PrīmX concrete technology is a core competence within the company and one that we sustain and develop in the labs of our Primekss Concrete Research and Development (R&D) Center. We strongly believe that investing resources in technology and R&D is the only way that we can ensure the production of consistent, superior quality concrete flooring products and structural elements.
Moreover, with the rapid development of precise automated technologies - AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robots), AGVs (Autonomous Guided Vehicles) ASRS (Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems) - the role of concrete flooring has changed immeasurably. The robust load-bearing structure of years ago, with its basic material property demands, is nowadays one of the most important structures in the field of logistics building. It’s not enough for a floor to meet today’s requirements. Modern concrete floors must be designed to meet not only the business operations needs of today but also those of the next 10 to 20 years. It’s not about producing structures based solely on structural parameters. It’s about designing and delivering a product that either unveils and supports all the potential of business operations or limits it. And far more knowledge and experience is required to achieve this.
Our Primekss R&D concrete and design engineers play a central role in ensuring superior technology and quality control to build future-proof flooring products that maximize the business operations potential of our customers.
R&D engineers also continues to develop new applications of the PrīmX system. The Center’s engineers conduct more than 500 tests every year.
Our R&D team is centrally located at our headquarters in Riga. It consists of young, highly motivated members, holding PhDs and engineering master’s degrees from renowned universities. The team benefits from many years of academic and practical experience with fiber concrete technology, in particular, and with ready-mix concrete production and concrete quality assurance on-site.
We also collaborate closely with top research institutions and universities around the world, including the Technical University of Denmark in Copenhagen, Riga Technical University in Latvia, Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung in Berlin, Germany, Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway, and many others.
Requirements for autonomous mobile units using floors:
As various automation technologies continue to develop at a rapid pace, more and more time is devoted to working in this area. The day-to-day work of PrīmX concrete engineers includes verifying the compliance of floor parameters (wear resistance, surface gloss, friction, and micro-roughness parameters) with the defined specifications for these units.
Determination of the mechanical and optical properties of the concrete surface:
- Determination of Wear Resistance - BCA acc. to EN 13892-4;
- Surface Gloss at 20°/60°/85°;
- Surface Friction acc. to ANSI A326.3;
- Surface Roughness by measuring the Roughness Average (Ra) per ISO 4287.
Daily technical support:
Fully equipped laboratory facilities for fresh and hardened (fiber-reinforced) concrete testing.
The daily technical support activities include:
- Concrete mix design development for all PrīmX projects globally;
- Concrete part material testing (cement, aggregate, SCMs, etc.);
- Concreting technology consulting;
- Concreting QA plan development;
- Casting follow-up on-site;
- Fresh concrete testing on-site;
- Determination of hardened (fiber reinforced) concrete mechanical properties;
- Determination of the mechanical and optical properties of the concrete surface;
- Monitoring of actual temperature development, strain, and RH in-situ;
- Troubleshooting and problem-solving.
Concrete testing:
Fresh concrete testing on-site:
- Sampling and temperature acc. to EN 12350-1;
- Unit weight acc. to EN 12350-6;
- Slump acc.to EN 12350-2;
- Air-content acc. to EN 12350-7;
- Effective water content acc. to AASHTO T 318 or with TDR probe method;
- Fiber content in fresh concrete acc. to EN 14721.
Mechanical properties of fiber-reinforced concrete:
- Post-cracking tensile strength acc. to SIA 162/6;
- Flexural toughness of fiber-reinforced concrete acc. to ASTM C1550-12a;
- Flexural strength acc. to EN 12390-5;
- Flexural tensile strength of fiber-reinforced concrete acc. to EN 14651;
- Flexural tensile strength of fiber-reinforced concrete acc. to DAfStb-Richtlinie Stahlfaserbeton Ausgabe;
- Compressive strength acc. to EN 12390-3;
- Steel fiber characteristics acc. to EN 14889-1;
- Restrained Expansion of Shrinkage-Compensating Concrete according to ASTM C878/C878M;
- Standard Test Method for Length Change of Hardened Hydraulic-Cement Mortar and Concrete (free expansion and shrinkage) acc. to ASTM C157/ C157M.
Come visit us, learn about the research we are pursuing and our future plans for growth and see how we can help you design perfect concrete for your project!