Drum Mixer Or Volumemetric Mixer?

ShawnIUOE132

Are any of you concrete pros familiar with volumetric mixer trucks or "batch plants on wheels". I was reading in a trade mag that I get about these trucks that you load with cement,gravel, sand and water to custom make the concrete right there as it is being poured. It was said to be a growing market. They said it was great for small pours driveways, sidewalks etc. The contractor only pays for what they use and not a minimum cubic yard charge. Here in the mid ohio valley I am not very familiar with this procedure if any of you guys could give the pros and cons of this method I would appreciate it. Our company is an excavating and dumptrucking outfit and I was thinking about looking into a truck like this, any input would help. Thanks

Niner

Volumetric mixers or "Mixmobiles" have their place in the industry, but they aren't designed for larger production pours. Some outfits claim 70 yards per hour, but I'm guessing that is a best-case scenario where all the materials are stored onsite. They can be great for small pours in remote areas. Areas that may not have a readymix producer nearby. Keep in mind the permits and regulatory hurdles you'd need to jump to handle a bulk cement transfer/storage unit on your property to feed your volumetric mixer. Good luck, and keep researching. FYI - in California the mixmobile guys are getting about $125.00 per cubic yard.

mdshunk

It that the same as a "meter mix truck"? If so, that's all I use. What little concrete I need as an electrician (equipment pads, parling lot light peirs, etc.) can be easily accomodated by a meter mix truck. The benefit to me is that I don't even need to bother to calculate the amount of concrete needed. I pay nearly the identical price per yard as transit mix.

K2

When they hit this area about 20 years ago they couldn't pass a 28 day crush. I havn't seen one in about 15 years.

ShawnIUOE132

Thanks for the info fellas! I am going to do some more research into this method. I know quite a few contractors in this area that I feel something like this could benefit from. I still haven't figured out how you only charge the customer for the concrete they use and still make a descent profit to cover the expense of your cement silo, truck and driver/operator. Some of the used units I have looked at are $100,000 plus.

concretemasonry

Try a "show up" charge plus a cost per yard.

Some people want a just a per yard cost to make it simple, but you are offering a service in addition to the concrete. Show up plus yard cost is reasonable, makes sense to everyone and is hard to argue with. What the customer wants is to know what it will cost in the end and he knows about how much he needs.

Do not try to compete with the regular R/M companies. They will always be more efficient. You will always have higher costs than a regular R/M truck because of the equipment cost, higher maintenance cost, mileage traveled and low volume. If you go by the yard and are to low, you will get more small very jobs - maybe too many and not enough yardage to cover your costs in the end.

Take a look at the market you can serve and try to get an idea of how many small jobs there are.

Also, talk to the local R/M supplier. He may appreciate it if there was someone they could work with and take the small jobs they really cannot afford to supply. I have seen the big suppliers help put these type of trucks in use by individuals.

__________________
Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

playsinmud

Hello, I've owned both kinds of mixers.
1. the mobiles can perform just as good in larger pours if set up right.
2. People with the mobiles can compete on quality if not better than R/M trucks
3.The mobile someone else spoke of just didn't know what they were doing and had lowsy mix designs.
4. The mobiles are better in the manner that you don't need the same zoning and it is easier to set up.

Depending on where you want to go with this, there are a bunch of different ways to attack it.

It's hard to get a cost comparison of one vs the other.

Set up costs for R/M
Land
Loader
Plant
Foundation for plant
Silo
Trucks
Anywhere from 100k at least gets you a couple of mixers

Mobiles
truck
loader
land (optional if you have good relationship to pick up)
even with land, cheaper to go with mobiles.

One draw back to mobiles is that every driver now becomes quality control because they are batching. If set up proper pretty idiot proof.

In the same token R/M driver's add water at their leisure as well.

How many yards a week/month/ year you looking at doing?

Concrete John

Plays in the mud << 100% agree. Also having been on both sides of the fence myself, you never end up with cold joints or "stale concrete" , always fresh, so to speak , great for some tight area's or large stamp jobs . If i had the resources , i would set here in Newfoundland , definately do very well here. Mix designs, good ad mixes and driver training. ... combination for very good investment.

playsinmud

Concrete John, Investment isn't too bad if you know where to look. How many meters do you do in a year.. Might be worthwhile.....

Concrete John

I was in business 10 yrs ago ,in Ontario, Canada. This will be my first official year in business in Newfoundland, how ever i expect to pour about 600 + range. The summers are short (approx. 4 months) and cooler, so i want to get some counter tops going for the winter months along with some builder contacts for basements , then there's always snow clearing !!! I have already poured about 100 meters , just basement/ garages has we are coming out of the rainy season/spring here, as we speak. Also this area is quite different from typical mainland sub-divisons as everything here is asphalt ..driveways sidewalks, pato's , but is changing as concrete becomes more popular. Most contractors (concrete) just do not prep/place/ or finish properly for long lasting durable slabs. Main reson i hear all the time is "cracks ,dusty,finish falls off ,scaling etc.etc. What i have witnessed , the boy's are pouring soup, no base to speak of , no controlled saw joints /cuts. Rarley see expansion joint. Even in garages. Since i've moved here (5yr ago) i've been pouring a little bit here and there , and garages i have done , i already have repeat customers and referrals. "they" seemed surprised already that my slabs have no "cracks" running through them.Also the finish is consistant,flat,and also relatively dust free John

playsinmud

Thats good to hear. As a former supplier myself, that's the worst thing. 95%of the time all concrete issues are with the finisher and not the crete. But who do they blame.... And of course if they are buying from you it's hard to be polite when telling them they do a lowsy job