Redevelopment: what the ground asks for
Deira is coastal. Groundwater sits close to the surface and carries chlorides and sulphates that attack buried concrete and steel. So the piling and substructure orders here are not generic: they follow the consultant's exposure class, usually with GGBS blends, a low water to cement ratio and the specified cover. Send us the specification early so the mix is approved before the piling rig arrives.
Piles and pile caps first, then the raft or basement walls. A basement raft of 250 m³ is 21 truckloads and must be planned as one continuous pour.
Refurbishment pours
Inside an occupied building, pours are small and awkward: a new stair, a slab infill, a lift pit, a plant room base. Volumes might be 3 to 8 m³. Concrete often has to travel through a window or up several floors, so a boom pump on the street or a line pump is part of the order. Coordinate with building management on hours and noise.
Measure refurbishment pours carefully. Old slabs are rarely the thickness shown on drawings, and breaking out reveals voids. Take actual depths at several points and calculate from those, then add a margin. Running short on a 5 m³ pour inside a building means a second truck and a cold joint.
Getting a truck into the street
Narrow lanes, parked vehicles and souk traffic decide the delivery more than distance. Survey the street, mark where the pump outriggers go and agree a slot with the building and any authority that controls the road. The plant in Al Quoz is about 18 km away in a straight line; trucks cross by Al Maktoum Bridge or Al Garhoud Bridge, and bridge traffic adds time, which we cover with the retarder dose.
Slots for Deira are planned with the rest of the day's ready-mix concrete Dubai schedule.
Questions from Deira sites
- Can you supply a mix with GGBS for Deira basements?
- Yes. We batch on OPC and GGBS and can produce the blend your consultant specifies for the exposure class.
- Is a small refurbishment pour worth scheduling?
- Yes. Give us the volume, location in the building and how the concrete will be placed, and we plan the truck and pump together.
- Can the pump reach an upper floor from a Deira street?
- A 43 m to 57 m boom covers most mid-rise heights, provided the outriggers fit on the street. Check the footprint before the pour day.