As the “backbone” of the construction industry, the quality of concrete construction directly determines the durability and safety of building structures. From the pouring of concrete for super-high-rise buildings to the laying of the base layer for rural roads, projects of all scales rely on specialized concrete equipment systems.
According to the “Global Concrete Equipment Market Report,” the global concrete machinery market size exceeded $ 32 billion in 2024, with intelligent and integrated equipment accounting for an annual growth rate of 12.5%.
This article will systematically analyze the five core types of concrete equipment essential to the construction industry and thoroughly explore the technical features and application scenarios of complementary construction tools, providing industry professionals with a comprehensive reference from equipment selection to construction management.
Concrete Batching Plant: The Central System of Industrialized Production
♦ Equipment Configuration and Technical Parameters
The concrete batching plant adopts a closed-loop design of “material feeding – mixing – discharge,” with its core components comprising aggregate batching machines, cement silos, forced-action mixers, and a control system. Taking the HZS180-type batching plant as an example, its theoretical production capacity reaches 180 cubic meters per hour, with material feeding accuracy controlled within ±2% (for cement, water, and admixtures) and ±3% (for sand and gravel aggregates).
The mixing main unit typically adopts a double horizontal shaft forced-action structure, achieving material shear mixing through the counter-rotation of spiral blades. The mixing time is only 60-90 seconds, representing a 40% efficiency improvement compared to self-falling mixers.
♦ Engineering Application Scenarios
High-rise building clusters: For example, in the concrete center project of EPDA, three HZS-type mixing plants are operated in parallel, achieving a daily concrete supply capacity exceeding 5,000 cubic meters, and with concrete boom pump trucks to enable continuous pouring of the core tube.
Infrastructure projects: The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge island-tunnel project uses specialized mixing plants equipped with anti-salt fog corrosion systems to ensure the long-term durability of high-performance concrete.
Precast Component Plants: PC component production requires coordination between the mixing plant and temperature control systems, achieving precise strength control through the addition of retarders and steam curing.
♦ Key Selection Criteria
Installed Power: Must match the transformer capacity at the construction site to avoid voltage fluctuations affecting mixing accuracy.
Dust Collection System: Dust emissions from pulse-jet baghouse dust collectors should be ≤30 mg/m³, meeting environmental protection requirements.
Aggregate Bin Capacity: Configured at 1.5 times the peak daily usage during the project’s peak period to reduce frequent material loading downtime.
Self-loading Concrete Mixer Truck: A Flexible Solution for Small and Medium-sized Projects
♦ Innovative Design of Equipment
The self-loading concrete mixer combines the functions of a loader and a mixer truck. Typical models are equipped with a 270° rotating hopper, capable of automatically performing sand and gravel loading (with a loading height of up to 3.8 meters), electronic weighing (with an accuracy of ±1%), and mixing and transportation.
Its mixing drum features a dual-spiral blade design, with forward rotation for mixing (speed 14-18 rpm) and reverse rotation for unloading (speed 6-8 rpm). It can transport materials over a maximum distance of 50 kilometers, making it ideal for remote construction sites without fixed mixing plants.
♦ Cost-benefit Analysis
Take rural road construction as an example. Traditional solutions require small mixing stations and transport tankers, while self-loading mixer trucks can save 50% in equipment costs.
Actual data from a renovation project shows that the EP5.5H self-loading mixer truck can complete 120 cubic meters of concrete mixing and transportation per day, which is 30% more efficient than traditional solutions and reduces fuel consumption by 25%.
♦ Operating Precautions
Calibrate the electronic scale before loading: Use standard weights for three-point calibration (0%, 50%, 100% of full scale).
Slope operation restrictions: Maximum climbing angle ≤25°, avoid tilting of the mixing drum to prevent material segregation.
Maintenance cycle: Replace hydraulic oil every 500 hours, and apply lithium-based grease to the mixing bearings daily.
Concrete Boom Pump Truck: Vertical Transportation Equipment for High-rise Buildings
♦ Mechanical Structure Analysis
The core technology of the boom pump truck lies in the coordinated control of the boom system and the pumping system. Taking the EPDAS HBC37 model as an example, its five-section RZ-type boom achieves a maximum vertical height of 40 meters, utilizing electro-hydraulic proportional control with motion accuracy of ±0.5°.
The pumping system is equipped with a double-cylinder piston pump, with a maximum theoretical pumping pressure of 14 MPa and a flow rate of 120 cubic meters per hour, capable of meeting the pumping requirements for high-strength concrete.
♦ Key Points of Construction Techniques
Pipe layout design: The ratio of horizontal pipe length to vertical pipe height should be ≤3:1, with no more than 5 bends to minimize pressure loss.
Emergency pipe blockage handling: When the pumping pressure exceeds 1.5 times the rated value, immediately reverse the pumping direction and use a “forward pump – reverse pump – forward pump” cycle to clear the pipeline.
