Precision Concrete Construction, Inc.: Proving Anything Concrete is Possible

Precision Concrete Construction, Inc., located in Alpharetta, Georgia, can do almost anything with concrete. The company offers several concrete services, including architectural finishes, restoration and repair, industrial floors, cutting and demolition, building foundations and slabs (including the Atlanta Federal Center's 12,500 cubic yard monolithic mat slab, as well as the foundations and slabs at the Centennial Olympic Stadium/Turner Field), tilt-up construction and high-rise frames.

The company mission is "to consistently meet or exceed our client's expectations and provide the highest level of service and satisfaction through our commitment to quality and excellence" and was founded in 1986 by CEO Leonard Moniz, Jr. What began as a one-truck place and finish operation is now a multi-million dollar operation whose revenue topped $51 million dollars in 2001. Moniz, a third generation concrete professional, established his reputation as a craftsman who was determined to provide high quality work at an affordable price and serves the Southeast and beyond, including New York City,Chicago, and Cleveland.

The company has earned several of the American Concrete Institute's Georgia Chapter's Awards throughout it's history, including first place in the Architectural Paving category for a private residence; the Outstanding Achievement Award in Architectural Paving for Metro Atlanta Kroger Stores; the Outstanding Achievement Award in Hardscapes for Nortel Hardscape; the Award of Excellence in Residential for the Buchanan Residence; the Award of Excellence for Architectural Paving for the Discover Mills Mall; the Award of Excellence for Architectural Paving for the Freight Depot @ Underground Atlanta; and the Award of Excellence for Architectural Paving for River's Call at Wildwood.

"Precision Concrete is the southeast's largest installer of architectural concrete," says Tim Blankenship, Architectural Concrete Division Manager for Precision. "We've worked on retail and restaurant floors, exterior hardscape packages and even residential interiors and offer the owner a complete range of choices." Those choices include overlayments, underlayments, color hardeners, acid staining, stamping, texturing, acid etching, exposed aggregate, and more.

For example, the Montvale Residence, located north of Atlanta on Lake Lanier, is constructed entirely of cast-in-place concrete and utilizes an array of different finishes. From form lined and sandblasted walls, to integrally colored, scored, and stamped slabs, the house also features an integrally colored cast-in-place spiral stair case.

Precision's work can also be found in Pottery Barns in Georgia, Chicago and Manhattan. "Pottery Barn is quite specific on the appearance of their flooring," explains Blankenship. The "Pottery Barn" finish is a proprietary method of finishing cast-in-place concrete, which provides an attractive burnished, hand-troweled concrete flooring system with minimal maintenance.

For the Columbiana Place shopping center, in Columbia, South Carolina, Precision combined architectural concrete with brick pavers. The project consisted of over 40,000 square feet of plaza concrete and pavers. The integrally colored concrete walkways were decoratively scored and then chemically stained. The focal point at the center of the plaza is an elaborate cast-in-place colored concrete fountain. The walls of the fountain, as well as the planter walls found throughout the plaza, were sandblasted to simulate the appearance of weathered stone. Stamped and colored concrete was used as accents on stages, patios, and walkways found throughout the shopping centers exterior.

They are also frequently called to the Governor's Mansion. "When the Georgia Building Authority decided it was time to replace the exposed aggregate finished pool deck and walkways inside the Governor's Mansion, they called us," says Blankenship. With stringent security measures in place and intricately landscaped surroundings, access to the grounds was severely limited. To overcome these obstacles, pre-planning and experience dictated that labor-intensive demolition and finishing operations be utilized. First, the existing pool deck and walkways were saw-cut into manageable sizes and demolished by hand; the pieces were then loaded into motorized buggies and disposed of. The pool deck and walkways were installed in four pours with the integrally colored concrete placed via buggy.

Another challenging project was the Russ Chandler Baseball Stadium in Atlanta. Construction began shortly after the completion of the 2000-01 season with the demolition of the existing stadium. Since the new stadium was constructed on the same site, it had to be completed before the beginning of the next season.

The seating at the new stadium featured metal bleachers that sat on a combination of both grade beams and spread foundations with columns and piers. The Main Grandstand was constructed from a steel frame bearing on spread foundations and foundation wall, which varied from 8 feet to over 16 feet tall.

Underneath the Main Grandstand, over 14,000 square feet of slab-on-grade were constructed for concessions, restrooms, concourses, and both the home and visiting locker rooms. Above the Main Grandstand 5,000 square feet of slab-over-metal deck with a lightweight concrete topping slab were utilized for suites and press boxes.

Along the third base line, a second steel structure built on a continuous foundation and foundation wall housed additional concessions and a batting tunnel over its 5,000 square feet of slab-on-grade.

In addition, the stadium featured a cast-in-place dugout for both the home and visiting team and a 12-foot high retaining wall for the home team bullpen. Overall, the foundation and flatwork package consisted of over 100 tons of reinforcing steel and 1,600 cubic yards of concrete.

"When the time arrived to complete the hardscape package, the schedule was extremely tight and during the holiday season," Blankenship adds. Featured in the hardscape package were 22,000 square feet of sidewalk, 2,000 square feet of brick pavers, 750 of granite curbing, and an Allan Block wall over 15 feet, all to be completed in just over a month.

In addition to fighting the weather, the paver work was complicated by two items. All of the pavers were to be set in hot asphalt - a difficult task in the middle of winter. Also, two areas called for brick pavers with laser engraved GT logos. The pavers had to be purchased, shipped to Ohio, engraved, returned to Atlanta and then set in place like pieces of a puzzle. While fighting the cold weather and tight schedule, crews worked nights, weekends, and even Christmas and New Year's Eve in order to have the stadium ready for Opening Day.

That's just one example of the many ways Precision Concrete constantly exceeds their client's expectations.

http://www.precision-concrete.com/

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