Concrete Paving

Seattle Iron & Metals

Location: Seattle
Owner/developer: Seattle Iron & Metals
Project team: BNBuilders, general and concrete contractor; Cadman, ready-mix supplier

Seattle Iron & Metals in 1999 relocated its scrap metal recycling facility to an undeveloped site. Because the yard is subject to extreme abrasion from bucket loaders feeding an automobile shredder, the company paved the yard with 3 inches of asphalt capped with 12 inches of standard concrete pavement. Railroad track was set into the concrete so that loader buckets would rest on the track instead of wearing on the concrete.

After about five years, the 12 inches of concrete was worn through, exposing the asphalt.

BNBuilders and Cadman devised a plan to replace 21,000 square feet of the slab with a new slab that would provide greater abrasion resistance. The work was done over a weekend so that yard operations were not affected.

The new slab was made with high-strength and low-shrinkage self-consolidating concrete. The slab also got a double dose of polypropylene/polyethylene macro-monofilament fiber for better crack containment with a higher level of impact and abrasion resistance. Additional protection was provided by an integral concrete hardener.