X Factor
14 June 2006, 10:56 AM
CertainTeed Complex Revived As Arkansas Precast Begins Production
Hillsboro Texas- Hillsboro Reporter
For the first time since CertainTeed shuttered its complex on Highway 81 in north Hillsboro, there is new life at the old pipe plant.
CertainTeed started production of asbestos-concrete pipe in the early 1960s and continued until 1987, when regulations and lawsuits relating to the use of asbestos led to its closure.
With the exception for a short time when the CertainTeed Corporation used the large building for storing large rolls of sand paper, the complex has basically set unused.
It wasn’t until a Fort Worth developer got control of the property that things started to happen.
Arkansas Precast Corporation recently purchased the building on the south end of the property and has started production at its new facility.
Proximity to markets and the attributes of the property are what attracted the company to Hillsboro, according to Sales Manager David Ramm.
Arkansas Precast was founded in 1968 in Jacksonville, Arkansas, where the company has produced architectural pre-cast concrete for exterior wall panels or decorative additions to high-end construction projects.
“We provide exterior finished concrete for grade-A office space, condos, government buildings, hospitals and sports facilities,” said Ramm. “Places that might be considered landmark buildings.”
It has projects under construction in Dallas, Houston and Corpus Christi.
The building lends itself to the company’s production process, which begins with the design of the structure, according to Ramm.
There are areas of the building off of the main production floor that provide separate work spaces for carpenters, mold fabrication and metal workers for structural reinforcement and anchoring.
Twenty skilled workers relocated to Hillsboro from Arkansas to open the plant, and the company had hired 25 employees locally as of last month.
“We have been very pleased with the quality of the workforce here,” Ramm said.
He expects, that with current market demand, the facility will have up to 65 employees by the end of the year.
The company signed agreements with the City of Hillsboro and Hill County for a 50-percent rebate on its property taxes if it achieves and maintains the employment of 60 full-time employees.
The Hillsboro Economic Development Corporation (EDC) also paid around $24,000 to construct the driveway to the building from the Highway 81 service road, according to Kennie Nowlin, EDC board member who was president when the business was recruited.
The company starts with specifications from architects, which are used to create detailed shop drawings for each pre-cast panel.
The drawings show the required anchoring and erection details, pertinent cross sections and building dimensions.
The detailed drawings are then submitted to the architect for approval.
Once approved, the shop drawings are released to the mold shop, where carpenters build precise forms for the various panels.
The forming material could be wood, concrete, steel, fiberglass or a combination of the materials, depending upon the number and repetition of pours into each form.
The forms can be made to any shape or size, so there are infinite design possibilities, according to Ramm.
After construction of the form, a skilled set-up crew prepares the form for the panels to be cast.
Before the casting process begins, the crew will measure to check for accuracy and tolerance of the form as compared to the shop drawings.
After the dimensions are verified, the set-up crew releases the form to production.
The exterior mix of the panel is poured first. This layer of concrete is vibrated to ensure uniform orientation.
“It can be made any color the client wants it to be,” said Ramm.
Next, lifting loops and steel reinforcements are installed, followed by connection plates by which the panel will be welded to the building.
The rest of the form is then filled with concrete, and the back of the panel is hand finished.
The panel is then left to cure overnight. The following day the forms are removed and the panel will either be hand finished or sandblasted, depending upon the type of finish that is required.
The finished product can be made to look like concrete, marble, granite, limestone, sandstone or brick.
Crews then prepare the product for shipment to the construction site on forms that will ensure safe transport.
The company has provided materials for Ameriquest Field in Arlington, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and Nancy Lee Bass Cowgirl Hall of Fame and Radio Shack’s corporate headquarters, both in Fort Worth.
Crews at the Hillsboro facility are currently producing the exterior panels for One Arts Plaza, the 23-story first phase of a $125 million mixed-use complex in downtown Dallas.
