For as long as there are humans on the planet, the need to provide them with a safe place to call home is paramount. Civilization brought people out of the caves and into the age of concrete, which allowed them to create structures that could serve as homes. In both the old and new world, once the basic need for shelter was met, people felt compelled to uphold their glory by building architectural wonders like Egypt’s Pyramids or Rome’s Colosseum that would last for millennia. Eventually, in the last few centuries, the construction industry has grown at an unprecedented rate thanks to concrete, which is the most widely used man-made substance in the world.

There has been a dramatic increase in the demand for concrete in developed and developing nations as a result of economic expansion and population growth. Because of the growing demand for concrete, stakeholders had been looking for a more convenient and sophisticated alternative to the process of site-mix concrete, which has been around for centuries. By exploiting standard mixing practices and incorporating state-of-the-art technologies, ready mix concrete was developed to meet the demand for an easy, less time-consuming solution for construction works. Notably, the global construction industry has been steadily shifting toward ready-mix concrete due to its ease and sustainability. Moreover, a growing shift in industrialization from the west to Asia has been a tremendous catalyst in the rise of the construction industry, which surely will result in the expansion of the ready-mix concrete market in the coming years. 

The Growing Ready Mix Market in Bangladesh

Ready-mix concrete, abbreviated as RMC, is made up of particular proportions of rock, cement, sand, and water. The exact ratios of these ingredients vary depending on how the product will be used, the climate of the project site, and several other relevant factors. The process of making ready mix concrete begins in a local batch plant. The ingredients are brought together and blended in this stage to get the desired texture, after which it is transported to the construction site in a specially designed truck known as a transit mixer, in which the concrete is kept under rotational movement until it is deposited into the construction site. The concrete arrives at the project site in the form of newly mixed concrete that is still in an unhardened state. As no more treatment is necessary afterward, it can be placed straight in the formwork. Ready-mix concrete is bought and sold by volume and measured in cubic meters.

The first ready-mix concrete was manufactured in 1930, although it was not widely used until the 1960s. It has been a popular choice worldwide for the past few decades. The global market for ready-mix concrete was evaluated to be worth US$378.5 billion in 2020, and even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it is expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2% to reach US$569.9 billion by 2026, according to PRNewswire. Following the global trend, as the construction scenario in Bangladesh continues to grow year after year, high-quality ready-mixed concrete has emerged as the preferred building material of choice over conventional site-mix concrete across the country’s construction sector.

Current market scenario and future market potential

Urbanization of almost all divisional and district areas countrywide has led to the development of infrastructure facilities which is a significant factor driving the ready-mix concrete market growth.

The growing high-end investments from the private sector and help from governmental organizations lead to the rise in construction opportunities. These include the construction of roads, bridges, flyovers, urban infrastructure, real estates, power plants, commercial buildings, industrial zones, and other types of construction. Due to the rapid expansion of all of the above-mentioned buildings, there is a huge demand for this form of concrete, causing the RMC industry to rise exponentially. Since its introduction by a single company in Dhaka in 1991, the ready-mix market has evolved into a huge sector with about 50 small-to-large companies operating throughout the nation. Mir Ready Mix, Concord Ready Mix, ADTL, Abdul Monem Ltd., among other companies, are big names in the industry. One reason why a few of these companies have appeared in the marketplace is their involvement in the real estate industry, which allows them to supply ready-mix concrete to meet the continuous demand for their own projects. Despite the fact that the majority of ready-mix batching plants are concentrated in Dhaka and its outskirts, as well as Chittagong, a small number of batching plants can be found in practically every divisional area. Developers in most towns and cities will have a choice of three or more suppliers from which to choose.

Despite the fact that competition in the ready-mix concrete industry has intensified in recent years and is likely greater than it has been in the past, the sector remains largely under the dominance of a small number of companies that account for roughly two-thirds of the market share. However, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the few small businesses that enter the scenario each year have been forced to close their existing operations. 

Current trends, however, indicate that the industry will continue to expand. The property market is expected to see a boost in activity in the coming years. Fortunately, numerous government initiatives that had been put on hold due to the pandemic have been resumed, which should aid the sector in its recovery. Overall, it is anticipated that more favorable market circumstances would be experienced by suppliers all over the country. Insiders in the ready-mix concrete industry predict that the market will bounce back by a significant margin by 2025 compared to where it is now.

Ready Mix Concrete: A Lucrative Business

Because of urban growth along with other massive infrastructure projects being undertaken by the government, the construction industry has become an important part of the economy. Amidst all of this, it should come as no surprise that a growing number of cement and concrete supply firms are opening plants to produce ready mix concrete. Certainly, providing customers with a high-quality concrete mix may earn the suppliers a strong reputation as well as a substantial profit margin over time. 

Booming construction industry

Validating its status as a developing country, Bangladesh has made significant investments in the construction industry, including residential and multipurpose buildings, economic zones, highways, bridges, railroads, tunnels, airports, seaports, power plants, dams, and wastewater projects, among other things. The government had undertaken the objective of developing megaprojects as the driving force behind Bangladesh becoming a self-sufficient middle-income nation in accordance with the ‘Vision 2021’. Projects like the Padma Multi-Purpose Bridge and the Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development have helped this sector grow faster than its usual momentum. Megaprojects and private investment in housing have helped to propagate the construction industry by 9.6%, according to World Bank data from 2019. Ready-mix and construction companies operating in the domestic market are sure to profit from the increasing demand for building materials as a result of the government’s new plan to build more industrial and urban regions as well as more megaprojects by 2030.

