San Jose's Zero Waste Energy Development Facility, Projected to be the Largest Dry Anaerobic Digestion Facility in the U.S., Turned to Central Concrete and Jos. J. Albanese to Meet Their Accelerated Schedule and Devise Concrete Mixes for its Waste Recovery System

Dry Anaerobic Digester Turns Organic Waste Into Electricity and High-Quality Compost

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Aug 21, 2013, 06:00 ET

SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Central Concrete, a business unit of U.S. Concrete, Inc. (NASDAQ-USCR), and the leader in delivering low-CO₂ concrete to the San Francisco Bay Area, along with Jos. J. Albanese, a leading Bay Area concrete contractor, today announced that they developed several innovative concrete solutions to address the aggressive specifications required by the Zero Waste Energy Development Facility currently under construction in San Jose, California. Not only did Central Concrete and Jos. J. Albanese respond to a significant acceleration in the schedule, but they devised mixes and placement solutions that addressed the unique issues faced when working with waste materials. The project is being constructed by South Bay Construction, Inc., a leading construction firm, with headquarters in Campbell, California.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130821/LA67132)

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130506/LA07403LOGO)

San Jose's Zero Waste Energy Development Facility is targeted for completion in December 2013 and is expected to be the largest Dry Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facility in the United States. The Dry AD process converts high solid organic waste into green energy. It is projected that the plant will be capable of processing 90,000 tons of waste and producing up to 1.6 megawatts of renewable power. This is enough to power 2000 homes.

The key to building a plant of this type was making sure that the waste materials, such as methane gas, were properly contained. In addition, the team needed to address the corrosive nature of these waste products. In response to these challenges, Central Concrete evaluated several mix design combinations, both in the field and in the lab, to produce the desired performance. The result—dense, durable concrete mixes with tight, low shrinkage specifications. These mixes not only delivered the low water/cement ratio required, but the highly workable mixes allowed Jos. J. Albanese's crew to place the concrete more efficiently, significantly helping them to meet the accelerated build schedule.

The Jos. J. Albanese team applied the Central Concrete mixes using a process called wet-mix shotcrete. This process involved pumping Central's prepared concrete through a nozzle. Compressed air is then introduced and a "gun" delivers the concrete. Not only does this wet-mix process allow larger volumes to be placed in less time, but the ability to adjust the water allowed the team to meet the hardening properties required for the job. In addition, the teams from Central and Jos. J. Albanese poured and placed five extremely large mat floors in the very early hours of the morning to further assist the owner in accelerating the schedule.

"We chose to work with Jos. J Albanese and Central Concrete on this project for their knowledge in shotcrete applications and their ability to get it done", said Jim Richley, Sr. Project Manager of South Bay Construction.

San Jose's Zero Waste Energy Development Facility
For more information on Zero Waste Energy, LLC: http://www.zerowasteenergy.com

Resources: Images

Contact Anne Banta, Central Concrete, at [email protected] for images. Various images can be viewed by visiting: Central Concrete Zero Waste Images.
Images are also available for viewing on South Bay Construction's Facebook page. Visit: https://www.facebook.com/SouthBayConstruction/photos_albums

About South Bay Construction, Inc.
Launched in 1975, South Bay Construction provides comprehensive construction services for new shell buildings, steel-frame structures, tenant improvements, state-of-the-art renovations, historical renovations and a range of rehabilitation projects. South Bay Construction covers the entire Bay Area - Monterey to Napa and the Pacific Coast to Sacramento. For more information, visit www.sbci.com.

About Jos. J. Albanese, Inc.
Jos. J. Albanese has been a leader in the Northern California construction community since its beginning in 1955. The company offers services in structural concrete, site concrete, demolition, grading, paving, rebar, and pumping. For more information, visit http://www.jjalbanese.com.

About Central Concrete
Central Concrete Supply Co., Inc., a business unit of U.S. Concrete, Inc. (NASDAQ-USCR), has been serving the San Francisco Bay Area for over 60 years. The company is recognized for engineering higher-performing concrete than traditional concrete, while significantly lowering carbon footprints with its low-C0₂ mixes.

Unlike traditional concrete, Central's standard mixes deliver 50% or greater cement replacement materials, thereby significantly reducing the carbon footprint of the project under construction. Central Concrete is recognized for supplying its low-CO₂ mixes to numerous San Francisco Bay Area signature projects, including the Cathedral of Christ the Light Church, Oakland; California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco – the world's greenest museum; NASA Ames Sustainability Base, Mountain View – the greenest federal building in the U.S.; David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Los Altos – largest net-zero private office building in Calif.; the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) headquarters – San Francisco's greenest office building; and the new Santa Clara 49er Football Stadium.

With 12 locations in the San Francisco Bay Area, Central Concrete offers multiple points of service to meet the diverse operational needs of its customers. For more information, visit www.centralconcrete.com.

SOURCE Central Concrete Supply Co., Inc.