Orders are in pre-production on a parking garage in Corpus Christi and expansion of the Thomas Building in downtown Dallas.
Hillsboro Texas- Hillsboro Reporter
For the first time since CertainTeed shuttered its complex on Highway 81 in north Hillsboro, there is new life at the old pipe plant.
CertainTeed started production of asbestos-concrete pipe in the early 1960s and continued until 1987, when regulations and lawsuits relating to the use of asbestos led to its closure.
With the exception for a short time when the CertainTeed Corporation used the large building for storing large rolls of sand paper, the complex has basically set unused.
It wasn’t until a Fort Worth developer got control of the property that things started to happen.
Arkansas Precast Corporation recently purchased the building on the south end of the property and has started production at its new facility.
Proximity to markets and the attributes of the property are what attracted the company to Hillsboro, according to Sales Manager David Ramm.
Arkansas Precast was founded in 1968 in Jacksonville, Arkansas, where the company has produced architectural pre-cast concrete for exterior wall panels or decorative additions to high-end construction projects.
“We provide exterior finished concrete for grade-A office space, condos, government buildings, hospitals and sports facilities,” said Ramm. “Places that might be considered landmark buildings.”
It has projects under construction in Dallas, Houston and Corpus Christi.
The building lends itself to the company’s production process, which begins with the design of the structure, according to Ramm.
There are areas of the building off of the main production floor that provide separate work spaces for carpenters, mold fabrication and metal workers for structural reinforcement and anchoring.
Twenty skilled workers relocated to Hillsboro from Arkansas to open the plant, and the company had hired 25 employees locally as of last month.
“We have been very pleased with the quality of the workforce here,” Ramm said.
He expects, that with current market demand, the facility will have up to 65 employees by the end of the year.
The company signed agreements with the City of Hillsboro and Hill County for a 50-percent rebate on its property taxes if it achieves and maintains the employment of 60 full-time employees.
The Hillsboro Economic Development Corporation (EDC) also paid around $24,000 to construct the driveway to the building from the Highway 81 service road, according to Kennie Nowlin, EDC board member who was president when the business was recruited.
The company starts with specifications from architects, which are used to create detailed shop drawings for each pre-cast panel.
The drawings show the required anchoring and erection details, pertinent cross sections and building dimensions.
The detailed drawings are then submitted to the architect for approval.
Once approved, the shop drawings are released to the mold shop, where carpenters build precise forms for the various panels.
The forming material could be wood, concrete, steel, fiberglass or a combination of the materials, depending upon the number and repetition of pours into each form.
The forms can be made to any shape or size, so there are infinite design possibilities, according to Ramm.
After construction of the form, a skilled set-up crew prepares the form for the panels to be cast.
Before the casting process begins, the crew will measure to check for accuracy and tolerance of the form as compared to the shop drawings.
After the dimensions are verified, the set-up crew releases the form to production.
The exterior mix of the panel is poured first. This layer of concrete is vibrated to ensure uniform orientation.
“It can be made any color the client wants it to be,” said Ramm.
Next, lifting loops and steel reinforcements are installed, followed by connection plates by which the panel will be welded to the building.
The rest of the form is then filled with concrete, and the back of the panel is hand finished.
The panel is then left to cure overnight. The following day the forms are removed and the panel will either be hand finished or sandblasted, depending upon the type of finish that is required.
The finished product can be made to look like concrete, marble, granite, limestone, sandstone or brick.
Crews then prepare the product for shipment to the construction site on forms that will ensure safe transport.
The company has provided materials for Ameriquest Field in Arlington, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and Nancy Lee Bass Cowgirl Hall of Fame and Radio Shack’s corporate headquarters, both in Fort Worth.
Crews at the Hillsboro facility are currently producing the exterior panels for One Arts Plaza, the 23-story first phase of a $125 million mixed-use complex in downtown Dallas.
Orders are in pre-production on a parking garage in Corpus Christi and expansion of the Thomas Building in downtown Dallas.