Members of the Mid-States Concrete Team look forward to connecting with you virtually at this year's AIA Wisconsin Conference on Architecture and Expo slated for Tuesday, April 27 from 12 pm - 2 pm and Thursday, April 29 from 11 am - 1 pm.
While we will miss seeing all of you in person, we are happy to share a wealth of information about precast concrete through our virtual booth. And team members will be on hand to chat with you throughout the expo. Your projects are a big deal and we are grateful every time you choose to partner with us.
Learn more about our latest technology Graphic Concrete® (pictured in header) during four 15-minute presentations led by our very own Colin Jones, preconstruction. Creating Distinctive and Attractive Designs on Precast Concrete Faces is scheduled at 12:30 pm and 1:15 pm on Tuesday, April 27 and at 11:15 am and 12:15 pm on Thursday, April 29.
Learn more here.
Sustainability and Precast Concrete
808 on 5th is a five-story multi-family/mixed use building located in the heart of Coralville. Precast beams, columns, and hollowcore were used to form the underground parking structure.
Precast concrete contributes to green building practices in significant ways.
The primary ingredients of concrete – sand, gravel, and cement – are mineral based. When mixed with water, the cement chemically reacts to create a crystalline matrix with a high compressive strength. The matrix binds the sand and gravel together, creating concrete. The low water-cement ratios possible with precast concrete (in the range of 0.36 to 0.38) mean it can be extremely durable. Unlike other construction materials that can rust, rot, or otherwise degrade when in the presence of moisture, concrete can actually get stronger if there are unhydrated cement particles available to react with the water.
Because precast concrete is factory-made, there is little waste created in the plant, and it reduces construction waste and debris on site, reducing construction indoor air quality concerns. Components are made by highly experienced personnel who apply stringent quality-control measures. In the factory environment, precast producers are able to achieve consistency in temperature and moisture and low water-cement ratios that are not possible in field-fabricated concrete. Precast concrete can easily attain strengths of 5000 psi to 7000 psi or more, with densities that minimize permeability.
Precast concrete’s fresh and in-place performance can improve when several common industrial by-products are added. Fly ash, slag, and silica fume, which would otherwise go to landfills, can be incorporated into concrete as supplementary materials. These by-products can also reduce the amount of cement that is used in concrete. Reinforcement is typically made from recycled steel. Insulation and connections within the precast concrete also contain recycled content.
The thermal mass of precast concrete absorbs and releases heat slowly, shifting air conditioning and heating loads to allow smaller, more efficient heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems. Insulation is often used in architectural panels to increase the thermal efficiency, with continuous insulation in walls being possible. The resulting savings are significant – up to 25% on heating and cooling costs.
The load-carrying capacities, optimized cross sections, and long spans possible with precast concrete components help eliminate redundant components. Precast concrete is also friendly to downcycling, in which building materials are broken down, because it comes apart with a minimum amount of energy and retains its original qualities. An example of downcycling would be the use of crushed precast concrete as aggregate in new concrete or as base materials for roads, sidewalks, or concrete slabs.
Precast Chalk Talk: Episode 22
Learn more about how Mid-States lives its purpose of helping those who are in need within the Mid-States Concrete Industries family, as well as our community-at-large.
Join our dynamic team
At Mid-States Concrete, we are always looking to add top talent to our team. Now in our third-generation of family ownership, Mid-States prides itself on being a leader in the precast industry, providing hollow core plank, wall panels, beams, columns, and balconies to our project partners.
Our vision is to change the world by being the safest and most innovative precast building company. We partner with our Customers to innovate, design, and build meaningful buildings in which to live, work, learn, and play. We commit to all this by creating a positive experience with every interaction, having a sense of humor, and believing that being a little weird is a good thing!
Did you enjoy playing with Legos as a child? Did you spend hours building with Lincoln Logs, K’nex, and blocks? Do you drive past construction sites and wonder “how’d they do that?” Better yet, do you know “how they did that?” If you answered “YES” to these questions… you might be just what we are looking for.
We work on everything from the senior living community where grandparents reside, to the multi-family apartment building a newlywed couple calls their first home, to the school gymnasium where 10-year-olds learn how to shoot a three pointer.
Navigate on over to our Careers page. The perfect job might be waiting there for you.
Earn Continuing Education Units
Hagen Harker, president of Mid-States Concrete Industries, hosts conversations and demonstrations to explain the process of producing precast concrete in a multi-part vlog.
Earn 1 AIACES HSW: Precast Chalk Talk Webinar
Offered through AIA Wisconsin, Precast Chalk Talk is presented by our very own President Hagen Harker. Through a multi-part vlog, engineers, project designers, and production teams will discuss concepts to installation of precast elements. This in-depth look at the production of precast concrete exhibits how it contributes to green building practices. As explained by technicians, the low water-cement ratios possible with precast concrete mean it can be extremely durable. As demonstrated, precast concrete is factory-made, there is little waste created in the plant by employing exact-batching technologies, and it reduces onsite construction waste and debris, as well as construction indoor air quality concerns. Locally-sourced materials reduce early-stage life-cycle costs and product durability optimizes material use over the life of the building.
Learn more and sign up here.
Online, Self-Paced CEU Courses Available
Mid-States Concrete Industries is a proud member of the AltusGroup. The first-ever national partnership of precast companies dedicated to innovation powered by collaboration, AltusGroup challenges the brightest minds in precast to develop, speed, and perfect technologies that improve the built environment.
The AltusGroup offers three unique online, self-paced learning courses on @AECDAILY, eligible for continuing education credits.
High-Performance Insulated Sandwich Walls Using Composite Design
Eligible for 1 hour of credit.
This course explains and illustrates how high-performance, fully composite insulated sandwich wall panels can be detailed to achieve continuous insulation. It explores the pros, cons, and attributes of wythe connectors such as carbon fiber trusses as well as panel insulation options, manufacturing and testing procedures, and installation methods. It concludes by providing a comprehensive set of sample installations to illustrate the broad range of building types and appearances that can be created with insulated sandwich wall systems.
Learn more and sign up here.Ultra-Thin Prestressed Precast Panel Technology
Eligible for 1 hour of credit.
Ultra-thin prestressed precast technology provides a versatile, lightweight panel that offers the strength and aesthetic versatility of concrete at a fraction of the weight. Prestressed precast panels can be used to replace a variety of traditional building materials in a wide range of exterior and interior applications. Reviewed in this course are the benefits, design and cost considerations, and the connection and fastening systems of prestressed precast panels in architectural application.
Learn more and sign up here.
PCI’s On-Demand Learning Portal Offers CEU Options
As part of an ongoing effort to streamline online education, PCI has updated its learning management system, a tool dedicated specifically to precast and prestressed concrete. All courses offered through the system satisfy the continuing education requirements of engineers in all 50 states. As an official AIA provider, PCI can offer architects approved learning units to satisfy continuing education requirements. Currently, more than 60 courses are available.
Learn more and register here.