SEMINAR REPORT ON

READY MIX CONCRETE

Seminar report submitted in partial fulfillment of curriculum prescribed for VIII
semester B.E. (Civil Engineering) by Visvesvaraya Technological University,
Belgaum.

By,
Rashmi S
USN: 4JC05CV044
S.R.No:05198

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Sri Jayachamarajendra College Of Engineering
(Affiliated to VTU, Belgaum)
Mysore-570006
2009

1
VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, BELGAUM
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
SRI JAYACHAMARAJENDRA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
MYSORE-570006

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Miss. Rashmi S bearing USN 4JC05CV044 has

successfully presented a seminar and submitted the seminar report on “Ready Mix
Concrete” in partial fulfillment of the curriculum prescribed for VIII Semester B.E.
( Civil Engineering) by VTU,Belgaum.

Head of the department

Examiners:

1.
2.
3.

2
 SYNOPSIS

Ready-mix concrete is a type of concrete that is manufactured in a factory or batching

plant, according to a set recipe, and then delivered to a worksite, by truck mounted transit
mixers . This results in a precise mixture, allowing specialty concrete mixtures to be
developed and implemented on construction sites. The first ready-mix factory was built in
the 1930s, but the industry did not begin to expand significantly until the 1960s, and it
has continued to grow since then.
Ready-mix concrete is sometimes preferred over on-site concrete mixing because of the
precision of the mixture and reduced worksite confusion. However, using a pre-
determined concrete mixture reduces flexibility, both in the supply chain and in the actual
components of the concrete.
Some leading ready-mix concrete suppliers worldwide are the Mexican concrete
companies PCM and Cemex; their main competitor is France-based Lafarge
Ready Mixed Concrete, or RMC as it is popularly called, refers to concrete that is
specifically manufactured for delivery to the customer's construction site in a freshly
mixed and plastic or unhardened state. Concrete itself is a mixture of Portland cement,
water and aggregates comprising sand and gravel or crushed stone. In traditional work
sites, each of these materials is procured separately and mixed in specified proportions at
site to make concrete. Ready Mixed Concrete is bought and sold by volume - usually
expressed in cubic meters. RMC can be custom-made to suit different applications.
Ready Mixed Concrete is manufactured under computer-controlled operations and
transported and placed at site using sophisticated equipment and methods. RMC assures
its customers numerous benefits

3
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The satisfaction that accompanies the successful completion of any task would be
incomplete without mentioning of the people who made it possible. Many responsible for
the knowledge and experience gained during the work course.

I would like to express a deep sense of gratitude and profound thanks to Sri
G.P.Chandradara, and Sri S.Raviraj Selection Grade lecturers, Civil Engineering
Department, S. J. College of Engineering, Mysore, for his constant encouragement,
guidance and inspiration, which enabled me to complete this seminar work.

I would also like to express my gratefulness towards all the faculty members,
Department of Civil Engineering, SJCE, Mysore for their timely suggestions.

I am thankful to Dr. Syed Shakeeb-Ur-Rahman, Professor and Head,

Department of Civil Engineering, for bringing excellent academic climate to finish my
work successfully.

Last but not the least, I express my deepest sense of gratitude for the inspiration,
enthusiasm and help given by my parents and friends.

RASHMI .S
4JC05CV044
VIII semester

4
CONTENTS

Certificate

Acknowledgement

Synopsis

Page number
 Introduction 1

 Definition of Ready Mix Concrete 2

 Selection of materials 3-5

 Mixing of concrete 6-8

 Transportation of RMC 9-12

 Properties 13-14

 Advantages&Disadvantages 15-17

 ACC Concrete 18-19

 Goals 20

 Important technical terms 21-22

5
 Ready mix concrete

Introduction:

z Concrete is a mixture of portland cement, water, aggregates, and in some

cases, admixtures.
z The cement and water form a paste that hardens and bonds the aggregates
together.
z Concrete is often looked upon as “man made rock”.
z Concrete is a versatile construction material, adaptable to a wide variety of
agricultural and residential uses
z Concrete has strength, durability, versatility, and economy.
z It can be placed or molded into virtually any shape and reproduce any
surface texture
z Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world.
z In the United States almost twice as much concrete is used as all other
construction materials combined.
z Demand for concrete with higher strength and better quality, coupled with
larger and faster mixer trucks, led to the emergence of the ready-mix
concrete industry in the post-World War II period.
z The ready-mix concrete producer has made concrete an appropriate
construction material for many agricultural applications.

