Survival being the driving force of our existence, having shelter has been one of the primal needs from even before humans got civilized. From living in the caves to building houses, humans have never ceased looking for better ways to keep the environment from impacting their life, to strengthen their defense against natural disasters, and improve their standards of living. And it is a no-brainer that concrete has been the most pioneering substance in this venture for safety and security. 

“Concrete is the single most widely used man-made substance in the world.”

–The Guardian

Considered the most popular material for construction applications, concrete is widely used because of its strength, durability, versatility, and reflectivity. For millennia, humans have used concrete in their pioneering construction endeavors. Architectural marvels from the Roman empire that withstood 2000 years of ‘conquer and reign’ of numerous empires, indicate Roman’s mastery of concrete. The concept of modern concrete originated in the early nineteenth century after the discovery of portland cement, the primary ingredient of concrete today.

The versatile properties of concrete have made it the go-to option for almost all construction projects. Concrete comprises a unique mixture of portland cement, aggregates (gravel, crushed stone, sand, etc.), and water. An exact ratio of all the components must be maintained to formulate concrete with the desired strength. However, obtaining the perfect ratio of all these components throughout the construction process is often a challenging task. From constructing pavements to building skyscrapers, concrete usually accounts for around 20% of the total construction cost. Hence, it is obvious that consumers would want the best outcome of their investment. 

Among the several methods of preparing concrete, the conventional techniques have lost their popularity in recent years after the idea of ready-mix concrete was introduced. Ready-mix concrete (RMC) holds the trump card for overcoming various complications associated with conventional site-mix concrete and for ensuring the best outcome for consumer investment.

Ready-mix concrete on the rise

Ready-mix concrete (RMC), as the name implies, is the concrete mix that has been specifically manufactured to meet the needs of any construction project. Manufactured in a batch plant according to consumers’ needs, RMC is generally delivered to the site of construction in the barrel truck or in-transit mixers. This on-demand benefit of premix concrete may appeal to both small and large-scale project developers.

“Global Ready Mix Concrete Market to Reach US$569.9 Billion by the Year 2026” 

–Prnewswire

Ready-mix concrete promises a longer lifespan and is more durable. By exploiting standard mixing practices and incorporating state-of-the-art experimentations, expert suppliers of ready-made concrete in Bangladesh such as Mir RMC can ensure consistency and quality in the manufactured product. In recent years, the rise of ready-made cement has resulted in a gradual drop in the usage of site-mix concrete. Almost 60% of the total production of concrete today is sold in ready-mix form. As a result of its huge consumer demand and rapid boom of infrastructure construction throughout the world, RMC is expected to have tremendous market growth over the next couple of years. Moreover, advancement in production technologies has been driving ready-mix concrete suppliers to scale up their production rate. 

Even amidst the COVID-19 crisis, the global market for ready mix concrete, which was evaluated to be worth US$378.5 billion in 2020, is expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2 percent to reach US$569.9 billion by 2026, according to PRNewswire.

The reasons behind the rise of pre-mixed cement can be articulated in three words: sustainable, affordable, and time-saving. The rapid rise of infrastructural expansion around the world demands an easy, less time-consuming solution for construction works, and interestingly, ready-mix concrete ticks all the boxes. The use of RMC eliminates the hassle of manually mixing the components onsite such as cement, sand, gravel, and other additives, as it comes ready-made and uniform in ratio. It saves the consumers from such messy procedures, therefore saves time. Moreover, it is an affordable replacement for conventional concrete such as site-mix concrete. Another huge reason behind the popularity of ready-mix concrete has to be its sustainability. With the rising risks of global warming and climate change, it is high time the industries invested in renewable and modern technologies. RMC is a greener solution compared to its conventional counterparts. Hence, it would be surprising if RMC industries did not acquire huge consumer demand over time.

Potential benefits of ready mix concrete in Bangladesh

With constant urbanization and the aim to develop nationwide infrastructure, the future of Bangladesh is embedded with a solid concrete foundation. A higher per capita income has made it possible for the affluent people of Bangladesh to desire personal homes and to upgrade the standards of housing. 

However, being a developing country, an overriding concern is to find a cost-cutting solution to this rapid growth of infrastructure. But conventional concrete mixing processes demand additional manpower and equipment, resulting in higher construction costs. Again, the difficulty of allocating space for mixing components involved with on-site concrete is a major drawback, especially because land shortage at various construction sites is a significant concern in Bangladesh. On the contrary, ready mix concrete is advantageous in densely populated areas and other work locations since it spare the customer the inconveniences of purchasing, storing, and handling concrete mixing components. Hence, as a sustainable solution, the demand for ready-made concrete in Bangladesh is guaranteed to increase by multiple folds every year.

Nonetheless, the trend toward ready-mix concrete in Bangladesh is mostly confined to the developer companies. While mass people are still not aware of the advantages of ready mix concrete, one can assume the ready-mix product to be the better one after observing the developer companies opting for ready mix concrete. Eventually, the general consumers may get the best return by buying ready mix concrete from trusted brands such as Mir RMC, which supplies the appropriate volume of pre-mixed concrete to the correct ratio.

Assurance of consistency and quality

Incorporating ready mix concrete in a construction project can allow a significant speeding up of the process due to improvement in the quality of the ingredients used.  Unlike site mix concrete, the integration of advanced machinery, and superior raw ingredients guarantees a consistent level of quality. 

