ELEMATIC’S CUSTOMER MAGAZINE 2020 www.concreteissues.

com

Opportunities
await precasters in
the Middle East 40

3D facades Efficient design

– not as overcomes
expensive as construction
you may think 26 challenges 22
Contents 1/2020 4 Putting concrete in an
environmental perspective

6 It’s important to be realistic

about concrete
8 Daring to renew

12 News on Extruder E9

14 Building the smart cities

of the future

18 Digital situation pictures

will speed up construction

22 Efficient design overcomes

construction challenges

26 3D facades – not as expensive

as you may think

34 Dubai Precast
28

30
Alberta Precast has a strong start

Choosing a wall line?

32 Make the most of your

wall casting process

34 Dubai Precast: making a difference

with technical knowhow

37 UPC Dubai: shaping the precast

landscape in the Middle East

40 Opportunities await precasters in

the Middle East

42 3D-printed concrete:
still in its infancy

46 Changing the face of India

50 Ask Elematic
52 The Elematic 90+ project team
53 Read our blog

54 The birthplace of Green quality

37 United Precast Concrete Dubai

56 Say goodbye to missing
wear parts
58 Follow us on social media
60 Scandinavian Life Science

Publisher: Elematic Oyj | Airolantie 2 |

P.O. Box 33 | 37801 AKAA | Finland |
Tel. +358 3 549 511
E-mail and feedback: concrete.issues@elematic.com
Editor-in-Chief: Mats Jungar
Managing Editor: Nina Lehtonen
Editorial office: Tulus Oy. Riina Junila
Layout: Tulus Oy
Cover photo: United Precast Concrete Dubai.
Photographer: Jari Kivelä
English editing: Tulus Oy

54 Printed by: Hämeen kirjapaino | Tampere, Finland

ISSN: 084-0315-US-3000
The birthplace of Green quality Web edition: concreteissues.com
 Dear readers,
thank you for
your feedback!
Y
our opinions matter to us. According to our Concrete Issues Readers survey 2019, some of you
find technical information and details on precast concrete and technology particularly
interesting to read about, whereas others enjoy reference stories the most. Feedback is
valuable to us, and this applies also in Concrete Issues. I am happy to inform you that both
these content types will be covered in is this issue.

Friends of technical articles will find the story about concrete as a carbon
sink (pages 4—7) interesting. The article discusses the inherent CO2 binding
capacity of concrete and how this feature may contribute to the construction
industry in the future.

As usual, we are featuring reference stories from around the world.

Articles about UPC Dubai (pages 37—39) and Dubai Precast (pages 34—36)
give us a glimpse of the Middle East.

Moreover, innovations and automation are the kind of topics we always

want to share with you. In this issue you can read about smart cities and the
new opportunities they bring on pages 14—17. Our recent development of
saving raw materials and CO2-emissions, thanks to the efficient working unit
of Modifier E9 and Extruder E9, can be read on page 8. I will tell more about
Elematic’s news and strategy on my review, pages 8 – 11.

This year has been exceptional for all of us. The global coronavirus crisis has
affected the societies widely. For the construction business, the impact of
the coronavirus seems to be temporal. Urbanization as a megatrend across
the globe persists, which continues to create an increased demand
for prefabricated technology also in the future. Moreover, the
growing need for sustainable construction keeps challenging
the designers, builders and us in the precast industry alike.
For us, this development presents a good opportunity. Precast
concrete is the way to the future of building construction.

Today, more than ever, it is important to take care of each

other and find solutions together. Let’s keep in touch!

Mats Jungar, Elematic CEO

mats.jungar@elematic.com

ELEMATIC’S CUSTOMER MAGAZINE 1/2020 www.concreteissues.com

 After water, concrete is the most used resource on earth. Because it is used so prevalently
and in such large amounts, it has come under intense scrutiny for its environmental
impact. We’ve collected these facts about concrete based on research and expert
interviews to help frame the discussion about the impact it has on the environment.
Putting
environmenta
1
Cement and concrete are
intrinsically low impact
materials. “The reason
cement and concrete have
big impact is because we use
them in such large amounts. They have in
fact far lower impact than any substitute.
So substituting cement or concrete
with other materials that have higher
environmental impact will not improve
the situation.” Dr Karen Scrivener,
head of the Laboratory of Construction
Materials at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale
de Lausanne, points out.
“We have to remember that it’s only
because concrete- or cement-based
materials make up over half of all the
construction materials we use that the
overall impact in terms of CO2 emission is
quite high.”
2
The embodied CO2 in concrete
is paid off early in the
lifetime of concrete buildings
because of greater energy
efficiency. Concrete is made
from a mixture of aggregates, cement,
water and air. The typical concrete mix
contains between 10–15 percent cement.
According to The Concrete Initiative, a
project led by CEMBUREAU (the European
Cement Association), BIBM (the European
4  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
conc
Federation of Precast Concrete), ERMCO
(the European Ready-Mixed Concrete
Organization) and UEPG (the European
Aggregates Association), when the CO2
emitted during the extraction, transport
and manufacturing of these ingredients
are taken into account, a typical concrete
mix has an embodied CO2 of around
50–150 kg per ton. Studies show that the
payback period for concrete buildings can
be as short as 11 years.
3
Conventional buildings
use 150–200 kWh/m / 2
year of energy. By contrast,
modern concrete buildings
can be designed to use
50 kWh/m2/year or even less energy.
Concrete contributes to greater energy
efficiency due to its durability, air-
tightness and thermal mass. Concrete
buildings can last over
100 years. Compare this to
buildings made of other
construction materials
that last 50 years, that
would need to be rebuilt
twice in order to last
the same amount of
time and it’s easy to see
that concrete buildings
Christian John Engelsen,
save both resources and
have lower embodied CO2. Concrete
structures also have very few joints that
help keep buildings airtight. Thermal
mass allows concrete to absorb heat and
helps prevent overheating. The stored
heat is then released in the evening
when it is cooler outside. This keeps
room temperatures relatively stable
throughout the year, which means less
energy is required to heat or cool rooms.
4
A lot of research is currently
being undertaken into
greener cement. “Ninety
percent of the CO2 emissions
associated with concrete
comes from cement clinker production.
Clinker is an intermediate product during
the manufacture of Portland cement
that is produced when limestone and
aluminosilicates like clay are heated to a
high temperature in the rotary
cement kiln. There is currently
a lot of research going on into
developing greener cement
that aim to reduce the clinker
content as far as possible
in the final cement,” Prof.
Christian John Engelsen,
Senior Scientist at SINTEF, an
independent research institute
SINTEF in Norway, points out.

ncrete in an
tal perspective
Dr Scrivener and her team have also
developed a new kind of cement called
LC3 (Limestone Calcined Clay Cement)
that can reduce CO2 emissions by 30
percent. LC3 is made from limestone and
low-grade clays which are abundantly
available, making it a cost-efficient alter-
native to Portland cement as it doesn’t
require capital intensive modifications to
existing plants.
5
Carbonation, a naturally
occurring process that
has been known for
thousands of years, allows
concrete structures to
absorb CO2 from the atmosphere.
“When cement is added to
make concrete, the natural
carbonation process starts
since carbonation is the
product of lime and water
and air coming together. The
speed of carbonation depends
on a number of factors, such
as concrete quality, humidity,
surface finishing, among
others,” Engelsen says.
He cites a study his team
did a few years ago on calculating
the CO2 absorption in Norwegian
building stock. “We calculated that over
• CONCRETE AS CARBON SINK
a service life of 100 years with a 10 percent
level of recycling concrete that the level of
CO2 rebound was about 15 percent of the
CO2 emitted during the production of the
cement. This is considered a conservative
figure as we didn’t want to overestimate
the amount of CO2 being bound from the
Jussi Mattila, atmosphere.”
CFCI
Jussi Mattila is CEO of the Confederation of
Finnish Construction Industries RT (CFCI),
a joint interest organization of building
contractors, special contractors and the
construction product industry. Mattila is
actively involved in Concrete Solutions, a
project run by the Finnish Environment
Institute to look into the possibilities
of concrete as a carbon sink. “We
have been manufacturing cement
and concrete for 150 years. So we
have produced a lot of concrete
structures that are taking CO2
from the atmosphere all the
time. We are carrying out
research on quantifying just how
big of a carbon sink concrete acts as,
but it’s still in its early stages.”
Mattila adds that research carried out
on the potential of concrete as a carbon
sink is going on all over the world. Concrete
Solutions, for example, is a €1.1 million
research project. “There are a lot of
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  5
considerations we have to note when talking

It’s important
about the possibilities that concrete offers as
a carbon sink. It depends on a combination
of factors. In Finland, for example, where we

to be realistic
have a different climate, we use frost-resistant
concrete, which might behave differently than
concrete used in other parts of the world.”

about
According to The Concrete Initiative,
carbonation can be especially relevant after
a concrete building is demolished and the

concrete
concrete pieces crushed, when the surface area
exposed to air increases dramatically.

6
Concrete is 100 percent recyclable.
When calculating concrete’s
environmental impact, what
happens once a concrete building
is demolished also needs to Dr Karen Scrivener is a
be taken into account. Concrete can be material chemist known for
easily reused and recycled: aggregates from
demolished buildings can be used in unbound her groundbreaking work on
applications such as road base and even as cementitious materials, an area
aggregates for new concrete.
“Scrapped precast from concrete element she has researched for over four
factories can be used to replace up to five decades. She heads the Laboratory
percent of materials since scrap from produc-
tion is high quality concrete. Also, since you of Construction Materials at
have control of the concrete recipe, it’s easy to Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale
crush it and use it again in new production.”
Engelsen explains. de Lausanne, where she is

7
Full Professor.
The net CO2 emissions associated
with concrete products over
their lifecycle are less than if
only the CO2 emitted during
their production is taken into
account. “There is a tendency to focus on
the CO2 produced while concrete is being
manufactured. We have to look at the whole
life of a concrete structure to get an accurate
perspective on its environmental impact.
Concrete performs better than other building
materials in terms of energy efficiency, lower
maintenance costs and longer service life,”
Mattila contends.
“As long as a concrete building is properly
maintained, it basically lasts forever. And as
long as it is standing, it will bind CO2 from the
atmosphere.” ■

6  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 • CONCRETE AS CARBON SINK

W
e need to be realistic about the role that concrete plays in our lives and
how we can mitigate its effects on the environment. One thing we do
know is that because we use so much concrete – it’s about half of all the
material we use – we also have a big opportunity to improve things.
To put it in perspective, we manufacture about 4 billion tons of cement,
which translates to about 10 times that amount in concrete. If we can make a few changes in
the amount of CO2 emissions, for example, when you multiply that by the amount of material
that we use, it can have a very substantial impact.
There has been a lot of discussion around what can be done to lower the impact of
concrete. Some have proposed tweaking its carbonation capacity to enable it to capture more
CO2. Although there is some margin there, it’s always going to be just a fairly modest proportion
of the CO2 that’s being emitted. And there are going to be applications that cannot be used in
all situations.

See beyond the hype

There have also been suggestions about making concrete blocks with bacteria. The fact is
that doing this will not actually solve anything, because the calcium these bacteria use has to
come from decarbonizing limestone in the same way used for the manufacture of cement. It
might actually make it worse since you’d probably need bigger
amounts of calcium. There is a tendency in media, especially, to
focus on things that sound more innovative than they really are.
We have to keep in mind that 90 percent of concrete
production happens in emerging or developing economies.
We have to make sure that the solutions we come up with can
really be used in the field. We also have to be practical. We have
to think about how we can improve the whole chain.

Optimize technology we use now

We wrote a report a couple of years ago for the European
Climate Foundation, where we estimated that just using
technologies that are available today, we can lower emissions by
up to 80 percent, by optimizing these different links in the chain.
The first level we need to work at is the level of cement.
This is why we developed LC3, because it could lead to savings
of between 30–40 percent. And then you look at the concrete
level. We are very wasteful and we tend to put much more
cement into concrete than we need to. We can save another
40–50 percent at that level. And then we look into the actual
construction. Again, we use more concrete in structures than
needed and the wastage rate can reach to about 50 percent or
about twice what is actually needed. If you add all these levels
up, you have very substantial reductions for this material.
We need to implement practical things while working on
longer term solutions like carbon capture. But we have to
realize the urgency of the situation. The concrete industry is
very conscious about the issue of environmental degradation
and it’s important to act now. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  7
 Daring
CEO Mats Jungar is satisfied with the
progress of Elematic’s main strategic
goals for 2019 – 2021: carrying out the
customer-oriented approach.
The approach shows in launching the
new generation of automatic hollow
core equipment and digitalizing the
precast factory. High-level automation
is an effective solution to the restricted
availability of professionals – the trend
currently challenging the construction
business.