Concrete performance requirements: Slump should be controlled between 180-220mm, spread angle ≥500mm, and sand content should be 38%-42%.
♦ Typical Engineering Cases
During construction in the Philippines, multiple 56-meter boom pump trucks were used in conjunction with relay pumping to achieve uninterrupted pouring of C60 concrete at a height of 632 meters.
The pump trucks are equipped with GPS positioning and remote fault diagnosis systems, which monitor parameters such as pumping pressure and oil temperature in real time through an IoT platform, reducing equipment failure rates to 0.3 times per thousand hours.
Concrete Mixer with Pump: An All-rounder for Confined Spaces
♦ Integrated Technology Breakthroughs
The concrete mixer pump adopts a compact “mix-then-pump” layout, such as the EPDAS DJBT50-10-85 model, with a mixing drum capacity of 2.5 cubic meters and a pumping pressure of 10 MPa, making it suitable for narrow sites. Its innovative features include:
Α. Hydraulic system coupling design: The mixing and pumping systems share a common power source, improving energy utilization by 15%.
B. Intelligent anti-blocking 2. system: Pressure sensors predict the risk of blockages, automatically adjusting the pumping frequency.
C. Diesel/electric dual-power switching: Electric mode can be selected for urban construction, with noise levels ≤75 dB.
♦ Municipal Engineering Application
In the renovation of old urban neighborhoods, the mixer-pump combination machine has demonstrated its unique advantages. In hazardous renovation projects, the equipment is transported through elevator shafts into basements to complete secondary structural concrete pouring. Traditionally, 120 cubic meters of concrete would need to be manually transported, but now it can be pumped in just 4 hours, reducing labor costs by 60%.
Telescopic Forklift: A Versatile Material Handling Machine
♦ Multi-functional Attachment Configuration
Concrete pouring bucket (capacity 1.5-3 cubic meters): equipped with a rotating discharge port for precise high-altitude material distribution.
Lifting fork frame: maximum lifting capacity of 5 tons, suitable for the installation of precast concrete wall panels.
Personnel hoist basket: complies with EN280 standards, can carry 2 workers for high-altitude concrete surface treatment.
Bucket (shovel): Used for loading and transporting bulk materials such as sand, gravel, soil, and coal, suitable for foundation construction, agriculture, or bulk material yard operations.
Hook (Boom): Used for lifting various heavy objects or steel structures, suitable for simple lifting operations without a crane, widely used in construction, warehousing, and factory handling.
Log Grapple (Wood Grapple): Specifically designed for handling logs, planks, or wood piles, capable of safely gripping long or cylindrical materials, suitable for forestry, wood processing plants, and similar applications.
Bucket-type grapple (multi-tine grapple): Commonly used for handling irregular materials such as scrap, scrap metal, or construction debris, enhancing the flexibility and efficiency of material loading and unloading.
Brick clamp: Used for quickly loading and unloading stacked bricks, cement blocks, and other construction materials, commonly used for material transportation at construction sites to reduce manual handling.
Drum handler (drum clamp/drum gripper): Specifically designed for handling drums and liquid tanks, suitable for industries such as chemicals, food, and manufacturing that require frequent handling of drum-packed liquids.
Hay bale clamp (forage clamp): Specifically designed for agricultural applications, enabling easy handling of baled hay, feed bags, and similar items, suitable for farms or agricultural bases.
♦ Construction Efficiency Comparison
In the concrete construction of logistics warehouse roofs, the use of telescopic forklifts + pouring buckets has reduced the pouring time per 100 square meters from 8 hours to 3.5 hours compared to the traditional tower crane + material bucket process, and reduced the number of construction personnel by 5. The equipment has a vertical lifting height of 18 meters and a horizontal reach of 12 meters, covering 90% of the roof work area.
♦ Foundation treatment tools
Hydraulic plate compactor: Such as the German Wacker RT26 model, with a vibrating force of 26 kN and a working efficiency of 200 square meters per hour, suitable for compacting gravel subgrades, achieving a compaction rate of over 93%.
Laser Leveling Machine: The Topcon RL-H5C model is equipped with a dual-axis automatic leveling system, achieving a leveling accuracy of ±3mm/3 meters, with construction efficiency improved by 5 times compared to traditional leveling instruments.
Reinforcement Processing Equipment: The CNC reinforcement bending center can achieve automated processing of reinforcement bars from Φ6 to Φ40mm, with an angle error of ≤1°.
♦ Formwork support tools
Disk-type scaffolding: With a load capacity of 40 kN per upright pole, it is three times more efficient than coupler-type scaffolding and is commonly used in large formwork support systems.
Steel formwork corrector: The hydraulic corrector can apply 20 tons of pressure to deformed formwork, restoring accuracy to ≤2 mm.
♦ Vibration system
Insertion vibrator: Φ50mm high-frequency vibrator (frequency 150Hz), effective radius 500mm, suitable for areas with dense reinforcement such as beam-column joints.