Customer’s first choice

The fast expansion of infrastructure around the world demands a simple, less time-consuming approach for construction projects, and ready-mix concrete surprisingly checks all the parameters. The reason behind the rising customer demand for ready mix concrete may be summed up in three words: environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and time-saving. Because RMC is ready-made and uniform in ratio, it eliminates the difficulty of manually combining components such as cement, sand, gravel, and other additives on-site. Thus, it saves customers’ time by avoiding such time-consuming procedures. Furthermore, it is a cost-effective alternative to conventional concrete. As a result, RMC is undoubtedly the initial preference of the customers. Customers’ positive perceptions of RMC imply that there is significant business potential that has yet to be exploited. As a result of this economic appeal, ready mix concrete manufacturing has seen investments from both large and small construction companies. 

The ability of production in large scale

As the consumer demand for homeownership is increasing at a rapid pace, the challenge of speeding up construction projects to meet the growing demand is unquestionably significant, and ready-mix concrete is practically the only viable solution in this case. Using ready-mix concrete instead of site-mixed concrete can speed up the construction process by multiple folds. In contrast to an onsite mixing plant producing concrete at a rate of 5-10 cubic meters per hour, a ready-mix concrete plant has an automated mixing system that allows it to produce concrete at a rate of 30-60 cubic meters per hour. It is much easier for suppliers to supply ready-mix concrete on large scale compared to site mix concrete production. Therefore, ready mix concrete is the obvious choice for developers and suppliers since the manufacturing rate is greater compared to the energy used.

Product with guaranteed durability

Since its launch, ready mix concrete has proven to be a dynamic construction material all over the world. This custom-made mixing strategy is flexible enough, from its use to its placement, to save time and effort for both small and large project developers. Variables that can be customized, such as the water-cement ratio, component proportioning and compressive strength, and slump, can be altered to meet the project’s quality and quantity requirements. Ready-mix concrete ensures long-term durability and continuous structural strength, making it an important component in both residential and commercial construction projects. It’s no surprise that suppliers would choose ready mix concrete over traditional concrete for the sake of ensuring longevity and sustainability of their products.

Reduced production cost

One of the most important challenges for a developing country like ours is finding a cost-cutting solution to the rapid infrastructure expansion caused by urbanization. Traditional concrete mixing procedures require more employees and equipment, all of this adding up to a significant increase in construction costs. On the other hand, the concrete is uniformly mixed in the plant and transported to the job site in the case of RMC. As a result, the additional cost of manpower, mixing equipment, and space allocation is already decreased while working with RMC. Therefore, RMC has unquestionably become a primary focus and choice for manufacturers and suppliers.

Convenient business for congested cities

Opting for RMC or ready mix 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. 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-mix concrete. Furthermore, it is possible for an RMC supplier to build a single plant in a large geographical area capable of producing enormous amounts of concrete and then distribute it to multiple surrounding towns if they have a large fleet of transit mixers at their disposal.

Meeting eco-sustainable goals

Bangladesh, being one of the most densely populated countries, is witnessing the severe deterioration of its natural environment. The construction sector is a major source of garbage, accounting for 40% of all waste generated. When the Ministry of Environment & Forests realized that sustainable development was not being implemented in construction projects around the country, they introduced the National Environment Management Action Plan (NEMAP). 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. It has thus been difficult for Bangladeshi construction product manufacturers to combine environmental considerations and safety precautions with commercial considerations. This prompted companies to invest in and manufacture environmentally friendly ready mix concrete.

When compared to site-mix concrete, ready-mix concrete is more eco-sustainable. In an attempt to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, RMC manufacturers modified the proportion of additives like fly ash/slag in their products. This effort aims to minimize the usage of common Portland cement (source of greenhouse gas) in concrete mixing practices. Moreover, 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.

Summary

Being a developing country, an overriding concern for Bangladesh 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 of the inconveniences of purchasing, storing, and handling concrete mixing components. Hence, as a sustainable solution, the demand for ready-mix concrete and the market for this industry is guaranteed to increase by multiple folds every year.

F.A.Q.

Why do customers tend to choose RMC over conventional concretes for the past few decades?

Ans: Ready-mix concrete offers a complete package by saving time and resources, being eco-friendly, and providing more quality and durability. So, RMC is the way to go if one wants a simple, stress-free concrete solution.

What is the future market potential for ready mix concrete?

Ans: Due to Bangladesh’s fast urbanization, ready mix concrete has great market potential in the face of the climate change crisis.

Is ready-mix concrete a cost-cutting solution for concrete suppliers?

Ans: Ready-mix concrete is perhaps the most cost-effective solution for both construction project owners and concrete suppliers because of its superiority, convenience, and durability.

How to find a trusted and reputable concrete supplier?

Ans: A good strategy to find a reputable concrete supplier in your neighborhood is to check online reviews and take suggestions from closed ones. Mir RMC is a leading concrete supplier in the country, delivering the highest quality product right to your door.

What factors to consider when buying ready-mix concrete for your construction project?

Ans: To know about the factors involved in choosing high-quality concrete, follow this detailed guideline.