Strategic steps to fulf

1.
Launch the new
generation of automatic
hollow core equipment

8  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020


ng to renew
P
roviding the maximum added value for our customer
is always our number one priority, Mats Jungar
summarises Elematic’s strategy.
Delivering on this promise, a new version of
Elematic’s core product, Extruder E9, is serving construction
business with significantly better productivity.
“With the latest technology it is possible to get 50 percent
more output for the same investment compared to earlier.
Moreover, up to 10 percent savings in labour costs are achiev-
able with well-functioning production planning tools such as
our FloorMES. These are tools for our customers to boost their
competitiveness”, Jungar says.
But focus on customers is not only about offering develop-
ment. It is also about developing the whole customer journey
from the very first touchpoint all the way to the end of the
s to fulfil the needs of the world’s building construction.
3. Provide double wall
production technology
2.
Digitalize the complete
precast factory
• ELEMATIC STRATEGY
factory lifecycle. An example from the sales part is the develop-
ment of quotations. “We can now offer factory layout drawings
in 3D format which provides a highly visual, concrete and
realistic picture on how the different pieces of a production line
and its surroundings fall together.”
“This strengthens our service to customers at a key point in
their decision-making process.”
Moreover, the Elematic Customer Service team gives their
contribution to strengthen the customer experience. A team of
spare part sales, warehouse, sourcing and systems professionals
have been developing new processes for spare and wear parts
delivery to bring the delivery accuracy to a whole new level.
Generational change to hasten digitalization
To stay at the forefront of digitalization, Elematic started a
Increase
customer
satisfaction
4.
Grow in customer
service by increasing
customer commitment
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  9

TRENDS
• Urbanization. People are moving
to cities more and more, especially in the
developing countries.
• Digitalization. Automation
speeds up production.
• Climate change. We must reduce
energy consumption and
the use of natural resources.
10  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
brand-new software unit in February. Located in Tampere,
Finland, the team of software developers are developing
intelligent software to ensure seamless data flow from
design to production.
“The construction business has always been conser-
vative and is adapting to digitalization slowly. While the
design process is already mainly digitalized, the data flow to
production needs to be more intelligent. The new software
aims to cover that shadow region while responding to our
customers’ needs”, Jungar explains.
“Digitalization will ramp up in speed within the next
few years, as required increase of productivity and gen-
eration change happens within construction companies.
Younger generations will be able to utilise the countless pos-
sibilities offered by digitalization to improve the operations
of precast factories and efficiency.”
To further develop automation in the industry, Elematic
have in the pipeline a new version of ERP for running a
digitalized precast factory. The Plant Control ERP – which
includes tools for production planning, execution and
monitoring – bridges different work processes digitally, thus
enabling fully automated production together with a new
generation of equipment.
“We believe that digitalization is the solution to
ensuring product quality. With fully automated machines,
the risks of human errors can be eliminated. At the same
time, overall factory safety will be improved.”
The construction industry is still struggling with the
restricted availability of professionals. The lack of educated
workers may create quality challenges on construction sites.
This emphasises the importance of relying on automated
processes.
5 400 tonnes less C02-emissions
Environmental issues are constantly challenging the con-
struction industry to develop. The use of natural resources,
the amount of emissions and the environmental impact in
general – there are various aspects to consider.
“Increasing environmental regulations are constantly
creating new markets for the prefabricated industry”, Jungar
highlights.
Pre-stressed hollow-core slabs stand as a very good
example of an efficient use of raw materials in prefabrica-
tion: they provide savings of up to 45 percent in concrete
compared with a plain cast-in-situ reinforced slab. At the
same time, the amount of pre-stressing steel can be cut by
30 percent because of the lower self-weight. For an average
 • ELEMATIC STRATEGY

STRATEGIC FIGURES
• The precast concrete market is projected to grow 5.96 percent between 2017 and 2022*
* Lack of awareness regarding precast construction techniques and its benefits, along with
volatility in transportation charges might restrain the demand for this type of construction.
SOURCE: PRECAST CONCRETE PRODUCTS EUROPE REPORT 2018.

• Up to 45 percent less concrete and 30 percent less prestressing steel is used in

hollow-core slab production, compared with a plain cast in situ reinforced slab.

• 5 400 tonnes of CO2-emissions can be saved annually in the average hollow-core factory,
thanks to automated concrete recycling.

• Extruder E9 delivers 50 percent more output for the investment.

apartment, this means savings of 14.4 tons of concrete and
275kg steel.
In general, factory production saves raw materials, and with
the new solutions focusing on this, the raw material efficiency
is improving all the time. A recent development at Elematic
in this field is the new automatic Modifier E9 for marking and
digging openings to hollow core slabs. Forming an efficient
“In the long run, the use of precast
concrete technology is increasing
as productivity and digitalization
is needed to respond the emerging
need of decent housing in
the developing
countries.”
- MATS JUNGAR
working unit with Extruder E9, the machine features fully
automatic concrete recycling that enables concrete removed
from openings to be recycled back into the hollow-core slab
production process. As a result, an average hollow-core factory,
producing 300 000m2 annually, can decrease the amount of
C02-emissions by 5 400 tonnes.
Urbanization continues to
create markets
Nordic countries and the Netherlands are currently the world
leaders in prefabricated building. There has been a steady
growth of the global precast business for a long time and
the trend has been driven by the urbanization and need for
mechanization in construction industry. Urbanization,
which continues to be a strong megatrend across the globe,
creates increased demand for prefabricated technology also
in the future.
“The coronavirus is affecting the construction business
temporarily. In the long run, however, the use of precast
concrete technology is increasing as productivity and digita-
lization is needed to respond to the emerging need of decent
housing in the developing countries”, Mats Jungar predicts. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  11
Reducing concrete
waste during
hollow core production
With the new Extruder E9 and Modifier E9,
hollow core producers will be able to
reduce concrete waste by enabling
concrete recycling during production.

Sustainability has always been a priority of the concrete industry.

Finding newer, more sustainable ways of working will not only
lessen concrete’s environmental impact; finding ways to save on
the amount of concrete used also makes sound business sense.
Hollow core is already one of the most sustainable products
in construction. During production, it uses up to 45 percent less
concrete and 30 percent less steel. Hollow core is mostly used
in multi-storey residential, commercial, office and industrial
buildings, as well as for vertical or horizontal installations such
as walls or noise barriers. Because it allows long spans, using
hollow core in construction requires less load-bearing walls, giv-
ing more flexibility to modify space during a building’s lifetime.

Waste not, want not

“During traditional hollow core production, concrete that’s
dug out to make openings and recesses for HVAC ducts and
plumbing goes to waste. Think of how much cement and other
raw materials are thrown away because of this. Then add to that
transportation and other related costs and you realize how much
this practice actually costs a company,” Jani Eilola, Elematic’s
Product Director for Floor Technologies, explains.
A new innovation by Elematic could help precast plants
plug this big drain on their finances. “The Extruder E9 is the
workhorse for casting hollow core slabs. When paired with the
Jani Eilola Modifier E9, which digs the openings needed into fresh concrete,

12 
 “Using the combo
can save the average
precast factory
about EUR 135 000
annually.”
- JANI EILOLA

the Extruder E9 makes it possible to recycle concrete automatically
back to the slab production process,” he adds.
How it works
The Modifier features a digging device which moves up-and-down
and has two jaws that bite chunks out of the slabs and disposes to
the recycling bucket. The bucket is emptied into a receiver silo in
the Extruder. Because the Modifier is mechanical, it doesn’t require
water or chemicals during the digging process.
The concrete is then fed with a conveyor screw and mixed
gradually into the fresh concrete in the Extruder’s hopper. The high
speed of the fully automatic recycling process means that the con-
crete maintains its essential characteristics and quality.
“Unlike with manual concrete recycling, the Elematic solution
provides a fast and reliable way to ensure that the quality of
the concrete batch remains the same. It’s also much safer than
recycling concrete manually and needs less manpower as it is fully
automated,” Eilola points out.
Decrease your cost and carbon footprint
Eilola estimates that recycling concrete using the Extruder and
Modifier combo can save the average precast factory about
€135,000 annually. “Concrete accounts for 50 percent of produc-
tion costs. So being able to lessen concrete use by 10 percent will
already have a big effect on the bottom line. The savings add up
once you think of other ways concrete can be recycled – using
concrete cut from the ends of slabs, for example or the leftover
concrete from making narrow slabs.”
Recycling concrete also contributes to lowering a concrete
plant’s carbon footprint. In the EU-area alone, a decrease of CO2
emissions from concrete plants of 540,000 tonnes per year is
possible to achieve.
“The Extruder and Modifier can really make a difference
in helping precast producers optimize their plant’s production
without sacrificing safety, quality or environmental responsibility,”
Eilola points out. ■

Fully automated • NEW DESIGN

No need to lift the bucket high.
concrete recycling with Receiver silo in the new Extruder E9 2019.

Extruder E9 Distributor can be kept in automatic mode.

and Modifier E9 • MAINTAIN SLAB QUALITY

Time limit can be set for recycling i.e. < 20 min.
Recycled concrete inserted gradually into extruder’s hopper where the
recycled concrete is mixed with fresh concrete.

• REDUCED AMOUNT OF RESIDUAL CONCRETE

A new digging mechanism with a linear movement of the jaw reduces the
amount of concrete left on the bed in the process.

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  13
Building the smart c
As the world struggles to come to terms with the changing reality brought
on by urbanization, climate change and a global economic restructuring,
the smart city concept continues to gain traction. But what is a smart city and
what implications does it hold for construction in the future?

Matti Mikkola, CEO of Malaysia-based Eastern Pretech has
lived in Asia for the past 25 years. He has seen firsthand the
changes that urbanization brings to the built environment.
“In developing countries where we see the effects of urbaniza-
tion quite clearly, we’re seeing a rise in the popularity of precast
technology. Hundreds of new precast factories are being built
yearly in China, for example. When vast numbers of people
move into cities, you need to be able to provide housing on a
large scale quickly. Using precast concrete for these types of
construction is the obvious choice because it takes less time to
build compared to casting in situ.”
The surging movement of people towards urban areas leads
to challenges that go beyond housing. The growing need to
provide services for millions of people has led to the growing
popularity of the smart city concept.
Defining a smart city
“Cities account for 80 percent of the global GDP. This means
that there’s a lot of market opportunities that come with
urbanization. The downside is, dense human settlements come
with their share of challenges – CO2 emissions, pollution and
congestion,” Dr Martin Brynskov, chair of the Open and Agile

14  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

rt cities of the future
Smart Cities (OASC) network and Associate Professor at Aarhus
University in Denmark, points out.
“Within the smart cities movement, we are defining the
building blocks of a future society where the physical is comple-
mented by digital infrastructures. There is a global consensus
that the term ‘smart cities’ is incomplete in a way. It is about
‘smart cities and communities.’ We have to start from the
community level if we want to understand how digital transfor-
mation is unfolding.”
“The world is now converging on one definition of what a
smart city is and it is quite promising: It is using physical, human
and technical or digital systems optimally in the built environ-
ment to provide a prosperous, sustainable and inclusive future
for its citizens,” Dr Brynskov explains.
“Concrete forms a large part of the built environment. It’s
been infrastructuring the world for the last century or so. In a
way, what we are looking for is the digital equivalent of concrete.
We use concrete everywhere. You cannot build a society, not
even a shanty town, without it. We need something as simple
as concrete is in the physical world for digital systems. In our
organization, we call these Minimal Interoperability Mechanisms
(MIM) and our goal is to enable people with quite simple needs
– especially in areas like Africa and Asia, where urbanization is
not happening in a very structured fashion – to be able to take
part in this urbanization.”
Sustainability an imperative
Miimu Airaksinen, CEO of the Finnish Association of Civil
Engineers, emphasizes the need for sustainability. “A smart
city is first of all, a sustainable city – ecologically, economically
and socially. We have to remember that cities are made for
people and ‘smart’ is kind of like the glue that connects services
essential to managing the city.”
“The goal of smart cities is to make everyday life a bit
easier for the people living in them but also to help cities run
in an economically and environmental way. This means that
we need to look for ways to ensure that we use resources
efficiently and to make cities sustainable,” Airaksinen says.
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  15
 FOOD FOR THOUGHT

“I
n a way, there is nothing new in seeing the interplay
between human systems, the physical systems and the
technology systems and how they are integrated for
Pratap Padode, Founder and Director of Smart the future. The problem is how do we balance the pros
Cities Council India, agrees. “We need to first draw the and cons of using particular technologies in creating the
line where we can make sustainable living possible. future for ourselves? How do we create systems without
Concrete, for example, is a long lasting building sacrificing proper personal data management and fair AI?
material, which is good for the durability of cities. It is If you put a lot of sensors in a building for structural or
an absolute necessity in creating a suitable environ-
behavioral monitoring, you can actually tell what activities
ment where people live and work. In congested cities,
people are engaged in. That can be quite intimidating.
it becomes even more useful to use concrete because it
But on the other hand, if there’s an incident or situation
allows you to build to the heights you require, making
that’s life-threatening or can affect the structural integrity
more spaces available without sacrificing agricultural
land. Concrete is the most modern material for provid- of a building, you’d want to know. We don’t want to live
ing a built environment as quickly as possible and with without modern technology but I think we should
the least inconvenience.” be wary. We should find a path through all the
Padode notes concrete’s flexibility as an important dilemmas that new technologies pose to us.”
determinant in the role it will play in smart cities of
- DR MARTIN BRYNSKOV IS CHAIR OF THE GLOBAL
the future. “Structures require a lot of precision and
OPEN& AGILE SMART CITIES INITIATIVE (OASC),
the precision that comes out of digitalization can be WHICH ENCOMPASSES 150 CITIES IN 29 COUNTRIES.
very well executed in concrete structures because
concrete can adopt any form that you please. I think
precast, which is already used widely in developed
countries, will become the norm rather than the exception.
In developing countries, we are seeing a rise in the use of
precast technology because of its ability to deliver projects

“S
in a short amount of time. The elements are standardized,
mart cities is not just about technology or
brought to site and assembled. This is a huge plus especially
in congested areas where people are moving about because
devices. They are important, but it’s even
it creates less of a nuisance for the city and its citizens.” more important that we understand why we
Mikkola also sees the benefits of using precast for are using this technology: it’s to make life easier
building the sustainable smart cities of the future. “Using and more sustainable. We need to think about
precast construction technology is more environmentally construction, energy production and transport
friendly than conventional construction methods because when we think about how people live. How do we
it generates less waste, and it is more productive and redefine the urban structure or deal with changes
efficient. When a precast building is designed correctly, in a way that we are making less of a negative
you can actually build a structure so it can be dismantled
environmental impact? For a smart city
and moved to a new location. We have built, for example, a
to work, we have to truly understand
multistory car park using fully bolted connections. When
how the city and the people living in it
it’s not needed in that location anymore, you unbolt the
whole structure, move it to a new location and it can be
function.”
used again, which lessens the need for new construction,”
- MIIMU AIRAKSINEN IS DIRECTOR AND
Mikkola says. CEO OF THE FINNISH ASSOCIATION OF
CIVIL ENGINEERS.
Integrating smart technology
IoT- and AI-enabled services will play a key role in smart