6
DEFINITION

What is Ready Mixed Concrete

Ready Mixed Concrete, or RMX as it is popularly called, refers to concrete that is

specifically manufactured for delivery to the customer's construction site in a freshly
mixed and plastic or unhardened state. Concrete itself is a mixture of Portland Cement,
water and aggregates comprising sand and gravel or crushed stone. In traditional work
sites, each of these materials is procured separately and mixed in specified proportions at
site to make concrete. Ready Mixed Concrete is bought and sold by volume - usually
expressed in cubic meters. RMX can be custom-made to suit different applications.

RMC Process

Ready-mix concrete (RMC) is a ready-to-use material, with predetermined mixture of

cement, sand, aggregates and water. RMC is a type of concrete manufactured in a factory
according to a set recipe or as per specifications of the customer, at a centrally located
batching plant.

It is delivered to a worksite, often in truck mixers capable of mixing the ingredients of the
concrete en route or just before delivery of the batch. This results in a precise mixture,
allowing specialty concrete mixtures to be developed and implemented on construction
sites. The second option available is to mix the concrete at the batching plant and deliver
the mixed concrete to the site inan agi tator truck, which keeps the mixed concrete in
correct form.

7
Materials used for the manufacture of RMC

z Portland Cement
z Aggregate - sand, gravel, crushed rock
z Water
z Admixtures - when necessary
Portland Cement

z Portland cement was named for the Isle of Portland, a peninsula in the English
Channel where it was first produced in the 1800's.
z Since that time, a number of developments and improvements have been made in
the production process and cement properties.
z The production process for portland cement first involves grinding limestone or
chalk and alumina and silica from shale or clay.
z The raw materials are proportioned, mixed, and then burned in large rotary kilns
at approximately 2500°F until partially fused into marble-sized masses known as
clinker.
z After the clinker cools, gypsum is added, and both materials are ground into a fine
powder which is portland cement.

Three types of portland cement are used for agricultural applications:

Type I
Type I cement is the general purpose and most common type. Unless an alternative is
specified, Type I is usually used.
Type II
Type II cement releases less heat during hardening. It is more suitable for projects
involving large masses of concrete--heavy retaining walls, or deadmen for suspension
bridges.
Type III

8
 z Type III cement produces concrete that gains strength very rapidly.
z It is very finely ground and sets rapidly, making it useful for cold weather jobs

Water
z Good water is essential for quality concrete.
z It should be good enough to drink--free of trash, organic matter and excessive
chemicals and/or minerals.
z The strength and other properties of concrete are highly dependent on the amount
of water and the water-cement ratio.
Aggregates
z Aggregates occupy 60 to 80 percent of the volume of concrete.
z Sand, gravel and crushed stone are the primary aggregates used.
z All aggregates must be essentially free of silt and/or organic matter.
Admixtures

z Admixtures are ingredients other than portland cement, water, and aggregates.
z Admixtures are added to the concrete mixture immediately before or during
mixing
Air Entraining agents:

z are the most commonly used admixtures for agricultural concrete.

z produce microscopic air bubbles throughout the concrete.
z Entrained air bubbles:
y improve the durability of concrete exposed to moisture and freeze/thaw
action.
y Improve resistance to scaling from deicers and corrosive agents such as
manure or silage.
Retarding admixtures:

z are used to slow the rate of concrete hardening.

z They are useful for concrete that is placed during hot weather.

9
Accelerating admixtures

such as calcium chloride, are used to increase the rate of hardening--usually during cold
weather

For ready mix concrete supply the purchaser should specify the
Following
a) Designated max. size of coarse aggregate
b) Desired / max. slump at the point of
delivery
c) Air content (for air entrained concrete)
d) Mix design requirement – such as cement content, max. water content &
admixtures
or minimum compressive strength at 28 days
e) Unit weight required (for structural lightweight concrete)

