How to choose the best ready mix supplier
Your goal is to find the best ready mix concrete supplier who delivers on time and has the experience to handle your type of project. Some suggestions on how to make the best choice are listed below:
- Check online and the yellow pages under the subject of concrete-ready mix. Choose the phone numbers of three or four companies which meet the specifications that you’re looking for in a concrete-ready mix supplier. Pay attention to where the plant locations are or call to find out which are the nearest to you or your project.
- There are several reasons why you want a delivery from a plant that’s closest to you and your job. So you need to narrow the list down to those companies. The first reason is because the American Concrete Institute states that concrete has to be delivered within 1.5 hours from the truck after being batched. Or within 300 revolutions of the truck’s mixer, whichever of the two come first. So, the closer the plant is to you, the less problems you’ll have. Plus, the closer the plant is to where you’re located, the less likely the truck will be late doing the delivery. Also, the farther away the plant is, the more the ready mix concrete will cost.
- Finally, ask around for referrals from relatives and neighbors or ask at the local hardware store. Ask people who have had about the same size job which you are planning on doing about their experiences. Here, you want to know how the company you are interested in deals with an average person’s job also, not just a contractor who does enormous jobs. Quality work in doing small jobs is a good indicator of a company’s ethics.
- When you call the references, you can ask them the following questions: Did the ready mix concrete arrive when it was supposed to arrive? Was it the mix that you ordered? How would they rate the company’s service? Since the concrete was poured, have there been any problems with the concrete? Did the company you ordered from take care of the problems if there were any? Would you recommend this ready mix company to your family and friends?
- When you have narrowed your decision down to one or two ready mix companies, call them for pricing based on the amount of concrete that you need to order. Ask then how much lead time is needed before an order is processed. Also, find out if you can have the concrete within the time span that you need to have it delivered by.
A site visit from your ready-mix supplier
If the ready mix cement supplier is reputable, they should be more than happy to send out a representative before the delivery date. Also, concrete delivery and pouring is something which needs to be planned for and scheduled. This isn’t something you should expect to happen on the same day that you make your call. Now things that you’ll be discussing with the representative are:
- If the amount of concrete that you calculated for the job is the amount that you’ll need.
- Discuss with the representative if any admixtures are necessary.
- Discuss the accessibility of your site for a ready mix truck.
- If you are going to need more than one truck, ask if there will be an issue with this. Also, discuss what the spacing will be dealing with the order and size of the truck shipments that will come if you need more than one truck.
- Talk about what you’re trying to achieve with your project. Ask what the best mix would be to get the best result for your job. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Make sure that you’re ordering exactly what you want.
By using a ready mix supplier that is closer to the project that you’re undertaking, the cost is lessened. Keep in mind too that if the job is in a remote area; or if it is your preference to use someone farther away, avoid scheduling a delivery during rush hour. You can also discuss alternate routes in case there would be traffic congestion or road construction.
Your Jefferson County ready mix supplier should answer all your questions to your satisfaction before you place your order.