16  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020


“T
he smart city concept is going
to be one of the big drivers of
development in Asia in the next
few years. This puts precasters in a
central role because smart cities develop
around the built environment and precast
technology is an efficient and fast way to
deliver that. As precasters, we’re more and
more concerned about building
environmentally friendly
structures.
- MATTI MIKKOLA IS CEO
OF EASTERN PRETECH.
“D
eveloping countries like India are
seeing more and more the effect
of urbanization. It takes a longer
time for precast technology to be adopted
in these places, though, for a couple of
reasons. First, a project needs to be of a
certain size to justify construction of an
offsite facility for making precast elements,
then transporting them and assembling
them on site. Second, there’s a resistance
among local contractors who mix concrete
on site and who sometimes choose to use
cheaper materials. But developers are slowly
realizing the benefits that precast
construction brings, which
could help address some of
the challenges brought on by
urbanization.”
- PRATAP PADODE IS FOUNDER AND
DIRECTOR OF SMART CITIES COUNCIL INDIA.
• BUILDING THE SMART CITIES OF THE FUTURE
cities and communities, making it imperative to find a way to
easily integrate them into the built environment, emphasizes
Dr Brynskov. “Under the EU-funded SynchroniCity project,
we deployed 50 products and services in 21 cities. Using the
SynchroniCity framework, which is based on the OASC MIMs,
these pilots showed how local governments can effectively
utilize sensors and data to provide services that positively
impact their citizens’ wellbeing.”
Airaksinen points out that we can benefit from the
existing built environment. “Given that much of the world has
already been built in concrete, the key is to take the structures
up to the standards needed now and in the future. We can
look at the built environment around us as a sort of skeleton
for smart technology. It would be a waste of material to
destroy the skeleton, but we can bring it up-to-date. We can
add printed sensors on concrete surfaces, for example, to give
us early warnings about flooding or road conditions. New
concrete structures can incorporate chemicals that can help
the structure heal itself or give signals without the need for
separate sensors. Concrete as a material is really becoming
smarter and smarter all the time.”
Padode also acknowledges that certain issues come with
integrating existing structures into the smart city template.
“One of the challenges of building smart cities is that the
old structures cannot be ripped out completely. We have to
retrofit older structures, but there are also solutions available
for that – concrete beams, for example, can be adapted quite
systemically.”
Mikkola enumerates a number of advantages that precast
elements already offer that make them the perfect building
block for smart cities. “Hollow core, because you can run
wires and other connections through them, makes for a good
building material for smart cities. Plus, it has the advantage
of using up to 40 percent less concrete than other materials,”
he says. “Concrete is also very flexible in terms of integrating
the technology that’s needed in smart cities. When concrete
is still wet, you can put carbon nanotubes that become part
of the structure as the concrete dries. And as the technology
becomes more advanced and the sensors become smaller, the
easier it becomes to integrate with concrete.” ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  17
Digital situation
will speed up constru
Real time tran
data throug
Hollow core slabs
will be delivered on
In the future, all necessary PRECAST week 16.
information at a construction site PRODUCER

may be checked from a shared DSP.

What exactly is a digital situation
picture, and how can DSPs make
construction processes faster?

D
igital situation pictures do not exist yet, but
they are a thing of the future. A DSP is a
real-time situation picture of a construction
project, entailing data about the past, current
and future activities of the project. Context-specific data
will be available in a real-time digital format, which means
that the owner, designers, contractors, and fabricators of a
construction project will have access to information that is
relevant for them at any time and place.
The benefits of DSPs could be enormous to the construc- IN THE PAST:
tion sector. Project parties could make decisions and plan Lots of questions on site
their future activities based on accurate data. Project sched-
ules would become shorter, quality would improve, and Workers could add value to the project only in
misunderstandings could be avoided. Right now, researchers 1/3 of their working time. They spent 2/3 of the
are trying to create a shared data structure for DSPs. There time searching for their tools, materials, and work
are still some questions unanswered, such as what data locations. And wondering what they were expected
will be included and how will it be shared between project to do.
parties. But DSPs will combine information from different
sources concerning the intended end-product, material
IN THE FUTURE:
logistics, resource movements and supply chain. The data Lots of real-time information on site
will staple together BIM (Building information modelling), Workers know where they are supposed to work, where
simulations, ERP systems, IoT sensors, indoor positioning they can find their materials and tools, what was the
systems, photos, point clouds and onsite communication. preceding task, and what is the current work plan.

18  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

on pictures How can
a precast
concrete
truction Drones are used to get accurate
factory prepare
for the digital
future?
point clouds of installations.
Real time transportation Comparing them to BIM models
data through GPS or helps in detecting possible issues
mobile apps. with tolerances.
The precast concrete industry
has seen a surge in digitalization
during the past three years.
Investments are made and the
benefits of digitalization have
become increasingly interesting.
The product was
of good quality. What does the digitalization
Installed succesfully! roadmap of your factory look like?
ASSEMBLY
WORKER

Digitalization and automation will be decisive

issues for precast concrete factories in the
competitive future market. If you are plan-
Week 16. Great, ning to digitalize your factory, remember that
now I can plan my
purchasing automatic machinery is only the
production schedule.
tip of the iceberg. Before you can fully benefit
SITE from your new automatic machines, you
MANAGER
should first make sure that your data-related
processes are in order. When your IT system
supports digitalization, you can utilise it in
Read more every phase of the production process.
A digital situation picture about DSPs: “Accurate data is the heart of everything.
leads to… When you have your production data under
The potential control, you can digitalize all things related to
value of digital
• Less confusion, a product in your factory. Information will no
situation picture
• Faster material and tool handling, longer be scattered around in different fold-
in construction
• Workers concentrating on ers or sent from one person to another via
– What does it
value-adding work, mean for a precast email, but it will stay in the database and it is
• Productive projects, producer? always up-to-date”, says Jarkko Salmensivu,
• Fewer misunderstandings, Director, Software Business Unit, Elematic.
• Less quality problems. In a digital system, all working phases are
moderated in the database instead of Excel
files, for instance. In addition to saving time
and money, digitalizing all factory processes
reduces quality defects and working hours
http://bit.ly/3akODv8 per square metre. Automatic machines do

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  19
How can a
precast concrete
factory prepare
for the digital
future?
not have bad days at work, and they do not
make wrong conclusions like humans do.
Digitalizing the machinery and the
processes of a factory may sound like a
giant investment, which is why some
factories are tempted to postpone it. But
adopting a new – more accurate – working
culture will be worth the effort.
“Think ten years ahead. Digitalization
will happen, whether you jump on the train
or stay on the station. Will your factory
make an effort to prepare for the digital
future? Or will you continue working in the
old ways, while others step to a new level
of productivity by embracing the benefits
of digitalization?” Jarkko Salmensivu asks.
“If you do not digitalize
your processes, you
cannot automate
them either. Accurate
data is the heart of
everything.”
JARKKO SALMENSIVU, DIRECTOR,
SOFTWARE BUSINESS UNIT, ELEMATIC
20  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
Digitalizing a factory is easier together
Digitalizing the processes of a factory do not have to happen at once. There
are different types and sizes of factories, and consultation and customization
are available for all needs.
“With our years of experience in operating with hundreds of factories, we
are glad to help in consulting anyone who wishes to digitalize and automate
their production. When you get consultation from outside, digitalizing a
factory in the right way and the right schedule is not as hard as it may first
seem,” Jarkko Salmensivu says.
Digitalize these 3 processes
1
PRODUCT DESIGN
Choose software that supports automated production
Product design is often digitalized. But usually the digital system aims at
engineers using paper drawings of a building, i.e. the design software does
not support digital production of the precast concrete elements. For humans,
interpreting a technical drawing of a precast concrete element is easy. We
intuitively know which lines in a drawing are dimension lines and which
ones mark the sides of the element. But an automatic machine does not
know this since it cannot interpret images as we can. Hence, when engineers
are designing precast concrete elements, they should use software that not
only enables them to make technical drawings but also supports automatic
manufacturing of the elements.
As you use the right kind of software, you will be able to digitalize many
processes related to the production based on digital product information.
Making material purchase orders can be done by pushing a few buttons,
and calculating prices becomes swift. Planning transportation is normally
an effort, but now the designing software will tell you what location of
construction sites your precast concrete elements need to be transported to
– and in what order.
Elematic Software Unit
helps factories
to digitalize their
production processe
So how do you make sure that your processes are in order and
your IT system supports digitalization? Jarkko Salmensivu gives tips.

2 PRODUCTION PLANNING
Make smart plans
Production plans in factories used to be accurate enough when the
plans entailed the types and quantities of elements manufactured
on a certain day. In a digital environment, automation demands that
the plans are far more accurate: “these elements are manufactured
today, in this production site, on this bed, in this location of the bed”.
Accuracy by millimetres is essential information for the machine since
it will blindly follow instructions and operate according to plan.
The benefits of exact digital production planning are clear. Firstly,
it saves time. In a relatively small factory and a manual environ-
ment, a production planner could use one day per week to plan the
production, which is a fifth of his working hours. But if this process is
digitalized, he will be able to do it in one or two hours. The other ben-
efit comes from production optimization. Smart production planning
is the key to efficient production. Digitalization lets a factory optimize
its production so that the products are manufactured at the right
time, and not too many products end up waiting in stock. In manufac-
turing precast concrete elements, efficiency is based on repetition, so
an effective plan includes repetition as much as possible. In a digital
environment, a material purchaser will see any changes made by the
production planner in real time.
3 PRODUCTION PROCESS
From ambiguous working methods
to precise processes
Data optimization for the working process is very
important. Factories often have their own working cultures
and e.g. ways of marking elements, but automatic machines
do not necessarily work accordingly by default. When the
data is optimized according to work processes, quality
defects can be avoided.
Accuracy is the key in the working process. As a factory
worker sets an element on the table, he may think “hmm,
I will set this slab ten centimetres aside, since it fits here
just fine”. In manual production, this way of thinking
would be ok. People in the following working phase would
make the needed markings in the right spots on the slab.
But if an automatic machine will do the following marking
and plotting automatically, everything will end up 10
centimetres aside. Automatic machines do not understand
flexible rules. They work according to exact commands.

• Elematic’s new software unit started in 2019. The company has channelled resources into software development to create effective,
working and easily-implemented software for factories. The aim is to help factories to stay on top of the construction evolution.

• Elematic Software Unit is based next to the second largest university of Finland (TUNI, Tampere).
The unit features experienced precast industry professionals as well as newcomers to the field who have the latest knowhow in
information technology. This combination ensures the market’s leading solutions.

• The focus is in serving precasters in IT related matters. The unit helps in questions of digitalization by offering consultation
and well-proven products and solutions. The unit supports the factory’s development path by planning the best solutions
for digitalization and following through the process. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  21
Efficient design
overcomes
construction challenges
Design based on the right technology and that anticipates the challenges builders
will encounter during construction is the foundation of a successful precast
technology project, according to Vaibhav Singhal, Vice President, Design, Elematic.

V
aibhav Singhal heads an
experienced team of Structural
Engineers and BIM Modellers
(ASMEPF) based in India, who provide
structural design and BIM services
globally. The team uses state-of-the-art
design and detailing software, ensuring
cost effective design solutions and
lower turnaround times. As part of
design process, the team uses Building
information modelling (BIM) software
to virtually construct the project. BIM
model provides 100% accurate quantity
calculation, ensures buildability with
zero clashes at site, and helps accurately
plan construction time and cost.
Singhal points out that a company
starting to use precast construction
technology should focus on three things:
finding a competent partner in precast
production technology, listening to
feedback from their partner and ensuring
the availability of precast elements in the
project vicinity.
“Finding the right partner in pro-
duction technology is essential because
you then have access to your partner’s
knowledge (and experience) about how
best to deploy precast technology – Everything flows from the design
from design to production and even According to Singhal, most of the
to sales. Listening to your partner’s problems construction companies face
feedback help you avoid mistakes that when implementing precast technology
cost time and money. Depending on can be traced to when architects design
the size of the project, you could also the projects without taking into consid-
consider setting up a plant near the site eration the construction technology that
or simply purchasing precast machinery will be used. “Whenever any project is
to ensure the smooth flow of materials,” conceptualised, the architect should keep
he explains. in mind how the project is going to be
“When the structural
consultant is involved
in the entire concept
development, he is able
to provide valuable
feedback on how
to make the entire
architectural layout
more precast friendly.
This can save time and
money.”
- VAIBHAV SINGHAL

22  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

1 DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Cooperation)
project.
2, 3 (MPMC) Maharashtra Police
Mega City project.
executed, whether conventional or some
other technology is going to be used. If
this is done, construction of the project
goes relatively smoothly.”
“When clients come to us and the
architectural plans are not designed for
precast, it becomes very difficult to get
the full benefits of precast technology
in terms of time and money. But these
challenges can be overcome by a
structural consultant who is competent
in precast. The consultant can already
be involved in the project from the
conceptual stage, when the architect is
also developing a concept layout for the
buildings,” Singhal points out. When the
structural consultant is involved in the
entire concept development, he is able
to provide valuable feedback on how
to make the entire architectural layout
more precast friendly. This can save time
and money.
Elematic’s design team in India
provides total building engineering –
structure, mechanical, electrical and
plumbing – as well as BIM services.
The team’s services are not limited to
the Indian market, as Singhal and his
team are well-versed in international
building codes.
One challenge that Singhal recalls
his team solving is a recent one. The
builders wanted to use precast in an
industrial project because of its quality
and the time it would save. There was a
mandate from the developer side that the
project needed to be finished sooner than
what it would normally have taken. “Our
client was considering three options: a
mix of steel and precast structure or a
purely steel one or they could go with
a precast structure. As they didn’t have
any experience at all with precast, we
went through the project with them in
detail and discussed how precast can be
efficiently utilised. We came up with a
precast-friendly layout for them. Because
we were able to address their concerns
about a technology they were not famil-
iar with, it gave them the confidence to
choose precast, they saw that the other
options they were considering could
probably have saved them some time, but
they would not have been able to save
costs, because of higher cost of building
material consumed.”
In a project in China, a builder faced a
similar situation: they were not familiar
with precast but they had an in-house
structural engineering team. “They had
developed a precast design but calculated
that the cost would be quite high so they
called us and asked if a more cost-effec-
tive design could be developed. Our design
was able to save them almost 30 percent
of the quantity compared to the one their
in-house team had developed. We sim-
plified the design on the basis of relevant
precast design codes, which resulted in
less number of precast elements, and
correspondingly to lesser number of joints
and reduced amount of work needed to
be done on site.
Continued growth in
precast construction
“In the construction industry, we are
facing the same problems from every
direction: there is manpower shortage
and we are conscious of environmental
depreciation,” Singhal points out. Using
precast construction technology can help
mitigate these issues.
“The advantage with using precast
is that it requires less manpower, less
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  23
materials and less time. From this perspective, precast is
environmentally-friendly. In the past couple of years, we have
seen a rise in the use of precast technology not only here in
India but in other parts of the world, as well. I think it will
continue to grow because construction companies are seeing
these advantages. Maybe five years down the line, precast
construction will be the first choice for development projects.”
Singhal says that in situ construction, which is still the
construction method of choice in many parts of the world, is
not enough to meet the soaring demands in the construction
industry. It may not also be the most sustainable alternative
in the long run. “Precast elements are produced in a controlled
environment, leading to less pollution. We are able to recycle
the water we use, which helps minimize our water consump-
tion. Advancements in precast technology also mean we need
to use less cement and steel, which means less materials are
needed. We use less cement per square foot of construction
now than we did before, leading to a smaller carbon footprint
for the industry.” ■

The advantages of BIM

One advantage of using the BIM application is that it breaks silos. “Projects are designed using independent consultants
who come up with the design on their own. We don’t always know how plugged in they are with the rest of the team or
what level of quality we are getting. It can be a very cumbersome process. With BIM all of the designs are developed in
3D and everyone is able to see the interaction of each part with another. We can see how architecture works with the
structure and how they will react with mechanical, electrical and plumbing services.”