Mixing of concrete

10
In the case of the centrally mixed type, the drum carrying the concrete revolves slowly so
as to prevent the mixed concrete from "segregation" and prevent its stiffening due to
initial set.
However, in the case of the truck-mixed concrete, the batched materials (sand, gravel and
cement) are carried and water is added just at the time of mixing. In this case the cement
remains in contact with the wet or moist material and this phase cannot exceed the
permissible period, which is normally 90 minutes.
The use of the RMC is facilitated through a truck-mounted 'boom placer' that can pump
the product for ready use at multi-storeyed construction sites. A boom placer can pump
the concrete up 80 metres.
RMC is preferred to on-site concrete mixing because of the precision of the mixture and
reduced worksite confusion. It facilitates speedy construction through programmed
delivery at site and mechanised operation with consequent economy. It also
decreases labour, site supervising cost and project time, resulting in savings. Proper
control and economy in use of raw material results in saving of natural resources. It
assures consistent quality through accurate computerised control of aggregates and water
as per mix designs. It minimises cement wastage due to bulk handling and there is no
dust problem and therefore, pollution-free.

• Done in order to ensure each particle of aggregate in fresh concrete will be coated
with the cement paste
• Also to give a homogenous even coloured product.
• First stage of mixing is called “BATCHING”.
• Batching is process where it involves weighing out or measuring out all of the
ingredients for a batch of concrete

11
1.6 cuM. transit mixer

small batching plant for local small deliveries

12
7 cuM. transit mix

Transportation of rmc

While ready mixed concrete can be delivered to the point of placement in a variety of
ways, the overwhelming majority of it is brought to the construction site in truck-
mounted, rotating drum mixers. Truck mixers have a revolving drum with the axis
inclined to the horizontal. Inside the shell of the mixer drum are a pair of blades or fins
that wrap in a helical (spiral) configuration from the head to the opening of the drum.
This configuration enables the concrete to mix when the drum spins in one direction and
causes it to discharge when the direction is reversed.
To load, or charge, raw materials from a transit mix plant or centrally mixed concrete into
the truck, the drum must be turned very fast in the charging direction. After the concrete
is loaded and mixed, it is normally hauled to the job site with the drum turning at a speed
of less than 2 rpm.
The driver of the front discharge truck can drive directly onto the site and can
mechanically control the positioning of the discharge chute without the help of contractor
personnel.

13
RMC delivery trucks

14
Concept of Readymix Concrete

Concept of Readymix Concrete

Ready-mix concrete has cement,

aggregates,
water and other ingredients, which
are
weighbatched at a centrally located
plant.
This is then delivered to the
construction
site in transit mixers and can be used
straight
away without any further treatment.

RMX - Adding value to concrete

Ready Mixed Concrete is manufactured under computer-controlled operations and

transported and placed at site using sophisticated equipment and methods. RMX assures
its customers numerous benefits:

15
  Uniform, consistent and assured quality of concrete
 Flexibility in concrete design mixes
 Easier addition of admixtures
 Faster and speedier construction
 Reduced inventories, material handling and storage of raw materials at sites
 Savings in labour requirements, labour costs and supervision of labour
 Reduced wastage of materials

The use of RMX is an environmental friendly practice that ensures a cleaner work place
and causes minimal disturbance to its surroundings. This makes its utility more
significant in crowded cities and sensitive localities

In contrast to this, conventional methods of making, transporting and placing concrete at

most construction sites are somewhat labour-intensive and suffer from practices which
may be erratic and not very systematic.

Therefore the use of Ready Mixed Concrete can prove to more cost effective in the longer
term while ensuring that structures are built faster and using concrete that comes with
higher levels of quality assurance

Hurdles to set up new Plant:

Plant to be located in an area where Concrete Consumptions are there, as the

concrete has to be transported. Good water source at the plant site. In case

16
of Non-availability of potable water in and around the location of plant, water
has to be transported from distant location.

. properties

Desired properties of hardened ready-mixed concrete include durability, strength, water

tightness, and resistance to abrasion. All of these characteristics are influenced by the
quality of the component materials and their proportions. Sometimes, expert assistance
is required and our Technical Services Center works with customers and specifiers to
optimize the mix designs.

Workability

z Workability is the property that determines the ease with which freshly mixed
concrete can be placed and finished without segregation.
z Workability is difficult to measure but redi-mix companies usually have
experience in determining the proper mix.
z Therefore, it is important to accurately describe what the concrete is to be used
for, and how it will be placed.

