Why do I love precast? Let me count the ways.

This five-story multi-family building under construction in Beloit, Wisc. features many precast elements including wall panels, beams, columns, delta beams, and hollowcore.

February has arrived – the month of love. But we’re not talking about mushy love here, we’re talking about strong love, a love of precast concrete. So, why should you love precast? Let us count the ways.

Precast concrete and precast, prestressed concrete excel in strength, sustainability, functionality, and durability. As it integrates easily with other systems and provides versatility, efficiency, and resiliency, it is a clear building choice for high-performance structures.

  1. Aesthetic Versatility
    Precast boasts a variety of finishes, custom form liners, graphic concrete, thin brick and more. It also comes in an (almost) unlimited array of colors, forms, textures, and shapes.

  2. Speed
    Time is money. Precast concrete’s speed through design, fabrication and erection help meet tight deadlines. Precast components are manufactured off-site, reducing the amount of time onsite. And they are ready to be erected with a just-in-time delivery to the jobsite when the general contractor needs it.

  3. Early Input
    Early design assistance is available to our customers – including layout, design, and value – as early as the schematic design phase, helping customers keep their projects on time, on budget, and on target.

  4. Open Floor Plate, Column-Free Space, Shallow Floor Thickness
    An open floor plate allows a flexible interior that can accommodate a variety of scenarios. Column-free space allows additional flexibility in floor plans and layouts. Shallow floor thicknesses with fewer beams provide unobstructed ceiling cavities for mechanical and electrical systems.

  5. Fire Resistance
    Precast concrete provides inherent fire protection and resiliency. Concrete does not combust and therefore helps contain fires in a controlled space. Precast hollowcore has a minimum one-hour fire rating and a structural topping can increase that up to a four-hour rating. When used for separation, precast concrete also helps prevent fire from spreading throughout a building or jumping from building to building.

  6. Blast Resistance
    For precast concrete components, blast-resistant design is primarily focused on the design of exterior building components and their connections, protecting those on the inside of a building from a blast.

  7. Ability to Withstand Severe Weather
    Precast concrete provides excellent protection against high winds, storm surge and flying debris, among many other high-performance attributes. It is often used in FEMA shelters, residential, institutional, public, government and other structures providing protection.

  8. Safety
    Plant casting keeps the site cleaner and eliminates trades from the construction zone, improving logistics and enhancing worker safety.

  9. All Weather Construction
    Precast concrete is plant-produced and trucked to the jobsite when needed. Unlike other products, precast concrete can be installed in cold weather, eliminating temperature related delays.

  10. Sound Attenuation
    Precast concrete’s mass provides an economical acoustical barrier to exterior or interior noise penetration. Very little sound is transmitted through precast concrete, making for a quieter, more comfortable living space for occupants.

  11. Inedibility & Resistance to Mildew and Rust
    Vermin and insects cannot destroy concrete because it is inedible. Concrete is also not susceptible to rust or mildew growth.

  12. Strength for Heavy Loads
    Reinforced precast concrete can handle heavy amounts of stress, point loads, and weight.

  13. Long Service Life and Low Maintenance
    Precast is a long-lasting, high performance material that will last decades. Precast facilities also require very low maintenance, which benefits building owners.

  14. Locally Sourced
    Concrete is a very common building material made of sand, gravel, cement, and water, and can be locally sourced to the precast plant. Transportation efforts produce low emissions, contributing to being an energy-efficient building material. Additionally, concrete plants are generally within a few hundred miles of a building site. This reduces the transportation required to ship heavy loads, as well as the associated energy and emissions.

And there you have it - 14 solid reasons to fall in love with precast this month. Interested in learning more about how precast can be integrated into your next project? Contact our preconstruction team at sales@msprecast.com or 800.236.1072.

Mid-States Concrete Gives Back

Mid-States Concrete recently gave team members an opportunity to give back to the community through the Stateline Community Foundation.

About 10 years ago, Mid-States Concrete Industries started what the Stateline Community Foundation refers to as an Acorn Fund with a $10,000 gift. From the growth in assets of the fund each year, the company earns a dividend/interest amount to be donated to charities of our choice. This year, Mid-States had $600 to disburse and at the last administrative team meeting offered team members a chance to put their name in a drawing for a chance to choose the deserving charities.

“Part of our purpose as a company is to help those who are in need within the Mid-States family, as well as our community-at-large,” said Hagen Harker, President of Mid-States Concrete Industries.

The winners of the drawing were Tracy Christianson, Preconstruction Support, and Tricia Goecks, Payroll Specialist. Each winner was allotted $300 to earmark for a charity of their choice.

“It is always so heartwarming to be able to donate to a charity that is close to your heart,” Tracy said.

Tracy chose to donate to The Wayward Society of Rockford. This organization provides in-home therapy for Autism to Tracy’s grandson.

“I am so grateful for the opportunity to be able to choose the charity,” Tracy said. “This organization only works based on donations and sponsors. They cannot bill insurance companies, so every donation is appreciated so much. They also do not charge the people that they help. They will accept any type of donation, but there is no actual charge ever. They are there to help anyone they are able to.”

Tricia chose to split her donation amount between two organizations: the Charles V. and Lois H. Harker Fund and the Students of Color Scholarship Fund.

“I think it is always important to give back to the community,” Tricia said. “In addition to helping our community, it strengthens our bonds to where we live, work, and play. Through volunteering and charitable giving, we support missions that are greater than ourselves.”

She selected the Harker Fund as a way to show gratitude to the Harker family for what they do for the Mid-States team, as well as for all their charitable giving and what they have done for the Beloit community.

Tricia selected the Students of Color Scholarship Fund because her grandchildren are biracial and she has seen firsthand the education setbacks her grandchildren have had because of the pandemic-related school shutdowns.

“I believe the pandemic had a significantly more detrimental impact on minority students,” Tricia said. “I am concerned that the ripple effect of the school shutdowns will be felt for decades, especially in the minority communities. I wanted to be able to support other minority students who do not have a support system at home like our grandchildren do.”

While previously disbursement of funds had been determined by a select group from leadership and the team’s involvement committee, it was important for Mid-States to open the opportunity to others this year.

“The importance is two-fold,” Hagen said. “We live our purpose statement. We can see it in action and we share the feeling of hard work and ownership.”