“BIM lets us see what would actually be constructed in 3D, allowing the team to resolve 100 percent of the clashes
in advance, before actual construction work takes place. Normally, these incompatibilities would only be discovered
during the construction phase, which would cost time and money. BIM resolves these kinds of problems at the start of
the project.”

“Another advantage of using BIM in precast construction is that you’ll able to take the design and seamlessly integrate
the information to the production system at the plant, for example Elematic Plant Control. Manual data transfer is
not needed so the risk for human errors decreases, greatly improving the productivity of the project and increasing
efficiency in terms of planning the entire production,” Singhal says. ■

24  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 • ELEMATIC DESIGN SERVICES

The Design Team

Civil Engineer Vaibhav Singhal, Vice President – Design, has over
13 years’ experience in structural design of precast/cast in situ and
structural steel buildings. He has designed high-rise structures with
over 50 storeys. Singhal has delivered more than 5 million sq ft of
BIM projects, providing clash-free construction models, construction
drawings and quantities.

Civil Engineer Ninad Ketkar, General Manager – Structures, has over

15 years’ experience in precast design of residential and industrial
buildings, parking garages and other structures. He has worked with
precast clients in the US, Canada, Sweden and Qatar. Ketkar, who is also
a Qualified Associate Value specialist, is an expert in delivering precast
feasibility surveys and building layout conceptualization.

Nishant Sharma, General Manager – Structures and BIM, holds a

Master’s degree in Structural Engineering and a Bachelor’s in Civil
Engineering. With over 12 years’ experience in precast/cast in situ residential and commercial buildings,
Sharma is responsible for Structural Design and BIM through TEKLA. He is focused on seismic engineering and
on developing automation tools and components for fast and accurate output.

Sufiyan Manayar, Senior Structural Engineer, holds a Master’s in Structural Engineering and a Bachelor’s in
Civil Engineering. With close to a decade of experience in the structural design of high-rise residential and
commercial buildings, he has successfully delivered and coordinated the construction of buildings over
60 storeys high. His expertise is in analysis and design using linear and nonlinear static and dynamic
analytical methods.

Civil Engineer Ajinkya Shinde, Senior BIM Engineer – Structures, has 10 years’ experience in commercial and
parking garage precast projects. He has worked on Indian and US precast BIM projects for over five years.

Civil Engineer Kavita Gaurav, BIM Engineer – Structures, has been working with BIM through TEKLA for over
three years in cast in situ and for over five years in precast and steel projects. She develops automation tools
and macros for fast and accurate modelling and shop drawing extractions, BBS, BOQ, Embed lists, among
others. She also sets BIM TEKLA standards for modelling and drawings.

Civil Engineer Gopinathan N Y, BIM Engineer, has over six years’ experience in BIM (precast and CIP) and
rebar detailing. He has worked with clients from the US, UK, India and Europe. N Y has also worked on over 20
projects, including low- and high-rise commercial, residential and public structures.

Mechanical Engineer Sayali Kasav has over three years’ experience in MEPF modelling of residential, healthcare
and public sector buildings. She has handled US projects up to 400 LOD in Revit and delivers clash-free models
with Navisworks and point cloud models using Recap.

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  25
3D facades
– not as expensive
as you may think
Beautiful 3D forms create
natural-looking, exciting
and decorative precast
concrete facades. Experts
in the field of three-
dimensional molding
solutions say that we should
reject the notion of high
price: making 3D facades
is possible in normal mass
production and it can even
be cost-efficient. Early
planning saves money.
V
isuality can contribute to
the habitability, identity and
sense of community in built
environments. Making impressive
3D facades is still quite a new thing
in concrete manufacturing, and
the patented technique by Finnish
company Formconcrete represents the
very latest in facade design. With this
technique, concrete is shaped while
being cast to create signature facades
with three dimensional forms and
surface textures. The poreless surface
of Formconcrete has a matt finish – an
equation which cannot be created with
traditional casting techniques.
26  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
“Normally, you would have to modify
the surface in order to get a matt finish
but with this technique post-treatment
is not needed. The weather durability of
the Formconcrete surface is excellent –
the standard tested surface scaling rate
was 15 % of the allowance according
the tightest Freeze-thaw durability
requirements for 100 years – and the long
lifecycle will cut costs over time. Also, the
visual durability improves as aging can
be considered in the design”, says Raija
Siikamäki, CEO, Formconcrete.
Manufacturing a concrete mix for
Formconcrete does not differ from a
normal process.
“We have tested self-compacting
concrete, grain concrete, and plastic fibre
concrete – all basic matrices except steel
fibre. All the materials that we have
tested have been suitable for Formcon-
crete”, Siikamäki says.
3D creates added value to
precast elements
According to Raija Siikamäki, manufac-
turing 3D surface can be a cost-efficient
choice.
“It is possible to include it in normal
mass production process and you do
not need a specific production line to
manufacture it. Our technique utilizes
the manual work which making a wall
panel would require anyway. You do
not need to make any big investments.
“It is possible
to create added
value for precast
elements in normal
mass production
process.”
- RAIJA SIIKAMÄKI, CEO, FORMCONCRETE
You just need to be interested in creat-
ing added value to precast elements.
This will result in diversity and new
visuality for the built environment.”
The 3D surface is made during a
phase when no other type of processing
takes place, so it does not lengthen the
production lead time. The price tag
depends on the needs.
Early planning is the key
How expensive is it to invest in a great
facade? Industrial designer Topi Äikäs
from consulting company Betoniviidak-
ko answers this question regularly.
“In the best-case scenario, it may
be more cost-efficient than the other
solutions available. The fundamental

Could you make
Formconcrete?
• Making Formconcrete does not set
any special requirements for your
production line. The manufacturing
technique can be adjusted to different
circumstances.
• To ensure good quality, you need
enough curing time. Therefore, a
separate circulating line would be the
optimal way to go.
• Curing can also be done with e.g.
curing compounds, which slow down
the evaporation.
• Your casting machine may represent
new or old technology.
question is: how do we create variety
without prices jumping through the roof?
A 3D facade can be created so that one
mold gets a lot of varied repetition. Then
we will have a lot of installation-ready
concrete surface, and the price tag
equals the price of painted concrete
surface. The 3D surface can be almost
maintenance-free, whereas a painted or
plastered wall must be patched up from
time to time.”
Repetition is profitable and variation
is expensive, so creating a cost-efficient
3D facade demands modularity and
design ingenuity. The key is to invest in
the planning of the mold and starting
it early.
“It is worthwhile to plan the details of
A unique 3D
facade can tell a
story of an area
or guide people
to an entrance of
a building.
a facade early on. For example, only when
we know the miters of an element, we
can determine the exact spacing of the
formwork modules inside the mold. Then
we will have sections which we can move
around in different ways. So we want
to plan to the detail from early on,” Topi
Äikäs explains.
Let us imagine an apartment building
with a 3D surface on the ground floor.
How much extra does the ground floor
cost?
“In a good case, about 25 euros per
square. In an expensive case, 200 euros
extra per square. The price range is
vast. When we want to affect that price,
working with a consulting company in
the early stage is essential.” ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  27
 Alberta Precast ha
start in Western C
Alberta Precast Products is a relatively new
player in Western Canada’s competitive
precast manufacturing market. The quality
of their products has won them projects
over more established companies.
T
he first precast concrete walls
came off Alberta Precast
Products’ production line in
April 2019. Today, the company is
in the midst of delivering their 14th
project and is starting to fire up another
product line. There are a number of
precast plants within a 100-mile radius,
but the quality of their products is
helping them differentiate themselves
from their competitors.
Alberta Precast produces wall
panels for the industrial, commercial
and warehouse markets from its
80 000-sq ft batch plant in Spruce
Grove, Alberta. Sixty percent of their
production is solid panels and 40
percent insulated panels. The plant
currently only runs one shift, five days
a week, producing six panels a day.
“We’ve been going full steam
ahead since April. One of the great
things about using Elematic is that
we’ve no issues with the equipment,
which means we haven’t had to stop
28  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
production at all.” Arek Martul, General
Manager for Alberta Precast, says. “
Going for top-notch quality
Not losing precious time to costly
repairs is just one reason Arek is
happy with their Elematic line. “We
need fewer people because Elematic’s
circulating line brings the products to
the workers, instead of the other way
around. We have only 15 people on
the floor, so the circulating line is very
helpful from a production perspective.”
Workplace safety is another top
priority for Alberta Precast. “Elematic’s
safety features – the dead man’s
switches, bumpers, safety stops – are
all safety programme compliant. An
accident-free day is always a good day.”
Arek believes that Elematic
equipment combined with the
processes the company has developed
will help Alberta Precast strengthen its
reputation for delivering only top-notch
precast products.
 has a strong
n Canada
“We’ve been going full steam ahead
since April. One of the great things
about using Elematic is that we’ve
no issues with the equipment,
which means we haven’t had to
stop production at all.”
- AREK MARTUL, GENERAL MANAGER FOR ALBERTA PRECAST
Alberta Precast Products
Company description: The team at Alberta Precast
Products prides itself on its entrepreneurial spirit.
The company, which was established in June 2018
in a production hall where different precast concrete
products are made, is making a name for itself in the
crowded Western Canada market.
Year established: 2018
Main products: insulated and solid wall panels
(within 38x11 ft); firewalls; columns and beams;
stairwell shafts; elevator shafts; veneer and cladding;
steps.
Average annual production: 155,000 sq ft in 2019,
their first year of operations
No. of employees: 18
Production hall area: 80,000 sq ft
Storage area: 100,000 sq ft
Production line: Wall panel carousel line
Capacity: 3,000 sq ft/day
No. of tables/beds: 20
Other machinery: Comcaster & Electric
power trowel
Accessories: FE Shuttering
They have already ordered a second
mixer from Elematic as they’re starting
to fire up a standard product side for
Western Canada. The plan is to manufac-
ture lightpole bases, transformer bases
and trenching products.
“We ordered the mixer a few months
ago, but we haven’t had time to install
it yet. We need to have some production
downtime to do that,” Arek says with a
quiet laugh. ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  29
 Choosing a wall line?
Don’t miss these 5 points
Deciding to invest in a new precast production line is a big decision that
could have a big impact in the future. Ismo Kallio, Vice President Sales,
of Elematic, shares five questions you should consider if you’re thinking
about expanding your production capacity to include wall panels.

30  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020


Ismo Kallio
1
What is your expected production capacity?
Many new precast producers often do not consider
this factor before looking for wall production lines.
The size of the wall factory, the machines you need
and how they are laid out, these factors are all
determined by the quantity you expect to produce. At Elematic,
we are always happy to put our expertise at your service so
your wall production line is optimized for your needs. If you
are planning to increase production capacity in the future, let
us know, so we can optimize the layout design with a view to
future expansion, too.
Automation is also something you need to consider from
the outset, since producing wall panels already requires a
substantial investment. Automation should be considered
based on the cost efficiency. It is important that the automation
level is optimized and designed based on production capacity
and product type. We in Elematic are ready to discuss different
options of automation in order to find the best suitable solution
for your need.
2
What types of panels are you going to produce?
In order to optimize the plant layout, we need to
know what types of wall panels you are going to
make. This is because different types of wall panels
need different process phases – a solid wall does not
need as many process phases as a sandwich wall, for example.
The type and mixture of wall panels you are planning to pro-
duce affects layout and sequence time of each process phase.
If you inform us about production ratio of the different types of
panels you’re manufacturing, we’ll be able to better customize
our solutions for you.
If you’re planning to manufacture many different types
of wall panels in one line – which require different process
phases and depending on how complex the panels are –
• CHOOSING A WALL LINE?
we suggest adding a transfer wagon to the factory layout. It lets
the tables with easiest panels bypass the slower ones, avoiding
bottlenecks on the production line. Incorporating a transfer
wagon to the factory layout will give you maximum flexibility
and improve productivity.
3
What is the size of the wall panels you are
planning to produce? When choosing a wall line,
you should be clear not only about what types of
panels you’re going to produce, but also about their
size. We recommend setting up the factory based
on the average panel size you produce. If big panels or some
special panels make up only 10 percent of your production, it
doesn’t make sense to design the factory around them – the
equipment would end up costing more. We could instead think
of alternative set-ups, like using a circulation line for the most
common wall panels and setting aside an area for tilting tables
for casting big and special wall panels.
4
What surface materials will you be using?
When you start wall panel production, you might
have several surface materials to choose from:
brick exterior, natural stone, exposed aggregate,
colored concrete, plaster, and graphic concrete,
among others. The choice of surface materials affects the
plant layout design because different surfaces are finalized at
different stages of production. When you’re planning a wall
panel factory, you have to make sure there is room for different
working stations at the right spots in the production line. If you
need special aggregates and colors, you also have to plan how
it affects batching and the mixing plant as well as concrete
distribution and the casting system.
5
Where will the factory be located? If you are
planning to build your wall panel line in an existing
production hall, remember to give us all the mea-
surements, such as cross section, width and length
of the space. The size and shape of the hall will
significantly impact the production line design, because the
space dictates how tables and equipment can be arranged.
If on the other hand, you’re building the factory on a green
field basis, you need to provide a land map with the measure-
ments so we can start to design our first proposal precisely for
your land plot. ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  31
Make the most of your
wall casting process
Are you having problems in precast production? Need to take a step up with your
methods? Here are some tips that have proved useful for many wall producers.