Durability

z If acceptable materials are used, the properties of concrete, such as durability,

freeze/thaw resistance, wear resistance, and strength depend on the cement
mixture.
z A mixture with a sufficiently low ratio of water to cement plus entrained air, if
specified, is the most desirable

17
These properties--and thus the desired concrete quality--can only be fully achieved
through proper placement and finishing, followed by prompt and effective curing.
For thousands of years man has been mixing aggregates, cement and water together to
build structures. Many ancient structures such as the Great Pyramids and the Coliseum
were bonded together with cement mortars. Today, ready-mixed concrete is frequently
used to construct highways, bridges, dams, buildings, airports, sewer systems, tunnels,
home foundations, driveways, and sidewalks.

Applications

The growth of RMC is predominantly driven by demand from the metro cities. In cities
like Mumbai, the mandatory use of RMC is in construction of flyovers
provided the requisite impetus to growth, according to an ICRA analysis. RMC is
particularly useful when the building activity is located in congested sites where little
space is available for siting the mixer and for stock piling of aggregates. The use of RMC
is also advantageous when only small quantities of concrete are required or when
concrete is to be placed only at intervals.
Even as the concept of ready-mix concrete (RMC) is still catching up in the country,
cement majors are keenly focussing on entering the new area in a big way. Anticipating
huge potential for the product, cement majors, including Associated Cement Companies,
Grasim, L&T, India Cements, Priyadarshini Cements, Chettinad Cement and Madras
Cements, are foraying into the RMC business

Advantages of Ready mix Concrete over Site mix Concrete

 A centralised concrete batching plant can serve a wide area.

18
  The plants are located in areas zoned for industrial use, and yet the delivery trucks
can service residential districts or inner cities.
 Better quality concrete is produced.
 Elimination of storage space for basic materials at site.
 Elimination of procurement / hiring of plant and machinery
 Wastage of basic materials is avoided.
 Labor associated with production of concrete is eliminated.
 Time required is greatly reduced.
 Noise and dust pollution at site is reduced

Disadvantages of Ready-Mix Concrete

 The materials are batched at a central plant, and the mixing begins at that plant, so
the traveling time from the plant to the site is critical over longer distances. Some
sites are just too far away, though this is usually a commercial rather than
technical issue.
 Generation of additional road traffic; furthermore, access roads, and site access
have to be able to carry the weight of the truck and load. Concrete is approx.
2.5tonne per m². This problem can be overcome by utilising so-called 'minimix'
companies, using smaller 4m³ capacity mixers able to access more restricted sites.
 Concrete's limited timespan between mixing and going-off means that readymix
should be placed within 2 hours of batching at the plant. Concrete is still usable
after this point but may not conform to relevant specifications

However there are some disadvantages of RMC to, like double handling, which results in
additional cost and losses in weight, requirement of godowns for storage of cement and
large area at site for storage of raw materials. Aggregates get mixed and impurities creep
in because of wind, weather and mishandling at site. Improper mixing at site, as there is
ineffective control and intangible cost associated with unorganised preparation at site are

19
other drawbacks of RMC. There are always possibilities of manipulation; manual error
and mischief as concreting are done at the mercy of gangs, who manipulate the concrete
mixes and water cement ratio.

Utilization of Fly ash

Though the scope for utilization of fly ash in Readymix concrete
is very high, the concept of fly ash as an additive to concrete
is still at very initial stage and it is not popular among majority
of actual users of concrete

Advantage of Readymix Concrete over Sitemix Concrete:

 Better quality concrete is produced.

 Elimination of storage space for basic materials at site.
 Elimination of Procurement / Hiring of plant and machinery
 Wastage of basic materials is avoided.
 Labour associated with production of concrete is eliminated.
 Time required is greatly reduced.
 Noise and dust pollution at site is reduced.
 Organisation at site is more streamlined.

Redefining the pace and quality of construction

ACC set up India's first commercial Ready Mix Concrete (RMX) plant in Mumbai in
1994. Today this business has been reorganized as a separate company called ACC
Concrete Limited which is one of the largest manufacturers of RMX in India with over 30
modern plants in major cities such as Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi.
Hyderabad, Goa, Pune and Ahmedabad

20
ACC's pioneering efforts in introducing RMX coupled with the promotion of bulk cement
handling facilities have been responsible for redefining the pace and quality of
construction activity in metropolitan cities and in mega infrastructure projects

Numerous landmark structures in India's metro cities have been built using ACC
Concrete - mega housing projects, townships, commercial complexes, factories, bridges,
flyovers, roads and railways. Prestige projects such as the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the
Indore-Dewas bypass, Kolkata and Delhi Metro Rail projects. Most of the new bridge
and fly-overs in Mumbai used ACC Concrete and could perhaps not have been completed
on schedule without it.

