FLORIDA PUMPER MEETS CHALLENGES AT TAMPA MAT POUR 2003
From Concretepumping
Steve and Eric Swauger of ESI Concrete Pumping, Odessa, FL, were awarded the contract to complete a 2900-yard mat pour just outside of Tampa. When contractors met six weeks before the scheduled pour for a new Walmart Super Center, everyone involved discovered the job would require some serious preparation.
General contractor Case Construction, Plant City, FL, concrete contractor MRK Concrete, Miami, and reps from internationally renown ready mix supplier Cemex pulled out all the stops on a nearly acre-sized mat pour. With pre-construction complete, contractors took some time six months before the pour to negotiate equipment selection and set-up strategies to place concrete in the 12-foot deep excavation. To execute the 45,000-square foot, 26-inch deep pour, ESI project superintendents elected to use five concrete pumps with long booms.
Contractors faced soft, wet job site conditions from a two-week stint of rain, making pump set-up awkward. A water run-off vault, directly adjacent to the site, also made for tight access and set-up on an otherwise vacant lot. Ready-mix supplier Cemex needed to tackle the issue of truck access, taking into consideration both the soft job site and site entrance from a nearby road.
To ensure the smooth, monolithic completion of the mat, contractors met at the job site a few days before the scheduled pour to implement the decisions made six weeks prior.
Eric Swauger, ESI president, described the extensive precautions made prior to the pour. “We used a tape measure to stake off pump set-up. We ensured there was a safe path for the ready mix trucks and even figured in the re-location of a couple of the pumps.”
“There were some major site constrictions to deal with,” said Swauger. “If it hadn’t been for cooperation among all the contractors involved, it would have been much more difficult.” To avoid traffic congestion and make truck turnaround more efficient, contractors closed down several lanes of traffic adjacent to the site. The pour was scheduled to begin at midnight on Saturday, May 17 to further minimize traffic problems.
Five ESI concrete pumps rolled on to the job site just after 11:00 pm on the 16th. A KVM 39 X was set up at the excavations southwest corner. Superintendents set up ESI’s two 42-meter Schwing pumps along the west side of the excavation. The pumper’s KVM 52, with a 170’-6” reach, was placed directly in the center of the excavations’ east side. The pump remained on the spot throughout.
“It has the biggest pump kit,” said Swauger, “We just set it up and kept feeding it. No breakdowns, no overheating, no hassles throughout the entire job.” The 39-meter pump was relocated twice along one side of the hole during the pour. The two 42-meter pumps were relocated once each, leap-frogging each other along the west side of the excavation.
Ready-mix trucks from Cemex’s four local plants supplied 5,000 psi concrete for the nearly acre-sized pour. ESI completed 2500 yards of the pour only four hours into the project. When the final pump pulled away from the site at 8:00 am Sunday, May 18, a total 2900 yards had been pumped into the excavation.
Swauger estimates that each pump output around 160 yards and more per hour. “This project wouldn’t have been so interesting if it weren’t for the conditions and our production numbers. I had two 42-meters, side-by-side on the east end of the pour. One was an older model, probably a ’94 or ’95. Up against the 2002 model, you couldn’t measure a difference in performance. They had almost identical production numbers.”
Besides pump performance, Swauger credits excellent cooperation amongst the contractors and excellent operators. “There wasn’t one slipup, one problem. We’d planned everything to a tee and everyone was on.”
Swauger also commented on another unique aspect of the project. Weeks after the initial mat pour for the store foundation, ESI’s 52-meter and 42-meter boom pumps were brought back in to finish off the retailer’s parking lot.
Concrete contractor MRK Concrete completed the skeleton structure of the new lot, installing block walls and placing hollow-core slabs on top. ESI pumps were brought in to place 1,000 yards of concrete on top of the slabs. ESI used their own laser screed to finish the pour. ESI/JDH provides pumping services to most of West Central Florida, branching from the Tampa area. The contractor also rents out his extensive pumping and construction equipment fleet including eleven boom pumps, nine trailer pumps, and two laser screeds.