CHALLENGE 1
NARROW WORKING SPACE
When space is tight, the surface area of casting tables needs to be
utilised as efficiently as possible. Sometimes this is achieved by
using magnets which fit in small spaces and have more than one
jaw. When more than one side of a magnet can be used at the same
time, you will save space, time, and costs.
“One factory used wooden side forms with plywood
in their production. They made mainly wall ele-
ments on steel tables, and the magnet they were
using was wide. They were interested in utilising
the table surface area to the maximum”, says
Badei Makhmour, Sales Engineer, Elematic.
The problem was solved with a four-sided
magnet in the middle and aluminum profiles on
both sides of the magnets. Plywood was attached to the
aluminum profile. The total width of the new system saved
more than 200mm. For the factory, this meant over 2,5m2 of
new casting space on the table.
“Another precaster wanted to develop their beam and column
production. Previously, they had used wooden side forms and

plywood on their long bed. We went through different options with
them and decided that the best choice in this situation would be
our Flex system, which includes magnets and aluminum profiles”,
Makhmour says.
The new side form system was only 172mm wide, plywood
included. The new system was 100mm narrower than the old
system, providing over 16m2 more area for casting on the bed.
In the Flex system, the profile is attached on top of the magnet,
which makes the whole system compact. Molding and demolding
are also fast. The system is attached to the table surface by just
pushing buttons on the magnets. When removing the system, you
simply attach a releasing tool to the magnet and pull the handle to
remove it from the mold.
“Instead of concentrating on preparing molds, you concentrate
on producing elements. When you don’t need to use wooden side
forms, you improve work safety, save money and create less waste”,
Makhmour says.
CHALLENGE 2
SLOW CASTING PROCESS
AND SLANT CORNERS IN OPENINGS
Are you still using wood as side forms? In that case you have
noticed that it is time-consuming, and it is hard to keep the corners
straight. In addition, you need to change the wood quite often,
which creates a lot of waste. You could solve these problems by
using magnets and aluminum profiles which always produce
straight panel sides. This system also saves time.
“A precaster needed to speed up their wall production.
They had problems keeping the corners of the windows and doors
in sharp 90-degree angles. The window and door openings were
made of wood and plywood. They wanted a shuttering system
for the openings which would be easy to mold and demold”,
Badei Makhmour says.

32  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 These kinds of problems can be solved by using a system that
consists of light aluminum profiles, push-button magnets, and corner
and locking pieces.
“In our field, even a small change in working methods may lead to
big results”, Makhmour says.
When you start using a shuttering system that consists of alumi-
num profiles and magnets, you will notice that the speed of installing
and removing side forms in window and door openings saves a lot of
time. Aluminum profiles are much more durable than wooden side
forms. You can either cast directly against aluminum, or if needed,
attach plywood to aluminum profiles.
The whole system can be ordered ready for use. All you need to do
is to attach plywood to the aluminum profiles.
So how do you prepare an opening using magnets and aluminum
side forms?
“After we receive an inquiry, our engineering department draws
a mold for a door or window opening. We cut and pre-drill aluminum
profiles according to the drawing that you have approved. Depending
on the door or window size, there will be four or more parts which will
be attached to each other using locking pieces and T-slot bolts. We will
put corner pieces in the corners of the mold to make exact 90-degree
angles”, Makhmour says.
To remove the mold, you do not need to remove the corner pieces.
Just remove the magnets by using a releasing tool, loosen the T-slot
Elematic FaMe
bolts and remove the locking pieces. Adjusting locking pieces will give fastening method
some freedom with panel size changes.
• A unique, patented shuttering system.

CHALLENGE 3 • The system consists of light aluminum profiles,

HEAVY MATERIALS various types of magnets and planning software for
If you are now using steel side forms, you could use aluminum instead. creating drawings and bills of materials.
Aluminum is much more durable than wood and significantly lighter
• FaMe can be used with table and battery molds,
than steel. Lightness also ensures occupational safety: aluminum side
and in beam and column production.
forms can be lifted without using cranes.
“Steel side forms are normally very heavy. Our typical aluminum • The system is modular so you can start with
profiles weigh 4 to 6kgs per meter, and our most common magnets a limited number of components first and
are about 4,5 kilos a piece. Aluminum is much more long-lasting than build the system later.
wood, so choosing aluminum will lead to significant savings over time”,
Badei Makhmour says.
Aluminum side forms can be cut with a mitre saw, and the length
and shape of aluminum side forms can be tailored according to
different needs.
“We want to be challenged in new ways. When you have a
new type of need, we will sit down together to come up with new
How to make solid walls with
ways to utilise existing solutions. Often, we will create new ones. the FaMe shuttering system?
Watch a video on YouTube.
It is an ever-evolving field, and we enjoy inventing new solutions”,
Badei Makhmour says. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  33
34  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
Dubai Precast:
making a difference
with technical
knowhow
Located in the Jabel Ali Industrial area 3, Dubai Precast aims
to lead the way in the UAE towards highly industrialized
construction practices, with Elematic as their partner.

T
he Dubai Precast facility sits on a products like internal walls and slabs. We want
40,000m2 property, along with a separate to be a leading company in pre-finished façade
area of 20,000m used for additional
2
and colored concrete.”
stockyard, in the Jabel Ali Industrial Area, Jensen adds that while Dubai Precast is not
where a team of over 800 people caters to the the biggest company, they have a full range
precast needs of the United Arab Emirates. The of precast products, from hollow core slabs to
company has an annual production capacity of prestressed beams to stairs, cladding facades
350,000m2 of hollow core slabs and 85,000m3 and whatever is required to complete a building.
of reinforced concrete elements such as wall “The market changes from year to year. It’s
panels, slabs, beams, columns, and staircases for important for us to be flexible and to be able to
buildings, along with infrastructure products provide all elements that the market requires.”
like tunnel segments and bridge beams, among
others.
Country Director Henrik Jensen explains
that the company is not looking for high-volume
projects. “We’re interested in medium-sized proj-
ects where we can make a difference in terms of
our technical knowhow, projects that are more
complex in terms of design and execution. We
specialize in shapes, colors, textures and projec-
tions. Our focus is on the architectural side of
precast and how to combine that with standard Henrik Jensen

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  35

Dubai Precast
Year established: 2006
Average annual production: 85,000m3 production total 350,000m2
No. of employees: 850
Production hall area, m : 15,000
2
Storage area, m2: 25,000
Elematic machines: all hollow core equipment, including beds,
casting machines, extruders and shuttles
HOSPITAL STAFF ACCOMMODATION:
• 14-storey high
• Building façade features colored cladding panels, solid as well as
sandwich walls, combining white and reddish shades with
textures and patterns to give the appearance of wood.
Buyer beware
Dubai Precast prides itself on its reliability, delivering projects
on time and of the quality that it is required. Maintaining such
high standards is important for Ove Pedersen, Senior Opera-
tions Manager. It was one reason they chose Elematic to supply
the equipment for their precast factory.
“Elematic supplied all our hollow core equipment – the
beds, extruders and shuttles. We recently ordered 10 new cast-
ing tables to increase capacity and improve quality. We chose
Elematic because they have the experience. We’ve learned from
36  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
experience that sometimes it is too expensive to buy cheaply.
Machine suppliers need to be reliable.” Pedersen, who has been
in the precast industry for 37 years, explains.
One of the things Pedersen celebrates is the high level
of skill and experience that their team at Dubai Precast
possesses. “Our workforce is unique in a way that we want
to do something that’s
normally not done. We
dare to do something
that is not so easy, but
would need both the
engineering department
and very highly skilled
workers to make it. We
are very proud of our
workforce and I think
they also appreciate the
fact that the company
takes the risk of going Ove Pedersen
after the projects we are
doing, which are a bit more of a challenge. They are also proud
to wear the Dubai Precast name because they know the level of
quality they deliver and are known in the industry.”
Local presence important, too
Working with main contractors on projects such as villas,
schools, and hospital staff accommodations, Dubai Precast
relies a lot on Elematic’s local presence in the UAE. “One of the
really good things about Elematic is that they have a Service
Engineer in the UAE. This is very good from our perspective
because when we run into problems that we cannot solve
ourselves; we know Elematic is nearby, just across the road, in
fact. We don’t even have to stock a lot of spare parts in our own
storage as their local office is so near,” Pedersen says.
Being able to provide fast and efficient service and spare
parts is something Dubai Precast appreciates about Elematic,
too. “We have a very good cooperation with Elematic. We get
support for any issues. Sales support and spare parts support
have always worked well. We’ve always gotten a proper solu-
tion within an acceptable amount of time,” Jensen points out.
“We’ve adopted Mikko Hellman, the local Sales Engineer
into the company. We once had a problem with the 265
machine where the product was not so good. Mikko helped
us find a very good solution, very fast. He went directly to the
Service team and sorted out the problem,” Pedersen recalls. ■
Watch a video on YouTube.
United Precast Concrete
shaping the precast landscape
in the Middle East
In the 25 years since it was first established, United Precast Concrete Dubai has
taken part in almost all major construction projects in the region, helping shaping
the region’s landscape.

S
outh African civil engineer Rickert Kruger was Assistant
Production Manager at United Precast Concrete (UPC) Dubai
for the past three years. Kruger works at the company’s
Dubai Industrial City (DIC) plant, which is one of the largest in the
region. Built on a 205,000m2 property, the factory was originally
designed by Elematic as a 100 percent hollow core factory. The
plant, which runs three shifts, can produce up to 400m3 of tilt
products* and 2000m2 of hollow core per day.
Kruger is no stranger to challenges during production. “Last
year, we had about seven days of strand slippages occur. Fortu-
nately, we were able to get a fast response from Elematic: their
team flew in within a week and helped us fix the situation.
Rickert Kruger

*refers to wall products

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  37
They looked not only into the products but also into the
release agents, the calibration of the strand equipment. all
the variables that could have gone wrong. This is the kind
of hands-on technical problem solving that we’ve come to
appreciate and expect from Elematic,” he recalls.
Elematic supplies over 90 percent of the equipment in
UPC Dubai’s DIC plant. “We have over 2km of tracking shuttle,
10 shuttles, 18 extruder units, 6 dispatcher units and 8 cutting
machines. We faced some challenges when we decided to
include tilt products in our offering because the stockyard
was set up 90° perpendicular to the factory, but that issue was
solved satisfactorily as well,” Kruger explains.
”Our concrete supply is transported through shuttles
into concrete dispatching machines to the 12 stockyard bays
and 4 production bays we have. The Elematic system allows
concrete to be transported to into any bay, we’re able to move fix cracks, for example. Precast, on the other hand, is very low
from one bay to another, which gives us a lot of versatility,” maintenance, needing even negligible maintenance and if you
he adds. use colored concrete, you don’t need to repaint the building
“The Elematic machines we are using are exceptionally during its lifetime.”
durable; some have been in operation for over 25 years. Safety is another good reason to choose precast. “Using precast
They’re also very user-friendly. We had an incident when in construction means less safety hazards and headaches as less
a Production Engineer, who had no prior experience using people are needed on site. And because everything is produced
the equipment, was able to operate the batch plant in an in a controlled quality environment, all the elements are always
emergency when the operator wasn’t present.” delivered according to specifications. Precast is also always of
higher strength than in situ or block work,” he points out.
Precast use translates to savings
In Dubai, the most common construction technique is to cast Projects across the UAE
in situ. Iranna Dongritot, Senior Projects Manager, points out UPC Dubai has contributed to major construction projects in the
that precast concrete offers a lot of benefits compared to this. UAE, supplying precast, spiral staircases and hollow core to the
“Construction using precast is about 40 to 50 percent Burj al Arab hotel in Jumeirah, the fully precast Ikea Dubai Festi-
faster than casting in situ. It does cost about 5 to 6 percent val City and providing about 111,000m2 hollow core slabs with
more because of transportation and crane costs, but if you columns and beam structures for the Dubai Festival Plaza mall.
convert time in to cost, precast is cheaper. This time saving “Our vision is to make a difference with precast by being
converts to overall savings in project value and will give early the leading precaster in the region,” says Matthew Palmer, who
rental income to the owners,” Dongritot says. started with UPC Dubai 15 years ago as a project manager and is
Dongritot also points to the maintenance costs that could now the company’s General Manager.
be avoided by using precast. “A building cast in situ would He attributes the company’s successful contributions to
need maintenance every three to four years, to repaint or to projects such as the extension of some facilities of the Abu Dhabi

38  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 United Precast Concrete Dubai
UPC Dubai started its operations 25 years ago
and is one of the pioneers of hollow core technology
in the region.

DIC Factory:
Year established: 2009
Average annual production: 130,000m3 tilt elements;
750,000m2 hollow core slabs
Factory production size: 24,000m2
Stock year area: 96,000m2
Total factory area: 205,000m2

Watch a video on YouTube.