One of the major concerns with site mix concrete is the high rate of inconsistency that results from manual mixing and varying ratios of ingredients. Conventional mixing practices allow human error to intervene resulting in product composition varying from batch to batch. On contrary,  ready-mix is manufactured in a controlled plant and is always mixed in an already proven protocol. A ready-mix concrete facility uses high-tech equipment and standardized processes to produce high-quality concrete.

Saving energy and resource

The traditional practice of mixing concrete onsite demands a lot of labor and long periods to complete any project. With the construction industry adapting to the use of ready-made concrete, construction projects now require less monitoring, hence, saving on energy and resources. Less supervision in construction sites means less expense in hiring specialists. The components of mixing concrete do not need to be delivered separately to the construction site saving up time and energy. 

Furthermore, because ready mix cement preparation relies less on human labor, the risk of human error is minimized to a great extent. Project stakeholders do not have to worry about planning, setting up, mixing, cleaning, and disassembling the mixing equipment which saves a huge amount of resources.

Solution to space shortage

Opting for RMC or ready-made concrete demands no space for storing the raw materials of concrete mix at the site. Due to not requiring site-based plants, developers do not have to worry about finding space for setting up plants or the risk of depreciation after the completion of the project. Whereas, alternative concrete mixing practices are notorious for taking up a large area at the project site for both storage and mixing of the basic materials. In the densely populated metropolitans of Bangladesh like Dhaka and Chittagong, getting rid of the trouble of finding space for site-based concrete mixing is only possible by relying on ready-made concrete.

Versatility and convenience 

Ready-made concrete has proven to be a versatile construction material globally since its introduction. This tailor-made mixing approach is flexible enough, from its usage to the setting of placement, to ease the trouble of both small and large project developers. Customizable variables such as water-cement ratio, ingredient proportioning and compressive strength, and slump can be adjusted as per the requirement of the project to suit particular project demands in terms of quality and quantity. Ready-made concrete guarantees durability and consistent structural strength to be considered as a fundamental construction component for housing as well as business construction projects.

Performance in strength

Several mild to moderate earthquakes in the last decade has brought the fact into daylight that Bangladesh lies within an earthquake-vulnerable zone. To address this issue, it is critical to ensure that infrastructure projects in our country incorporate the finest concrete mixes available. Ready-made concrete is very likely the best option to tackle this challenge. In 28 days of concrete cylinder tests,’ ready-mixed concrete was found to be 1.5 times stronger than site-mixed concrete according to aboutcivil.com.

Higher production rate

To meet the demand of the rapid infrastructure boom in Bangladesh, developer companies will soon encounter challenges if they continue to rely on site-mix concretes. Undoubtedly, ready-made concrete is the alternative they should be looking for. Opting for ready mix concrete may speed up the pace of the construction process by multiple folds. In comparison to an onsite mixing plant, which has a speed of 5-10 cubic meters per hour, a ready-made concrete plant features an automated mixing system that allows it to make concrete at a rate of 30-60 cubic meters per hour.

Reducing wastage

Setting up onsite mixing plants at every construction site requires additional machinery, energy, and space. This waste of resources can be minimized with RMC plants. Furthermore, better handling and consistent mixing practices involved with ready-made concrete help to cut cement use by 10 to 12%. Overall, employing ready-made concrete assists to reduce the waste of raw materials throughout the construction process.

Less negative impact on the environment

The impacts of climate change on the ecosystem are evident, and governments across the world are adopting legislation to safeguard nature and mitigate the damage caused by industrialization. Building codes set by the authority require the developers to assess the environmental consequences of each material used for construction and select the least damaging ones. When compared to site-mix concrete, ready-made concrete is more advantageous and eco-sustainable. Using bulk cement in RMC facilities rather than cement bags on individual construction sites reduces dust pollution caused by cement bags. Closed chamber RMC facilities help minimize noise and air pollution. To add more, less fuel consumption is possible by avoiding onsite concrete mixing on individual construction sites.

Efficient delivery system

Delivery time is important regardless of the quantity being big or small. One of the major benefits of ready mix concrete is to provide customers with the highest quality material in the shortest time possible. Almost all major Ready-mix concrete producers of Bangladesh have a big fleet of transport trucks that can deliver RMC to the construction site while maintaining the product’s quality. 

Summary

Ready-mix concrete is perhaps the most versatile method of formulating concrete for any type of construction project. This practice offers a complete package by saving time and resources, being eco-friendly, and providing more quality and durability. Ready-mix concrete is the way to go if one wants a simple, stress-free concrete solution.

F.A.Q.

1. Is ready mix concrete available in Bangladesh?

Ans: Several companies in Bangladesh operate numerous RMC plants countrywide, e.g., Mir Ready Mix concrete.

2. Should one choose ready mix concrete over site-mix concrete?

Ans: Ready-mix concrete is the number one choice of engineers and developers globally.

3. Is ready mix concrete cheaper than conventional concrete mixing practices?

Ans: Ready-made concrete cuts construction costs by several folds by getting rid of unnecessary onsite mixing plants.

4. Can ready mix concrete be used for developing residential buildings?

Ans: The market for ready-made concrete is on the rise, ranging from constructing residential buildings to business infrastructures.

5. Does ready mix concrete require more maintenance? 

Ans: RMC requires less maintenance when compared with the conventional forms of concrete mixing.