8. Erection at site:

The components are erected straight from the lorry. This leads to faster erection times with
reduced on-site activity.

9. Finished building:

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Advantages
Precasting is great for producing large numbers of identical components. if we are building an
affordable housing project with 3,000 identical apartments. We could then use precasting to
produce wall slabs and floor slabs for all the apartments, and then lift them into place and connect
them.
 Customized pieces, sizes and shapes can be created in most cases to meet specific needs.
 The construction is done on the ground rather than at a height
 It is done inside a climate-controlled structure, eliminating problems of rain, dust, cold, or heat.
 Specialised formwork (moulds) can be built for doing many repetitions of the same component.
 Specialised equipment can be used to make, move, and pour the liquid concrete.
 Curing of the concrete can be done in a controlled environment.
 Since the components can be made beforehand, construction can be very quick. In cast-in-situ
construction, engineers have to build each set of components after the previous set has finished,
which does take time, as concrete generally takes 28 days to reach its full strength.
 Quality of precast components can be very high.

Disadvantages
 Since each piece is made separately, the structural frame or system is not monolithic or
continuous like regular concrete construction. The joints between pieces create structural
discontinuity. The forces of the building will pass through these joints, so they have to be
designed to transfer these forces safely and properly. Note that precast concrete can be used for
non-structural members too.
 As the building is made of discrete components, the joints between adjacent members have to be
sealed with special sealants to make them waterproof
 Each precast component is usually large and heavy. This means that cranes are required to lift
them in position; these cranes are required to operate over the entire building volume. Since there
will only be a few cranes at site, the time taken by the cranes to pick up a piece and shift it to its
final position becomes critical in determining the building schedule.

Spaces required making pre cast concrete

 Storing the raw materials, such as cement, aggregate, sand, admixtures, water, reinforcement
bars, and steel or plywood sheets for formwork
 A formwork making and maintenance yard
 A concrete mixing plant
 A steel reinforcement yard to make rebar cages to be placed inside the concrete
 A casting area
 A curing area
 A stacking area for finished components

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 For infrastructure projects, a casting yard is created on a piece of open land in the city. It is
important that this be located near a major highway, as the precast elements can be very large or
heavy, and cannot be taken through narrow roads.

Pre cast concrete member’s connections (Will be detailed out in next class)
Precast concrete components can be connected in a number of ways:

 They can be bolted together. In order to do this, steel connectors are embedded in the
concrete at the time of casting. This must be done with great precision.
 They can be grouted or concreted together. In this method, loops of steel reinforcement are
left protruding out of the precast concrete members. Two members are placed in position,
and reinforcement is threaded between the loops. Fresh concrete is then poured around this
reinforcement, in a space left for this purpose.

Source: http://www.understandconstruction.com/precast-concrete-construction.html
https://www.pci.org/AboutPrecast
https://theconstructor.org/concrete/types-of-precast-components-in-a-building/6325/

Ar. MAKhan , Assistant Professor, JMI, LDS