Everything You Need to Know About the Price (or Cost) of Concrete
Planning either a minor residential renovation activity, or a major commercial construction project? Well, if you are, then you need to dig deeper and find about more about concrete prices Brisbane! If you’ve ever tried to buy concrete before, you may have probably noticed that prices can rise and fall quickly, and prices also vary between mixes and suppliers. This is not actually done to confuse buyers, but is simply a result of a wide array of variables which impact the final price, or cost of a concrete mix. So, here’s nearly everything you need to know about the price, and true cost, of concrete.
The Major Contributors to Price Fluctuations for Concrete Mixes
Let’s start the ball rolling by discussing the major contributors to the fluctuations in concrete prices Brisbane. The first major contributing factor is grade and cement content. In general, stronger concrete mixes are more costly, and this is because of the cement content. Cement is the single most costly ingredient in a concrete mix, so the stronger the mix, the more cement is needed, and the higher will the price of the mix be.
The workability of concrete also has a major effect on concrete prices Brisbane. This means that the higher the water content of concrete, the higher the cement content must be, although water is an absolute requirement in the chemical process of curing concrete. However, water is also the enemy when it comes to the strength of concrete.
The more water is added to the mixture, the weaker will concrete become. So, when we pump, or a higher workability mix is needed, more cement should be added to the mixture, if only to ensure that the concrete remains at its desired strength.
The next contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is the pumping required. If you have a worksite that’s a bit hard to navigate, then you will probably need to make use of your concrete supplier’s concrete pumping services.
If you do need this service, then this will naturally raise the price of your deliver, because you will need to factor in the hiring costs associated with these specialist pieces of equipment.
The third major contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is delivery distance. Your concrete suppliers will have to factor in travelling costs to your final delivery price. The further the distance between the batching plant and your construction worksite, the higher will the cost be.
The fourth major contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is competition. Just like any other industry, competition will most likely have a direct impact on the price of a product or service.
This can swing either way – Like greater competition in a local area could probably lead to discounted rates, while a lack of competition in a local area will most likely make concrete deliver more expensive.
The fifth major contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is the amount of concrete ordered. The amount of concrete you order will obviously have a significant influence on the final price. So, if you are unsure how must concrete you require for your project, you can use what’s called a “concrete calculator” to provide you with an estimate. You can also talk about your project in more detail with a professional concrete supplier or expert.
The sixth major contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is the date of delivery. While most suppliers will be more than happy to carry out concrete pours any time, like on weekends or during the middle of the night, these times will do have a slight cost implication. So, make sure you discuss this further with your prospective concrete suppliers.
The seventh major contributing factor to concrete prices Brisbane is specialist mixes and additives. Sometimes, project will need a specific mix of concrete which adds additional characteristics to the final construction.
From waterproof concrete to concrete which effectively protects against chemical attacks, these specialty concrete mixes and additives will definitely be more expensive that the standard mixes or grades.
The Two Reasons Why the Prices of Concrete, Cement & Bricks are Still Rising
We also asked a few of our construction industry sources on why the prices of concrete, cement and bricks are continuing to rise. We got two major reasons from them, and the first reason is that the input prices for concrete, cement and bricks started to increase later.
The experts stress that the concrete, cement and brick industry is a very energy-intensive field. And, energy prices started to increase once the COVID-19 pandemic eased. This is in contrast to price increases of wooden building materials, which spiraled during the COVID-19 pandemic as sawmills all over the planet scaled down their production.
However, the demand for timber unexpectedly rose dues to more refurbishing assignments for rebuilding homes. This is perhaps because consumers needed extra space at home, and had more savings because they were not able to go on a holiday during the COVID-19 lockdowns.
The second reason why the prices of concrete, cement and bricks went up because these the price of these materials are less vulnerable than timber and steel prices. The experts note that timber and steel prices are relatively receptive to changes in the market.
If the stocks of suppliers of wooden building materials increase, this leads to price reductions of wood within 1 to 2 months. On the other hand, building materials like concrete and cement are heavy and voluminous. For this reason, these are often traded on relatively small and local markets, which result in less competition.
This also gives the suppliers of cement, concrete and bricks more market power, which usually leads to both higher prices and lower price volatility. For this reason, these suppliers don’t have to pass on price reductions of raw materials or energy costs directly, because of the relatively limited competition.
As a result, the output prices of cement, concrete and bricks rise and fall at a much slower rate, as compared to building materials like wood, which are traded in more competitive markets.