Small building projects and individual home builders seeking high levels of quality
assurance can also now usher in the same sophistication and value addition into their
construction as some of India's mega projects using ACC RMX- at virtually no extra cost.

ACC Concrete - State-of-the-art

ACC Concrete is manufactured at modern fully computerized plants which have state-of-
the-art machinery and equipment by machinery suppliers of global repute - fully
automated Batching Plants, well-equipped laboratories for testing raw materials and fresh
concrete, Transit mixers, Mobile and stationary pumps capable of discharging concrete at
high elevations and over long distances.

A large fleet of the latest models of Transit Mixers and Concrete Pumps to suit different
terrains and work sites ensures that our customers get timely and uninterrupted supply of
premium quality concrete as per their requirement as well as its efficient and timely
placement at the work site.

21
Quality - the 'Q' factor in ACC Concrete
ACC Concrete is supplied in a variety of grades and compositions to meet specific
demands of customized applications - from simple requirements for small homes to High
Performance Concrete to meet the complex needs of mega projects.

Each of our plants has a fully equipped laboratory with the latest in testing machines to
carry out routine and detailed tests of raw materials as well as fresh finished concrete.
These in-plant laboratories are backed by the facilities of ACC's reputed Research centre
at Thane which serves as a focal research and testing laboratory centre for cement and
concrete.

ACC Concrete customers can avail of a range of options in our testing and quality control
services - from simple tests and analyses of raw materials and concrete to non-destructive
testing of hardened concrete.

ACC Concrete - a wide range

 High Strength Concrete

 High Performance Concrete
 Self-leveling Concrete
 Self-compacting Concrete
 Coloured Concrete
 Concrete made with binary and ternary blends of cements
 Early strength Concrete
 Fibre reinforced Concrete

Reason for backlog

22
The Ready mix concrete business in India is in its infancy. For example, 70% of cement
produced in a developed country like Japan is used by Ready Mix concrete business
there. Here in India, Ready Mix concrete business uses around 2% of total cement
production.

In early 70s both pricing and distribution of cement was controlled due to shortage of
supply, Readymix concrete technology could not be implemented as investors felt that
Ready mix concrete plant will starve due to non-availability of cement. The levy of
additionl Taxes & Duties on RMC, entry tax, excise duty also contributed to the slow
development of the concept.
Government bodies, private builders, architects/engineers, contractors, and
individuals are to be made fully aware about the advantages of using
ready mix concrete.
Government bodies / consultants to include ready mix concrete as mandatory in
their specification for execution.

Government helps necessary for the growth of Industry :

.
 Government specifications for CPWD and PWD jobs should include Readymix
concrete as an mandatory item.
 Tax breaks are required for the growth of RMC
 Developers / Contractors to be discouraged from piling up materials like metal,
sand etc. on roads/foot paths.

Goals:

23
 z To determine the most economical and practical combination of readily available
materials.
z To produce a concrete that will meet requirements under specific conditions of
use.
z The majority of concrete used for agricultural applications is supplied by ready-
mix producers.
z With an understanding of these goals, the customer can communicate better with
the ready-mix supplier, and obtain concrete that is suited to the project at hand.

A properly proportioned concrete mix will provide:

Workability of freshly mixed concrete.

z Workability is the property that determines the ease with which freshly mixed
concrete can be placed and finished without segregation.
z Workability is difficult to measure but redi-mix companies usually have
experience in determining the proper mix.
z Therefore, it is important to accurately describe what the concrete is to be used
for, and how it will be placed.

Durability, strength, and uniform appearance of hardened concrete.

z If acceptable materials are used, the properties of concrete, such as durability,

freeze/thaw resistance, wear resistance, and strength depend on the cement
mixture.
z A mixture with a sufficiently low ratio of water to cement plus entrained air, if
specified, is the most desirable.

These properties--and thus the desired concrete quality--can only be fully achieved
through proper placement and finishing, followed by prompt and effective curing

24
Economy

z Proportioning should minimize the amount of cement required without

sacrificing quality.
z Quality depends on the amount of cement and the water-cement ratio.
z Hold the water content to a minimum to reduce the cement requirement.

CONCLUSIONS
Better quality concrete is produced.
Time required is greatly reduced.
Noise and dust pollution at site is reduced.
Flexibility in design .
Adding admixtures is easy.

25