Plate vibrator: Attachable vibrator installed on steel formwork, vibration frequency 50Hz, used for large-volume concrete slab construction.
♦ Fabric auxiliary tools
Concrete chute: Inclination angle ≤ 30°, length ≤ 15 m, to prevent concrete from falling freely from a height exceeding 2 m, which could cause segregation.
Bucket elevator: Equipped with segmented baffles to control the discharge speed, suitable for concrete pouring in deep foundation pits.
♦ Mechanical polishing equipment
Double-disc smoothing machine: 1.5-meter diameter grinding disc, adjustable speed of 0-180 rpm, used for smoothing the surface of concrete after initial setting.
Shot blasting machine: Track-type shot blasting machine, processing efficiency of 150 square meters per hour, capable of removing surface slurry, with a roughness of 5-8 mm.
♦ Maintenance control system
Intelligent sprinkler system: By linking the humidity sensor with the solenoid valve, it automatically sprays water when the surface humidity of the concrete is less than 80%, and the curing cycle can be shortened by 30%.
Plastic film covering machine: Automatically lays PE film, with the lap width controlled within 100mm, reducing the missed protection phenomenon caused by manual covering.
Concrete rebound hammer: Test accuracy ±1.0MPa, used for rapid on-site strength testing.
Crack width measuring instrument: Accuracy 0.02mm, can record crack development trends, providing data for structural safety assessment.
Gas detector: Can simultaneously monitor CO, CO₂, and O₂ concentrations, suitable for concrete construction in underground engineering.
Full life cycle cost analysis: Taking 50,000 cubic meters of concrete engineering volume as an example
| Equipment Type | Acquisition Cost | Energy Consumption Costs | Maintenance Costs | Total Cost (5 years) |
| Traditional mixing plant + pump truck | 6 million RMB | 1.8 million RMB | 1.2 million RMB | 9 million RMB |
| Smart integrated equipment | 8 million RMB | 1.2 million RMB | 800,000 RMB | 10 million RMB |
| Note: Although smart devices require a high initial investment, they reduce energy consumption and maintenance costs by 33%, making them suitable for long-term use scenarios. | / | / | / | / |
♦ Construction efficiency improvement plan
BIM Technology Application: By simulating concrete pouring paths through models, optimizing the positioning of boom pump trucks can reduce material placement time by 15%.
IoT Monitoring: By installing GPS and sensors on equipment, real-time monitoring of parameters such as batching errors at the mixing plant and pumping pressure of pump trucks enables quality issue warning response times to be reduced from 2 hours to 15 minutes.
Team Collaboration Management: Adopting a “mixer truck – pump truck – vibrating team” integrated scheduling system, real-time sharing of location and progress via an app reduces idle time.
♦ Green construction technology
Concrete batching plant wastewater recycling system: three-stage sedimentation + filtration treatment, with a water reuse rate of 85% and annual water savings of 120,000 tons.
Construction waste recycling: waste concrete is crushed and screened for reuse as aggregate, with a recycled aggregate content of up to 30% and a 15% reduction in raw material costs.
♦ Evolution of Intelligent Equipment
Remote control: EPDAS has achieved real-time control of concrete pump trucks from 100 km away, with a latency of ≤50 ms, suitable for construction in high-risk environments.
Autonomous navigation mixer truck: Equipped with laser radar and visual recognition, it can automatically complete the entire process of loading, mixing, and unloading, with an error of ≤10 cm.
♦ New material adaptation equipment
3D concrete printing equipment: Large-scale 3D printers developed for constructing complex structures with a layer height of 50 mm and a printing speed of 2 cubic meters per hour.
Self-healing concrete mixing system: Capsule-type admixture release technology achieves 98% mixing uniformity and a crack self-repair efficiency of >80%.
♦ Trends in modular construction
The widespread use of precast concrete components (PC) has driven the transformation of equipment, such as intelligent production lines for precast components.
Automated rebar tying machine: Efficiency of 200 weld points per minute, a 10-fold increase over manual labor.
Component steam curing kiln: Precise temperature and humidity control, curing cycle shortened from 7 days to 12 hours.
Laying concrete may seem straightforward, but to successfully complete the task, specialized tools are indispensable. Review the checklist and consider the equipment inventory relevant to the specific operation.
From the precise mixing ratios at the batching plant to the millimeter-level placement by the pump truck, technological innovations in concrete equipment have consistently driven progress in the construction industry. Under the dual drivers of construction industrialization, equipment intelligence, green construction practices, and digitalized management have become inevitable trends in the industry.
For engineering professionals, deeply understanding equipment performance, precisely matching project requirements, and continuously optimizing construction processes are essential to gaining a competitive edge in the market — this is not only key to improving engineering quality but also the core driving force propelling the construction industry toward modernization and intelligence. For more mechanical equipment options, please contact EPDAS!