National Oil Company (ADNOC) in Ruwais to UPC Dubai’s

on-time delivery, product quality and a project management
team that offers a good interface with client.
“Companies looking to start their own precast production
facility should ensure that the factory they are building has
good capacity and offers possibilities for expansion. In our
DIC plant, for example, the equipment we have allows us to
manufacture hollow core to prestressed to tilt items. A good
location is, of course, also important.”
He recalls that when UPC started
in Dubai 25 years ago, they had to start
from scratch, by explaining to people
what precast, especially hollow core
technology, was. “Precast has come a
long way in the UAE. It’s become the
preferred solution for building villas
and other residential projects, but
there is still is a lot of room to develop.”
Palmer credits Elematic with help-
ing the factory get up and running.
“From our batching plants to concrete
distribution to casting machines, the
whole factory runs with Elematic. Matthew Palmer
The durability and performance of Elematic machines are
well-tested. The level of service is unparalleled and the
quality of the machines has stood the test of time.”
“One thing we’re very happy with
Elematic is their after sales service.
This is especially helpful because in
the Middle East, local authorities are
always introducing new regulations,
so we constantly have to update our
equipment. Elematic gives us good
feedback about what needs to be
done to make this happen. They help
us with any issues we might have,
from problem solving to new projects.
We always have access to the correct
people when we need them,” he
concludes. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  39
Opportunities await precas
Precast is relatively new to the Middle East market, which has traditionally taken
advantage of cheap labour from abroad to power construction of buildings made
with block work or which are cast in situ. New oversight and government policies
point to new opportunities for precasters in the region.
P
rojects in the Middle East are usually
designed to be cast in situ, according
to Henrik Jensen, Country Director
of Dubai Precast. “Precasters are
obliged to redesign the building as a precast
structure. In Europe, buildings are usually
designed to be made precast by the consul-
tants, the factory then produces the precast
elements that the structure is built from.
Here, our technical staff have to go back to
the architectural drawings and the structural
in-situ drawings to be able to convert the
whole design into precast. It’s very challeng-
ing as it’s almost starting from scratch.”
Jensen thinks
precast has not made
as much inroad in the
Middle East because of
low labour costs. “UAE
has a lot of labourers
that come from low-cost
countries. This is why
even though construc-
Henrik Jensen
tion in-situ requires far
more manpower than precast does, it could
still come out cheaper. This means that if the
cost of building something in precast can’t
match the price another contractor submit-
ted to complete the project using traditional
in situ construction or if a contractor has
already secured a project based on tradi-
tional cheap labour, it’s very hard to convince
40  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
them to move to precast.”
However, Curt Lindroth, Area Sales
Director, Middle East for Elematic, says that
the situation is changing. “Labour used to be
very cheap in the region, but in recent years,
the cost and salaries of foreign workers are
increasing. Governments in the Middle East,
particularly in Saudi Arabia, are looking to
employ more of their own citizens. This has
made it more difficult to get a huge number
of foreign workers to the region.”
“In situ casting is labour-intensive.
People are looking for alternatives that will
enable them to finish construction projects
faster, provide better quality while reducing
the number of workers that are needed
during the building process. This could be
an opportunity for precast factories in the
area,” Lindroth points out.
Population boom
triggers expansion
Jensen, who has been in the Middle East
precast industry for over 20 years, points to
the tremendous population growth in the
UAE as one of the drivers of the boom in the
construction industry. “The population grew
from 2.5 million to over 9 million in two
decades, which of course translated into a
lot of projects in the construction industry.
There were perhaps three or four precast
factories back in the beginning, now there
are about 40. The precast industry has a lot
of ups and downs. Sometimes, we think
projects are going to be made in precast,
but many are still using in situ casting
technology.”
Lindroth sees more opportunities than
challenges for precast in the Middle East.
“The mass production of villas, for example,
is a good niche for precasters. It might sound
almost contradictory to use mass production
and villas in the same sentence, but it’s on
a different level than the mass produced
houses we see in Europe, for example. Again,
seen from a European perspective, these are
luxury villas and precast is the technology of
choice for these.”
Mass production of villas started around
the turn of the century, according to Lindroth.
“These mass produced villas are something
that truly differentiates the Middle East from
the rest of the world. But there is a huge
backlog of housing in countries like Saudi
Arabia and a need to create new investment
opportunities in places like Dubai and Bah-
rain. In the UAE, there have already developed
a lot of areas for precast villas. Worth men-
tioning are the Meydan Gated Community,
the Arabian Ranches and the Akoya Oxygen
master community, a luxury housing devel-
opment which will include the Middle East’s
first tropical rainforest.”
ecasters in the Middle East
Shopping malls, which in the Middle
East are easily between 500,000m to2
1.5 million m2 in size, are also seeing a boom
in construction. “Shopping malls are part of
a drive to encourage tourism in the region
because of the low tax rate on goods,”
Lindroth says. “More importantly, because
of the climate here, shopping malls have
become a place where locals and residents
can escape from the heat. You’ll find for
example skiing areas in malls, indoor theme
parks or aquariums or a zoo. It’s a place
people can hang out in to escape the high
temperatures.”
Tightening regulations
In recent years, there’s been a tightening
of construction regulations in Middle
Eastern countries. “There’s been an uptick in
oversight in the construction industries. As
more and more buildings are built, there’s
greater attention to safety. Some buildings
constructed in block work or cast in situ
might not actually be up to code,” Lindroth
explains. “In Saudi Arabia, for example, new
buildings are required to have insulation.
They’re realizing that using insulated
external walls will actually reduce power
consumption significantly because cooling
down a building takes more energy.”
“Fire and safety is something that has
put the spotlight on different building
materials and methods as well. From this
perspective, concrete has proven to be safer
than aluminium insulated panels. Precast
producers just have to be aware of the rules
and regulations, because they can change
quite fast.”
Looking to the future
According to Lindroth, the current precast
capacity in the region varies widely per
country. “In the UAE, there’s fairly good
capacity. But in Saudi Arabia, the capacity is
actually not enough. Some companies there
have faced economic challenges, but it’s not
from the lack of projects. It’s more about
“Some companies there have
faced economic challenges,
but it’s not from the lack of
projects. It’s more about how
precast companies go about
managing their operations and
the full construction cycle. ”
- CURT LINDROTH, AREA SALES DIRECTOR
Matthew Palmer
(on left) and
Curt Lindroth.
how precast companies go about managing
their operations and the full construction cycle.
They need to learn how to channel projects
from contractors. On the government side,
they also need to look deeper into how to more
efficiently utilize the capacity that’s there.”
UPC Dubai is one of the first precast com-
panies in the region, and is a pioneer of hollow
core technology. Its General Manager Matthew
Palmer says that while precast has come a long
way – being the preferred solution particu-
larly for building villas and other residential
developments – there’s still a lot of room for
the industry to develop. “Precast has definitely
made inroads and there’s a lot of potential
in the residential market, considering how
precast makes it possible to deliver projects
more quickly than traditional methods and
makes for a safer and cleaner build site. If the
residential market continues to grow, then
there’s going to be more space to grow in the
industry. I don’t think the future is going to be
about the latest tech, I don’t think the market
is ready for that.”
Jensen agrees, while also pointing out that
it is difficult to talk about the future. “Automa-
tion is certainly going to be part of the picture,
as labour cost will rise over time. There’s talk of
3D printed concrete, but that technology is still
in its very early stages. A lot of research still
needs to be done before authorities are able
to accept that, especially in earthquake-prone
regions.”
“I think it will be more about combining
technologies that are already available. We’re
still facing permit issues from authorities
about doing precast building past a certain
height, which hopefully will ease over time, as
these types of construction are done every day
in many other parts of the world. There’s also
talk about modular buildings or prefabricated
bathrooms. I think those are going to take a
share of the market in the future. But it also
comes down to cost. Nobody here wants to
pay more than the cost of a traditional build-
ing construction for the sake of using the latest
technology, hence cost, time and quality all
have to work together,” Jensen concludes. ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  41
 Additive manufacturing, more popularly known as 3D printing, as a technology has been
around since the 1980s. With 3D printing machines already available for home use, it’s small
wonder then that companies have started looking into using 3D printing in construction.
3D-printed structures – or at least the idea of it – has been a hot topic in the construction
sector. It seems like almost weekly, there is news of new plans to 3D print structures ranging
from bridges to houses that developers say can be built in a day. After the initial media
excitement, though, news of the success of these projects seem to be slow in coming, if at all.
To shed light on this topic, we asked several experts for their take on the state of 3D printing
in construction today.

3D-printed concrete:

IMAGE CREDITS IN AFFILIATION WITH AALTO UNIVERSITY

still in its infancy
One approach to complexity of the structures
we are building. 3D printing
one approach to increasing automatization
of construction. If we look at it objectively,

automatization would be best suited for simple

structures. For instance, wall
structures in Northern Europe
are rather complex and the use
3D printing in construction is not very self-
evident. More and more automatization will
be needed in construction. 3D printing can be
one tool to help develop automatization in

T
here’s a lot of hype surrounding 3D
printing in construction. On a big
scale, 3D printing in construction is
still in the very early stage of development.
Concrete is a very challenging material for
3D printing. A construction 3D printer works
by depositing materials such as concrete,
layer by layer, through a nozzle. Therefore,
while printing, concrete must be fluid so it
can flow out of the nozzle. After printing,
concrete must lose a major part of its fluidity
quickly to keep the printed shape. However,
concrete should not stiffen too fast to give
layers time to adhere to one another. If the
layers are just sitting on top of other layers
without any strong connection between
them, it will result in weak structure without
any tensile strength. This all means we
cannot use normal concrete in 3D printing,
a special type of concrete – always with
different kind of admixtures – will always be
needed.
We also have to take into account the
of 3D printing in those structures is rather
challenging. The sandwich-wall structure
is already challenging for 3D printing: You
have three layers in the structure – the inner
wall, a layer of insulation and an outer wall.
In addition, you normally have different elec-
trical wiring components assembled inside
the wall structure. Printing a three-layer
structure and assembling electrical compo-
nents during the printing process is not an
easy task. The whole wall structure needs to
be redesigned for 3D printing.
The current speed of 3D printers is not
comparable with modern precast factories.
Also the quality of precasting is much better
than in 3D printing. 3D printing allows
manufacturing of complex shapes, but in
case of typical concrete structures, such as
walls, the efficiency of 3D printing is far from
the efficiency achieved by of current precast
technology. In spite of its present limitations,
we need be open to the possibilities that 3D
printing brings. 3D printing can be seen as
construction, but certainly not the only tool.
We have to keep in mind that one major
advantage of concrete is that it is a material
you can cast into different forms, shapes and
complexity. Different treatments for concrete
surface are also now available. Concrete con-
struction is basically based on this flexibility
of cast concrete. With 3D printing we will
change this totally. 3D printing certainly gives
us new possibilities, but we also lose some
advantages of using concrete. ■
Jouni Punkki
Professor of Practice
(Concrete
Technology)
Aalto University

42  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020


Financial
viability is a
big question
in 3D-printed
construction
W
e should look at 3D printing in
construction as a very interesting
technology that has some
potential in the future. From the safety
perspective, there are regulations that govern
construction of any kind and there are, of
course, requirements to add reinforced bars
for support in 3D structures. Because the
technology is so new and regulatory practices
are ever changing, meeting these regulations
might be a challenge for an emerging
technology like 3D printing. But I don’t think
concerns about 3D printed-structures center
around safety.
3D printing concrete faces the same
issues that other industries using the
technology are facing. Using molds to make
parts through casting is going to be way
faster. With 3D printing, you always have to
wait to make sure that the previous layer can
support the structure before adding the next
layer.
One advantage that 3D-printed struc-
tures can offer over conventional construc-
tion is how easier it would be to incorporate
smart technology such as sensors, for exam-
ple, which makes them easier to integrate
into the smart city template. It’s much harder
to retrofit existing houses made through
traditional construction techniques, from
that perspective.
Developing new technologies take time.
It’s a question of trying and figuring out
details and trying to make all the different
variables work. 3D printing of concrete
Houben /
Van Mierlo
architecten.
A.I: Backbone
structures is something that will probably
become more widespread. What shape it
takes in the building industry is something
we can’t predict at the moment.
The big question, of course, is can you
make it financially viable? Is the technology
something that customers would be
interested in paying a premium for 3D-
printed houses, for example, instead of one
built using other methods? Will the cost of
acquiring be competitive or even comparable
to what’s on offer in the market? There are
other ways to achieve similar results and
these options are less expensive and more
readily available to the construction industry.
■
Jouni Partanen
Department head
(Advanced Production Method)
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Aalto University
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  43
 CONCRETE EXPERIMENT 01
Design: Ashish Mohite, Michal Trpák
Concrete Printing done by: Hyperion robotics

IMAGE CREDITS IN AFFILIATION WITH AALTO UNIVERSITY

Photographer: Umění ve městě 2019

CONCRETE EXPERIMENTS
Design: Ashish Mohite, Kunal Chadha
Concrete Printing done by: Hyperion robotics
Photographer: Ashish Mohite

Many claims but not 3D printing: promising bu

a lot of proof yet a long way to go

T T
here are a couple of companies in the US and in Europe who say he current technology used in construction is pouring
they are concrete 3D printing companies, but in the past two or concrete. To make this financially viable, you have to
three years, they have only made quite small structures such as make the structures simple and standardised. If you
a family home. One Russian company has made a three-storey building don’t the cost goes up since you have to make and customize
in Dubai. There’s also this company in Estonia that’s about to build a different moulds. The problem is that not only does this create
3D-printed house. We’ve been helping them to make it into a reality, but elements that are not visually appealing, simple structures use
the finished product is yet to be seen. a lot of concrete. With 3D printing, we can cut down about 50
Construction is a highly regulated industry and one reason stopping percent of the concrete used by focusing on where the wall,
3D-printed concrete from becoming commercially available is because of for example, bears the load. I can print rows to make a slab
all the regulations and the time it takes to get permissions. The concrete and only use materials in those places where I actually need it.
used for 3D printing is also more expensive than traditional concrete However, this means we need to develop new design method-
materials because of the admixtures needed to make sure it’s the right ologies at the time as well to benefit from the new technology.
consistency. Unfortunately this takes time. 
The technology is continuing to develop though. When they 3D The industry is focused on what material is currently
print a wall, they make it like a sandwich with two sublayers so there is available. I think if you’re going to change something, it’s
space for pipes and ventilation, among others. In Zurich, they were able a good idea to look at it from a societal and sustainability
to construct a three-storey house using different technologies. They perspective. I saw an opportunity when working with digital
invented something called the “Smart slab” that had all the heating concrete: everyone is supportive of changing the makeup of
elements inside the slab, but they used very expensive 3D-printed concrete because 3D printing is not perceived as a threat by the
moulds to achieve that. It was an experimental project to prove that the traditional construction industry.
concept could work. I think there’s also a lot of possibility offered by 3D printing
Most of the companies involved in 3D printing in construction of to make more smart materials. Why not bind electric conduct-
course say that it’s a better technology than precast, but so far, they ing materials in the concrete so we don’t have to put wires in
haven’t really shown proof of that yet. ■ our concrete structures anymore? With 3D printing, you can
add per centimetre, make changes in the material, make it
Ashish Mohite bind electricity in the exact spot you want, make the concrete
Doctoral Candidate translucent where you want. It’s about combining 3D-printed
Department of concrete with smart technology to benefit us as a society.
Mechanical Engineering
Aalto University

