Hardstands first, because they are the big volume
A yard is large and shallow, so the numbers grow quickly. A 50 by 60 m yard at 200 mm is 600 m³, fifty truckloads. Nobody pours that in one go; split it into bays with joints the engineer has located, and order each bay as a separate pour. Fibre-reinforced concrete is a common choice for yards that take heavy vehicles, if the design allows it.
Prepare the subbase properly. A slab over soft or unevenly compacted fill will crack no matter how good the mix is.
Order each bay with the volume measured on site, not only from the drawing. Subbase levels drift, and a 10 mm variation over 600 m² adds 6 m³. Have the surveyor confirm levels the day before and give us the corrected figure. For workshop slabs, cast in drainage channels and anchor bolts are fixed before the pour, never during.
Warehouse and workshop buildings
The building follows the normal order: blinding, pad footings for the portal frame on a substructure mix, ground beams, then the floor slab. Workshop pits for vehicle servicing are small, deep pours that need careful vibration. Office mezzanines take a superstructure mix and usually a pump.
Access in a working yard
Ras Al Khor sites are often operating while you build. Plan where the mixer enters, where it washes out and how it avoids forklifts and parked trucks. If the slab is being poured in bays, keep a clear route to the next one.
The plant in Al Quoz is about 15 km away in a straight line, via Ras Al Khor Road or Al Ain Road. We set slump and retarder for the time of the pour and the travel.
Ras Al Khor and Nad Al Hamar sits inside our readymix concrete Dubai coverage, dispatched from the Al Quoz plant.
Questions from Ras Al Khor and Nad Al Hamar sites
- Should a yard be poured at night in summer?
- Often yes. Placing-temperature limits in most specifications push large exposed pours to the night or early morning.
- Can fibres replace mesh in a hardstand?
- Only if your engineer designs it that way. We supply the fibre-reinforced mix to the approved specification.
- How soon can vehicles drive on a new yard?
- Your engineer decides, based on the mix strength and cube results. Keep traffic off until they confirm.