Existing technology has been unable to reliably control cracking in concrete slabs on ground for buildings, necessitating the use of steel reinforcement, which does not increase the slab’s load carrying capacity.
In large area concrete pours for Warehouses and Industrial Buildings, now made possible with the increasing use of laser screeds, uneconomic quantities of steel reinforcement are required to prevent “dominant” sawcuts and construction joints from opening excessively. Those joints are prone to damage, particularly with the increased use of hard wheeled forklifts in warehouses, and they are expensive to repair.
The patented Get Cracking System mechanically cracks all sawcut contraction joints, approximately 48 hours after concrete placement. With all sawcut joints cracked soon after concrete placement, both sawcut and construction joints open evenly with little risk of unplanned cracks developing between joints. This eliminates the need for steel reinforcement. Without steel reinforcement, concrete pumps become unnecessary, further reducing construction costs and allowing improvements to the concrete mix design to reduce concrete shrinkage. Steel reinforcement removal avoids greenhouse gas emissions associated with manufacture and distribution of that steel reinforcement and reduces the slab’s construction time-frame.
Equipment to crack sawcut joints has been developed, tested and trialled commercially in Australia. The Get Cracking System is now available commercially in Australia to improve joint performance, reduce unplanned cracking and eliminate both steel reinforcement and concrete pumps from concrete slab on ground construction.