44  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020


ng but still
One stumbling block is economic viability. Technology
like 3D printing will not be adopted widely if there’s no visible
economic benefit at some point in time. So manufacturers
could maybe look into expanding their business model so
construction is not judged just on the price of the house or
structure being built, but also on the impact it has on our
ecosystem and its sustainability.
That being said, there is a lot of difference in 3D printing
a bridge versus a house. We announced a project to build 3D-
printed houses in Eindhoven two and half years ago and the
first house is still not built. The complexity becomes evident
once compared to the first printed bridge. The first bridge
opened within a half year after the start of the project.
We have learned that it is awfully difficult because when
building a house, there are complicated systems – HVAC,
electricity, internet connectivity – that you have to take into
account. It took us a long time to figure out how to do that
and I think it will take many more years before we can print
houses or buildings on a larger scale. Bridges are more simple
to 3D print, since they have less details. ■
Theo Salet
Dean of the Department
of the Built Environment
Full Professor of
Structural Design /
Concrete Structures
University of Eindhoven
Perfect for
decorative
elements but not
yet for structural
components
3D
printing is a very interesting production system which we are
following very closely. It’s already being used in many sectors,
such as steel and plastic production and in aeronautics,
particularly in the manufacture of airplane parts. However, it is not as widely
used in the construction industry.
As experts have noted, there are still a lot of challenges that need to
be resolved before 3D printing makes its mark on construction. I believe it
is the future of our business – it’s just a question of how and when. Right
now, 3D printing is mostly used to create decorative elements. In some
cruise ships, 3D-printed elements made from plastic and cellulose fibers
are used as part of the interior design.
Although concrete is not widely used for 3D printing yet, it provides
a lot of benefits: it is fireproof, strong and could withstand the elements.
This is what makes it the perfect material for 3D-printed external ele-
ments, such as statues or columns, especially since people are looking for
something beyond the basic boxlike precast structures.
Decorative elements can, of course, be cast in concrete; but this
requires form workers who are craftsmen. One practical application for 3D
printing in construction is in the making of molds. In complicated precast
projects, creating the mold is always a challenge as it requires a lot of labor
and precision. If molds were 3D-printed, the process becomes easier and
requires less labor.
There have been tests carried out on 3D printing whole structures
using concrete, such as single family dwellings. It’s good that these tests
are being done, but it is also clear that 3D-printed concrete still has a long
way to go. There are quality and technical challenges that need to be over-
come, especially when we start thinking about 3D printing big structures
like multi-story buildings. Building with 3D-printed concrete also faces
an economic challenge. Additives needed to make concrete work with 3D
printing technology are very expensive.
Construction that relies fully on 3D-printed concrete – where all
reinforcement, HVAC and sewage systems are integrated and not put in
separately as they are done today – is just not possible at the moment.
Maybe in the future, when we have developed concrete technology to the
right level, 3D printing structures
will be a viable option. ■
Petteri Laitinen
Vice President,
Projects and Services Elematic
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  45
 Changing the
face of India

B.E. Billimoria moving to precast concrete technology

BE Billimoria & Company is one of Indian’s leading firms of civil engineering construction
contractors. Ranging from commercial, residential spaces to some of the most iconic buildings
in India, like the 316-meter Namaste Tower, are all among their project list. In addition,
Billimoria has a precast project in Pune; a mass affordable housing for the Maharashtra police.

T
he company was established by Mr. Beji E Billimoria
and Mr. Laxmidas K Kapadia in 1958. Mr. Jeet
Kapadia, the Executive Director of Billimoria and the
third generation of its founder, has recently started to
follow his father’s footsteps to continue the family’s legacy in the
construction business.
“We cater to all sectors, and work with some of the biggest real
estate developers, governmental organizations, and corporates.
Our main model is to give the right quality, because today in India,
the quality is the most important,” Jeet Kapadia says.
While many factors have contributed to Billimoria’s success
since its foundation, the company has always been the innovator
and the true pioneer in the construction industry in India, from
deployment of sophisticated building systems to the adoption of
new construction technology, and to bravely pioneer the precast
building technology in India.
in India. The government has already set an ambitious project to
build 20 million affordable houses and 98 smart cities by 2022.
Precast concrete building technology will be the key enabler for that
mission, as it can not only ensure faster completion of a project but
also brings down its overall cost.
The traditional construction methods used in India require a
high amount labor for extended periods of time. This results in high
costs, long duration of the construction project and quality variance
due to human factors.
Precast concrete as a building method allows for more control
over an entire building project. “As we increase the size of the
projects, as we go to megaprojects, the amount of labor required is
a big variable. We wanted to avoid that variable, and try to bring
everything into a factory, so we can have quality control, cost control
and timeline control. The only way to go for that was to go for
precast,” Jeet Kapadia says.

A growing demand for high-quality The best way to move forward

affordable housing Even though there are some obstacles hindering the growth of pre-
With the rapid economic growth and unprecedented pace of cast concrete building technology in India, in Mr. Kapadia’s opinion,
urbanization, there is a staggering demand for affordable housing precast is one of the best ways to move forward.

46  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 “Quality is the best benefit, because your slabs, beams, columns
and walls are produced in a controlled environment. As a result,
you are sure of the quality which you are getting. Speed is another
big factor, because in the end, your financial depends on how soon
you can complete your project,” Mr. Kapadia clarifies.
Confidence rooted in a world-class partner
When evaluating suitable long-term partners among the many pre-
cast machinery companies, Elematic caught Billimoria’s attention.
“We went through a lot of companies, who are doing precast,
and felt with the increasing presence in India, Elematic will be
able to support us the best in terms of after sales service, in terms
of designing. We also felt that the machinery, which we got from
Elematic will be for a longer period of time, and it will not give us
a lot of trouble as compared to many of their competitors,” says
Mr. Jeet Kapadia.
Billimoria’s precast factory is located within a 116-acre site in
Pune. The 2-acre factory includes production and storage yard. It
produces slabs, walls and staircases. The capacity is approximately
1.5 million square feet of construction area in a year.
“We have three slab beds which are 120 meters long; for the
walls, which are mainly load bearing walls, we have battery molds
and mechanical tilting tables; and molds for staircase walls,”
Jeet Kapadia tells.
Jeet Kapadia
“I think the whole set up works well. The shuttle basically
supplies the concrete bed, but the same shuttle can also go to the
battery molds. The logistics of that has been worked out very well
by Elematic, as well as our engineers in cooperation with each
other.” Mr. Jeet Kapadia continues.
“Also, the way cranes were setup with the help of Elematic, in
order to ensure the finished product was taken from the factory
to the storage yard, the gantry cranes, the wagons ), all of that, the
whole setup has been excellent, and I’m very happy with that.”
“There were a few hiccups as there are in any this kind of
projects which we deal with, but I think overall, Elematic and
Billimoria did a great job coming together, getting the products on
site and delivering appropriately.”
With the service agreement, Elematic’s team has been on
site to provide support for any quality issues or machine issues.
For example, when the thickness of the wall elements needed
to change from 170mm to 160mm, a swift solution was needed.
Elematic’s experts helped to refabricate, ensuring the production
continued with 160mm without much of a lag.
“I think the slab quality, which we are getting right now is
beautiful and definitely helps us gain more confidence in precast,”
affirms Mr. Jeet Kapadia.
No quality compromised in
the Maharashtra Police project
The Maharashtra Police housing project is aimed to build affordable
houses for retired police. The total land is 180 acres, of which
Billimoria started to develop approximately 40 acres for 5200 apart-
ments, all of which must be completed within four years.
“All of the buildings are ground plus 14 stories. And our aim is
to ensure after the ground floor, all the other floors are done with
precast. The building design is pretty simple, there are only few
differences depending on the flat contributions.” Mr. Jeet Kapadia
says.
“We are very proud of the whole project, because we are doing
it for the Maharashtra Police. We aim to give them affordable prices
with good quality, the quality they deserve after serving the state.
That is our intention and that’s what I’m proud of.” ■
2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  47
The smartest way to b
“T
he Maharashtra police housing project is about
5 million sqf residential development, comprising of
about 60 towers and 5248 homes in all. We are building
this entire development using Elematic precast equipment and
methodology,” says Mr. Sandeep Bedi, Managing Director of
IQB Private Limited.
  IQB (Ingenious Quality Buildings Private Limited) is an
innovative construction solution provider, with a specific focus
on precast construction technology. They are India’s only end-
to-end precast construction services provider, specializing
in PMC, planning, production, logistics and installation
services, and the principal contractor for B.E. Billimoria
providing end to end precast services for MPMC. With a
highly experienced and motivated team of over 100 precast
professionals, IQB in on a mission introduce manufacturing
efficiencies and culture in Indian civil construction sector.
  In Sandeep Bedi’s opinion, precast is probably the smartest
way to build buildings in India or building India itself as
90% of the building can be made in a controlled factory
environment, free of weather dependencies and reduced labor Sandeep Bedi
dependencies.

the third building, we are in the process of laying the screed,”

Direct savings from speedup construction
Onsite precast plant minimized the crane requirement.
The Maharashtra police housing project uses 4 tower
cranes, each of them handling three buildings at a time.
  “The ingenious part is that we are using one tower crane
on three different buildings. The three buildings are at
different points in the lifecycle: if we are installing walls in
one building, the other building is at the stage for steels,
the second needs services for the structural toping, and on
Mr. Sandeep Bedi explains. With the optimized way of working,
enabled Sandeep Bedi and his team to get a floor cycle of 12
floors in 12 buildings in 12 days, basically a floor a day.
  The speed of construction is the key, because it also ends up
to the costs. The interest rates for real estate projects in many
developing countries are very high. “The costs of money are
staggering in India. In real estate, the interest cost is between
18–20% annually. So, If I can reduce the construction cycle by six
months, that is a direct saving of almost 10%.” Mr. Bedi states.

Project:
Maharashtra Police Mega City, Pune
Contractor: BE Billimoria Elematic deliveries
Elematic reference:
• Mechanical tilting tables B.E. Billimoria
Project Details:
• Three 120-meter slab beds with a slipformer Watch a video
• 4.5 M sq.ft. on YouTube.
• Battery molds (original and cold shutter)
• G+14 buildings, 60 towers
• Complete project engineering
• 1RK, 1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK, 3.5/4.5 BHK Apartments
• Plant installation
Check out the project via this link: • Production and installation supervision
http://mpmcpune.com/index.html • Annual maintenance agreement

48  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

o build India

Not just an equipment vendor
“The journey thus far has been extremely interesting, huge
amount of learnings. And being with Elematic has been
delightful. They bring in a wealth of experience, which is global,
but they also have pretty much the maximum amount of
information on Indian precast as an industry.”
  “Elematic has held our hands and helped us beat every
challenge. So, it’s been like Elematic is not a vendor from whom
we’ve bought an equipment. They are actually a partner that
holds our hand in every challenge that we are facing, be it a
production challenge, an installation challenge, and even if
we talk about manpower training.”
  “I’m particularly proud of the partnership which we created
with Elematic, with our team, clients, and the eventual users.
Because of that partnership we’ve created a very high-quality
product, which will eventually offer a lasting home cherished
by families for a long time.” Mr. Sandeep Bedi concludes. ■

The Potential of Precast in India

Technavio,a global technology research and advisory firm, has released a report claiming that the global
prefabricated construction market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6–7 per cent until 2020.

However, in India the uptake of modular technologies continues to remain slow and so far, prefabricated
buildings comprise only 1 per cent of India’s $100 Billion Real Estate Market.

“I think as the demand is increasing, as it is increasing every year, a lot more people are willing to take a chance
on precast. As more and more people get educated, I think the field will gain traction, people will get into it, and
I feel very positive about the outlook. Especially with the government now trying to get a lot of projects offering
precast solutions. So, there is a bright future for precast in India for sure,” Mr. Jeet Kapadia reckons. ■

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  49
 Ask Elematic
with Leena Raukola, Elematic’s Customer Service Director

When you make a substantial investment, say, in a precast plant, you’d be reassured
to know that a competent and service-oriented team are there to make sure you
have all the parts you need to keep your plant running.
Leena Raukola has been Elematic’s Customer Service Director for the past two
years. In her role, she has direct responsibility for the wear and spare parts sales,
as well as product sales, service sales, and warehouse operations.

How would you describe the Elematic

customer service team?
Our team, is com posed of 30 sales and service engineers and warehouse
people in Akaa and a customer service team in Dubai. We pride ourselves
on our team’s diversity: it’s made up of men and women from five
different nationalities, and ages ranging from 20 to over 60.
One of our goals is to increase diversity within Elematic. Since we
have a global customer base, our customer service team needs to be able
to understand different cultures and how they affect the way people do
business.

What’s a normal day like among

members of the team?
Sales and service engineers have different daily tasks. The sales
engineers’ daily work is simply to help you get the most of your Elematic
equipment. They’re in sales and do the usual work related to sales
everywhere, such as making offers and confirming orders but the
way they do it is more technical oriented. They need to have technical
knowledge in order to recommend the right products for your needs.
Service engineers are even more at the frontline of customer service.
They make service visits and conduct scheduled visits based on the
service agreement. They man the helpdesks that customers call to when
they have issues and they help start up new production line.
Elematic’s main warehouse center is in Finland, and it feeds the
smaller warehouses in Dubai and the US. Our warehouse team is
in-charge of picking, packing and sending orders out.
One thing all our customer service team members have in
common is that they really do want to help. They have a very flexible
way of thinking and working, because every day is different. They are
interested in learning new things and providing answers because
we have so many different machinery that questions we get can be
related to production or maintenance or whatever.

50  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

Elematic just turned 60, which have. The shop shows the same information as what’s in the
owner’s manual and shows only the parts list and drawings
translates to many generations related to the machine you own. You can then make a

of machines working all around
the world. How has this impacted
your team’s work?
This is actually a unique challenge we find ourselves facing.
When a machine gets older, it becomes harder to find parts
and people that can help repair them. Elematic machines are
so well-made, they’re outlasting everyone.
Older machines are also not usually used as often and
kept as spares, so when a call comes for service, it means
that the need to find a solution is urgent. It can sometimes
be difficult for customers to understand that old spare parts
are not as readily available as newer ones and it could take
time to get them.
“Favourites list” for the parts you order most often. You can
save the order as a list and use it for your next order.
As Customer Service Director,
what are your goals for the team?
I’ve been with Elematic for the past two decades, starting in
Technical Documentation and moving from there to Quality
Manager, Product Development Manager, Mechanical
Engineering Manager, Quotation Department Manager,
before taking on my current position. You can say I know
Elematic inside and out.
Most of my work life has been spent developing
something. I want to continue to modernise our processes,
improve the way we do things and further develop service,
sales actions and warehouse operations.

