In Baytown, Texas, city crews faced an uphill battle trying to maintain streets, sidewalks, and curbs with ready-mix concrete suppliers.
Located outside Houston, the suburb with 74,418 residents couldn’t compete with larger concrete orders for metro projects that local ready-mix suppliers often prioritize.
“We were having a serious shortage of concrete in the area with all of the construction going on,” says Kevin Harvill, assistant director of operations, City of Baytown. “We were two, three, even four weeks out getting concrete delivered.”
Project delays caused work to stack up. With aging infrastructure and growing repair demands, Harvell knew the city needed a better solution.
BETTER SOLUTION
Projects in Baytown usually required smaller concrete batches. And when suppliers deliver partial ready-mix loads in barrel trucks, they charge an additional fee to recoup the cost of a less-than-full truck.
“The upcharges for small loads were killing us,” says Harvell.
Thanks to his experience working with the City of Dallas, he knew there was a way to avoid those extra costs. That’s when Harvell witnessed volumetric mixers in action. He knew mobile concrete mixers produce fresh concrete on-site, allowing crews to mix exactly what they need, when they need it. So, he brought the idea to Baytown leadership.
“We started doing some research into volumetric concrete and different volumetric companies. There are challenges with convincing upper management to buy a concrete truck,” says Harvell.
Increased efficiency proved the deciding factor. It meant fewer open holes left waiting for concrete delivery, which translated to fewer hazards for residents and workers. Faster repairs also mean fewer traffic disruptions and less frustration for taxpayers. As a result, the city decided to purchase a Cemen Tech volumetric mixer.
SMART SCHEDULING & IMMEDIATE RESULTS
The City of Baytown places approximately 1,500 yards of concrete a year, mostly through small 5- to 10-yard projects scattered across multiple locations. Some require different concrete mix designs. While traditional methods would need to bring in multiple trucks to finish the work, volumetric mixers allow crews to start and stop production on demand and accommodate different mix designs with a single truck. This flexibility enables small quantity pours on multiple projects with no waste.
With many smaller infrastructure projects constantly in the works, municipal crews need to be ready to resolve issues on-site. But with ready-mix suppliers, there is very little flexibility. Once the concrete has been mixed, it must be placed before it starts to harden in the truck. Volumetric concrete mixers give crews the flexibility to start and stop on demand without worrying about concrete hardening in the truck.
Owning the concrete production process delivered immediate results for the City of Baytown through improved scheduling, increased efficiency, and significant cost savings. No more time is wasted while crews wait for materials. Baytown crews can begin pouring concrete at 7:30 a.m., wrap up by 9 a.m., and move on to prepping the next job. This scheduling control is especially important during the intense Texas summer heat, when early morning work is key to maintaining productivity. These scheduling benefits were a game-changer.
“Productivity is through the roof,” says Harvell.
Waste was another big issue addressed with the volumetric mixer trucks. When ordering from ready-mix suppliers, the City of Baytown would need to estimate the concrete volumes needed for the project. Volumetric trucks eliminate the guesswork by allowing the exact amount of concrete to be produced on-site. And eliminated waste translates into increased savings for the city.
Even while being conservative and tracking only “hard dollars” attributed to short load fees and eliminated waste, the volumetric mixer and silo made their return on investment in just 18 months. This doesn’t consider the “soft dollars,” such as crew time wasted waiting on deliveries, cleanup time, and other difficult-to-measure benefits.
LEADING BY EXAMPLE
The results speak for themselves. Increased productivity. Lower costs. Better project timing. The rapid return on investment and the total elimination of short-load fees have validated the City of Baytown’s decision to invest in a Cemen Tech volumetric concrete mixer.
“We are sold on volumetric mixing, and the numbers prove it,” says Harvell.
The City of Baytown saved significant money, which can now be reinvested into other important projects. Surrounding municipalities have taken notice with the City of La Porte, Texas, investing in its own volumetric mixer.
“I’m constantly sharing our success story. It’s an easy sell,” says Harvell.
about the author
Mark Rinehart is vice president of sales and marketing at Cemen Tech. For more, visit www.cementech.com.