Tell us a little about Elematic’s

e-shop. For machines as
complicated as a precast plant,
does it make sense to just order
something off the shelf, so to
speak, instead of talking with a
customer service representative?

Our e-shop is actually quite popular for those with newer

machines, especially in the Nordic countries. The idea behind
the e-shop is to get rid of routine work. It’s not your usual
online store: you can only buy parts for the machine you

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  51
The Elematic 90+ project team
The Elematic 90+ project team seeks to improve delivery accuracy through several different
projects in sales, purchasing and sourcing and warehouse operations. Elematic’s goal is to
ensure the highest possible level of customer service, so that precast plants around the world
have the parts they need. Each project have named projects managers for taking care of the
needed actions for improvements. Other personnel from these project areas are also involved.

The project managers are:

LEENA RAUKOLA, Customer Service Director (Head of wear and spare parts sales, FaMe sales, service sales
and warehouse operations). Her main targets in Elematic 90+ project are to define Elematic’s Service promise
and to create policies for items stocked in Elematic warehouse. “One way we can truly show that we value
our customers is to make sure that we deliver the parts they need when they need it.
This way, they don’t have to stop their operations unnecessarily,” Raukola explains.

JUHA ROSSI, Purchasing Manager (Head of purchasing and sourcing operations). Juha manages the
projects for improving sourcing and purchasing operations and resources, including personnel and
systems for daily work. According to Rossi, during the E90+ project, the whole supply process was
evaluated carefully. “We were forced to step out of the box, re-think and develop many of critical
steps in our process. In purchasing we created new purchasing organization, changed ways of
working, developed processes and the most importantly improved skills inside our team,” he says.
This year, Rossi and his team will further develop purchasing and sourcing operations with new
projects, such as a new purchasing portal that will increase speed, transparency and communication
throughout the whole supply chain.

NIKO JUSSILA, Warehouse controller (Warehouse resource and systems development). Niko’s main
targets are to create tools for warehouse resource planning and capacity utilization follow-up. He is also
in-charge of bringing lean management into the warehouse’s daily work.
“In October last year, we started to renew the warehouse layout and item flow. By the end of the
project in December, warehouse capacity increased by 30 percent,” Jussila points out. Warehouse
operations carried on as usual during the renewal. Jussila is looking forward to the new warehouse
management system that will soon be taken into use.

JUKKA LUOMA, Strategic Buyer (Sourcing development). Jukka manages the projects to improve supply
chains and the utilization of purchasing tools. He is also in-charge of bringing lean management into
purchasing and sales’ daily work. His main targets are to improve communication between departments to
deliver a timely response to sales-related issues, to ensure that the tools in purchasing department are used
and maintained properly and to identify and fix bottlenecks in complicated supply chains.

ANNIKA SEPPÄNEN, Purchase Engineer (Purchasing, ERP System Administrator).

Annika’s main target is to develop the ERP system to better support purchasing and
warehouse operations. As ERP System Administrator, she aims to continually develop the use
of the system and improve the spare parts delivery process from the different production
units to the central warehouse.

52  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 How to stress efficiently?
Instead of the single stressing method, you can opt for bundle stressing.
Think about it: when using the single stressing method, you spend approximately 2.5 hours
for stressing 6 beds, while the same takes about 30 minutes with a bundle stressing machine.
The time saved has clear impacts on the production costs. After all, nearly all operations at the
plant must be stopped for the time of the stressing process. Stresser E9 has been designed for
simultaneous pre-stressing of up to 20 strands and 200 tons.

Jani Eilola,
Product Director,
Floor Technologies, Elematic

Read our blog @elematic.blog

Why millimeters cost you money? 5 things to consider when digitalizing

Concrete is by far the most expensive
wall manufacturing execution
part in the hollow-core slab produc- Whether you are considering
tion. Roughly speaking, concrete / digitalizing your precast wall
strands account for about 55% of the manufacturing or you would
slab price and wear parts for only 3%. like to better understand its
  As a precast manufacturer, you have advantages, this blog is for
probably pondered whether to invest you. I will describe five points
in spare and wear parts of original that are worth considering
equipment manufacturer or slightly when planning wall
less expensive parts of an external manufacturing execution
provider. In my blog, I explain why it digitalization.
makes sense to keep you millimeters
in place and use more expensive
original parts.

Mikko Hellman, Jarkko Salmensivu,

Service Engineer, Product Director,
Customer Service Dubai, Elematic Software & Automation, Elematic

How to increase precast floor plant safety

… Fortunately, these falling elements did not cause life-threatening consequences for an
obvious reason; the incidents happened in responsible factories where it’s prohibitedto go
under a suspended load.
  I think that the most common reason people go under suspended loads is the illusion of
saving time. For example, people go under an extruder while it is suspended to look at screws
and other wear parts. The safety hazard could be avoided by checking the bottom of the
extruder while it is on a maintenance platform. To increase safety, just decide not to go under
while the machine is suspended.

Jaakko Ala-Rämi,
Service Engineer, Elematic

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  53
The birthplace of
Green quality
Have you ever wondered where your precast
concrete machinery comes from? Let’s take a round
tour in Elematic’s assembly unit.

S
taff wearing overalls, safety glasses, caps and boots are
working in a production hall in a practiced manner. These
mechanics and electricians know how to make Extruders,
Modifiers, and Acotec wall panel production lines. Modules
are assembled, machines electrified, and dozens of details are
measured and tested here. Magnets for wall production are also
manufactured in this hall.
Elematic has two production units in Finland. The one
in Riihimäki is a steel element producing plant where mold
production, painting and welding take place, but this production
unit in Akaa is a machine assembly unit which was opened
in 2015 next to Elematic’s headquarters. Of course, production
existed before these new facilities.

Making 20 machines a month

Painted, welded and machined parts from about 200 suppliers
enter the production hall through a large door in one end, and
ready-to-use machines exit the hall from another door on the
opposite end.
About twenty machines are assembled in this unit every
month. Assembly times vary a lot, from 50 hours to over 500
working hours, depending on the type of the machine. Complete
machines are shipped all over the world, to different parts of
Europe, The Middle East, Asia, and North
America.
The production hall resembles a
Tetris game with a constant incoming
flow of suppliers’ parts and an outgoing
flow of products to precasters who need
Mika Rantasalo and mechanic Mika Uusitalo (on right).
to receive their new machines on time.
“One of the most important and challenging parts in my job
is to make sure that we are always on schedule. We must get the
incoming parts on time, the machines must hit their destination
in time, and the quality of the components must meet the set
requirements”, says Mika Rantasalo, Production Manager,
assembly.
Once a machine is ready and tested, it is packed and sent
to the factory who placed the order. Functional logistics and
discharging are also parts of good service.
“We aim to serve precasters as well as we can. We make all

“Good customer service
means that the start-up of
our machines will be as easy
as possible.”
- MIKA RANTASALO,
PRODUCTION MANAGER, ASSEMBLY
settings and adjustments which can be made here so that the
start-up of a machine will be as easy as possible at the factory.
I am proud of my team and the good team spirit we have here.
The way people share their assembly knowhow with their
teammates is especially great”, Rantasalo says. ■
Akaa Production Unit
• Machine assembly unit.

• Number of staff: 32.

• About 20 machines are assembled here every month.

The length of different projects varies typically from
50 to 500 working hours.

• The machines assembled here include Extruders (for

hollow-core slab production), Modifiers (for making
recesses and openings), hollow-core slab saws, Preparers
(for oiling and brushing beds), shuttles for concrete
transportation, Acotec partition wall production lines,
push-button magnets for shuttering systems, Plotters
(large inkjet printers), Loopers, and twin shaft mixers.

• Comcasters (for wall element production) and

Framecasters (for beam production) are assembled here
occasionally.

• Ready products are shipped all over the world.

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  55
Taking pride in
craftsmanship
A dedicated team of mechanics and electricians ensures
the quality and functionality of your machines.
1. What is the most challenging part in the machine you
are assembling?
2. What are you proud of in your work?
Heikki Hell, mechanic
1. I am assembling the nozzle unit of an
Extruder. The most challenging part is
making the inside of the gearbox. You
must be very precise to ensure good
quality.
2. I take pride in the fact that only top-
notch products leave this unit. We get
hardly any reclamations.
56  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020
Teija Heikkilä, electrician
1. I am equipping a baseplate of a switch-
gear for a concrete mixing plant. With
12 years of experience, I know all the
working stages inside and out.
2. I am proud that my craftsmanship
shows in the final product. I start with
a clean table and create a product that
works. That makes me feel like I have
succeeded.
Mika Uusitalo, mechanic
1. I am doing quality control for
a hollow-core slab saw: I am
ensuring that a side transfer
wagon is even-keel. You must be
alert in all stages.
2. I am proud of being able to
improve machine quality with my
own hands.
Say goodby
It is time to change the wear
parts in your feed screws or
brass bearings. When you
are about to start work, you
notice that one of the rings
or bushings is missing and
you just cannot find it. Does
this sound familiar? To ensure
your maintenance support
performance, we created
exchange kits that contain
all the spare parts needed to
finish the job at one go.
To make hollow core slab production eas-
ier, our spare parts team created exchange
kits that will save time and money in fac-
tories. We are releasing two types of kits:
an exchange kit for feed screw and a brass
bearing exchange kit. Both are suitable for
Elematic’s 900-series machinery.
“The idea of the packages is that when
you need to change your feed screws, you
can order a kit which contains all bearings,
screws, rings, bushings and other small
parts needed for the job. This is really sim-
ple, and it saves time and effort in storage.
When you have this package, you have
everything you need”, says Toni Oksanen,
Service Manager, Elematic.
The kits were created based on feed-
back from factories as well as the long
experience of Elematic’s service engineers
and spare parts dealers.
“The idea of the packages is that
when you need to change your
feed screws, you can order a
kit which contains all bearings,
screws, rings, bushings and other
small parts needed for the job.”
- TONI OKSANEN,
SERVICE MANAGER, ELEMATIC
odbye to missing wear parts
“There are lots of spare parts that tend to
be forgotten when precasters make orders. And
when it is time for maintenance, a forgotten Exchange kit for
part may not be changed but the machine is feed screw,
reassembled using an old part. That is when a EL905E.
bearing worth of ten euros may cause consider-
able damage when you think of how little a new
part would have cost”, Oksanen says.

Act now to get the campaign price

Ordering an exchange kit is much simpler and
faster than trying to find all wear parts of a
machine from catalogues of different manufac-
turers. When you order a kit, there is no need to
feed in several individual item codes, and the
Brass bearing
price for the full kit is also lower than that of the
exchange kit,
separate parts.
EL905E.
Elematic has started a campaign on the
exchange kits, which will continue until
August 31, 2020. The campaign price is the
same for everybody – whether they have effec-
tive service agreements or not.
“We will gladly receive feedback and devel-
oping ideas from you. If your hollow core slab
machine needs an exchange kit that is different
from these two kits available, please feel free to
contact us directly, and we will create the kit you
want”, Toni Oksanen says. Exchange kit
for feed screw,
Please visit Elematic’s website to find the EL906E.
product you need. The kits are not yet on
the Elematic e-shop. Ask your spare parts dealer
for additional information.

Brass bearing
exchange kit,
EL906E.

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  57
Follow us
on social media:

/Elematic
/elematic-oyj

/elematic.precast
/elematic

58  CONCRETE ISSUES  2020

 Did you know
that you can find

/ElematicGroup
Elematic also
on WeChat?
To start following us, download
the WeChat app to your mobile device.

Once you’ve got the app up and running,

scan the code below with WeChat’s own scanner.
You’ll find it by clicking the “+” sign on the top
right hand corner of the app, in chat mode.
/elematic.blog

Please note! WeChat content is in Chinese only.

2020  CONCRETE ISSUES  59
 Princeton rises in
Stockholm’s new life
science cluster

H
agastaden is one of Stockholm’s most ambitious urban
development projects. Located in the Norra Station
area, where the medical university New Karolinska
Solna University Hospital opened in 2016, between Stockholm
and Solna, Hagastaden aims to be one of the world’s leading
centers for life science.
Vitartes, Sweden’s leading developer of life science real
estate, is building the Scandinavian Life Science project in
Hagastaden. Vitartes CEO Steinar Stokke described the
development as “Vitartes’ contribution to the development of
tomorrow’s life science in Hagastaden and in Sweden,” promot-
ing collaboration among healthcare, academia and industry.
The Scandinavian Life Science project consists of two
buildings – Patienten and Princeton – in an area of about
50 000 sq m. Patienten will house an Eye Center of Excellence,
where the new St. Erik Eye Hospital will be located. Princeton is
an office development offering over 20 000 sq m of rental space.
The Princeton building was designed with precast elements
in mind. Erection on site for the 13-story structure, which
includes two underground levels, started in September 2018.
Finnish company Introgroup Oy was the structural engineering
subcontractor and provided all the manufacturing drawings for
both steel and precast parts, using Tekla Structures.
“The loadbearing frame for vertical forces is made of steel
with composite columns which were filled with concrete in
situ,” Samuli Saari, project manager of Introgroup Oy, explains.
One of the building’s key structural key features is the
open floor plan and efficient use of precast concrete elevator
Princeton (part of the Scandinavian Life
and technical shafts as the lateral force resisting system.
Science Project)
“Often buildings like this have cast in situ shafts. Using precast
concrete elements with tension forces this large was personally
Start of construction: Q3 2016
new for me, but as I learned it is very efficient,” Saari says.
Year of completion: 2020–2021
WQ box beams provided structural support for the floors, which
Developer: Vitartes were constructed using hollow core slabs.
Gross area: 27 000 sq m Princeton’s frame structure was completed in 2019 and
Height: 13-stories (2 underground) tenants are expected to move in around the end of 2020 and the
beginning of 2021.
Architect: White
“The idea for Scandinavian Life Science is to develop a
Subcontractor: Ruukki Construction OY
project that provides a high degree of integration and creates
Structural design: Introgroup Oy
synergies and added value for everyone involved,” Stokke says.
Amount of precast elements: 23 000 sq m of hollow core slabs “We strive for a productive mix of tenants where everyone
Precast elements delivered by: Skandinaviska Byggelement AB has an ambition to share knowledge and experience and
collaborate.”