Tilt-Up Construction

Tilt-up building construction marries process efficiency with reinforced concrete’s strength, longevity and low-maintenance needs. It is also a flexible, sustainable and affordable approach to faster project completion.

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Tilt-up building construction marries process efficiency with reinforced concrete’s strength, longevity and low-maintenance needs. It is also a flexible, sustainable and affordable approach to faster project completion.

Contact Us

ECS engineer setting up equipment

What Is Tilt-Up Construction?

Tilt-up construction is a building technique where the floor slab of the new building is used as a casting bed to form the concrete exterior wall panels. In other words, concrete professionals cast the exterior walls on the existing flooring surface and use a crane to raise and position the cured panels. Each erected wall gets a brace to help support it until the roof anchors the exterior together.

The technique debuted early in the 20th century and gained popularity as an economical construction approach. Although originally used primarily for industrial facilities, Tilt-up is now being used for upscale commercial and retail facilities. Software advances have enabled more design flexibility, project efficiency and cost transparency for modern tilt-up construction.

Tilt-up construction is a building technique where the floor slab of the new building is used as a casting bed to form the concrete exterior wall panels. In other words, concrete professionals cast the exterior walls on the existing flooring surface and use a crane to raise and position the cured panels. Each erected wall gets a brace to help support it until the roof anchors the exterior together.

The technique debuted early in the 20th century and gained popularity as an economical construction approach. Although originally used primarily for industrial facilities, Tilt-up is now being used for upscale commercial and retail facilities. Software advances have enabled more design flexibility, project efficiency and cost transparency for modern tilt-up construction.

ECS engineer setting up equipment

Why Is Tilt-Wall Construction Important?

Tilt-wall construction has numerous advantages that have contributed to its growth.

Tilt-up Wall Construction Is Cost-Effective

Compared to other construction methods, tilt-wall deliver significant value. Conventional wood framing consumes more labor, which drives higher project costs. Using premade steel framing means fewer design options, and traditional steel beams are significantly more expensive than concrete components.

Local supply availability also helps keep costs in check. It is generally easy to get cement, sand, gravel and rebar from a vendor close to the construction site, which reduces long, expensive material transportation journeys.

Lower labor costs are another factor making tilt-wall an economical approach. The work requires fewer employees than standard construction methods, so a small team of concrete professionals and a crane operator can get the job done. Savings compound as the project’s square footage grows.

Post-construction, tilt-up buildings continue to provide value to their owners. Concrete is highly durable, enabling it to withstand extreme weather events and resist fire. Those characteristics may help building owners save on their insurance premiums. Plus, concrete requires little maintenance, creating additional savings.

Tilt-Wall Construction Offers Design Versatility

Although this construction method is common for buildings like warehouses, you can use it for other project types. Modern technology allows for design options such as curved walls.

A range of finishing options is also available. Tilt-up engineering consultants like ECS can develop your specs to include different colors or textures. If you want a more decorative look, we can help bring that vision to life with siding or other aesthetically pleasing exterior coverings.

Tilt-Up Construction Supports Greener Practices

The primary way tilt-up contributes to eco-friendliness is through energy savings. 

Reinforced concrete naturally provides insulative properties, which promotes higher energy efficiency. Your tilt-up construction company can work with your project engineer to create panels with additional insulation layers if desired.

This construction method uses significantly less energy in production as well. Projects requiring steel have a larger environmental impact since the material’s fabrication consumes significant resources.

Thanks to economical and efficient component use in casting, tilt-up also generates less waste than conventional construction approaches. These qualities mean shorter material deliveries and fewer trucks heading for the landfill to dispose of project debris.

Tilt-Wall Construction Promotes Faster Project Completion

When you embark on a construction project, you have a time frame in mind. You need a finished building to house operations or host tenants, and delays can be costly. Tilt-up construction offers an expedited way to get to the finish line.

Sourcing materials locally enables faster deliveries, and traffic and weather events are less likely to impact the schedule. Casting can happen quickly, and once panels cure, the crane operator can swiftly put them in place. During the curing process, teams can safely focus on completing other tasks. The project can move ahead even faster if you forego decorative exterior finishing.

Why Is Tilt-Wall Construction Important?

Tilt-wall construction has numerous advantages that have contributed to its growth.

Tilt-up Wall Construction Is Cost-Effective

Compared to other construction methods, tilt-wall deliver significant value. Conventional wood framing consumes more labor, which drives higher project costs. Using premade steel framing means fewer design options, and traditional steel beams are significantly more expensive than concrete components.

Local supply availability also helps keep costs in check. It is generally easy to get cement, sand, gravel and rebar from a vendor close to the construction site, which reduces long, expensive material transportation journeys.

Lower labor costs are another factor making tilt-wall an economical approach. The work requires fewer employees than standard construction methods, so a small team of concrete professionals and a crane operator can get the job done. Savings compound as the project’s square footage grows.

Post-construction, tilt-up buildings continue to provide value to their owners. Concrete is highly durable, enabling it to withstand extreme weather events and resist fire. Those characteristics may help building owners save on their insurance premiums. Plus, concrete requires little maintenance, creating additional savings.

Tilt-Wall Construction Offers Design Versatility

Although this construction method is common for buildings like warehouses, you can use it for other project types. Modern technology allows for design options such as curved walls.

A range of finishing options is also available. Tilt-up engineering consultants like ECS can develop your specs to include different colors or textures. If you want a more decorative look, we can help bring that vision to life with siding or other aesthetically pleasing exterior coverings.

Tilt-Up Construction Supports Greener Practices

The primary way tilt-up contributes to eco-friendliness is through energy savings. 

Reinforced concrete naturally provides insulative properties, which promotes higher energy efficiency. Your tilt-up construction company can work with your project engineer to create panels with additional insulation layers if desired.

This construction method uses significantly less energy in production as well. Projects requiring steel have a larger environmental impact since the material’s fabrication consumes significant resources.

Thanks to economical and efficient component use in casting, tilt-up also generates less waste than conventional construction approaches. These qualities mean shorter material deliveries and fewer trucks heading for the landfill to dispose of project debris.

Tilt-Wall Construction Promotes Faster Project Completion

When you embark on a construction project, you have a time frame in mind. You need a finished building to house operations or host tenants, and delays can be costly. Tilt-up construction offers an expedited way to get to the finish line.

Sourcing materials locally enables faster deliveries, and traffic and weather events are less likely to impact the schedule. Casting can happen quickly, and once panels cure, the crane operator can swiftly put them in place. During the curing process, teams can safely focus on completing other tasks. The project can move ahead even faster if you forego decorative exterior finishing.

tilt up construction

When to Use Tilt-Up Construction Services

With the evolution of tilt-up to a more “uptown” setting, problems with floor slab performance have become more common. After the tilt-up panels are cast, it is necessary that a service crane lift the panels and place them on the exterior wall footings. For safety reasons, the “lifts” are almost always performed with the service crane being supported on the interior building floor slab. This subjects the floor slab to the initial lifting loads and dynamic wheel loading as the service crane carries the panel across the slab to its designated position.

Where tilt-up is used as an industrial product, this is less of a problem. Industrial floor slabs are usually designed for heavy loads. Retail and commercial construction place less loading demands on the floor slab and more emphasis on the external appearance. Accordingly, commercial and retail construction typically have floor slabs that are not designed for industrial or construction-type loading.

For retail and commercial tilt-up, the floor slab can rarely “theoretically” support the load of the service crane.
Although a heavily overloaded slab can usually tolerate one or two passes of the crane, structural failure often
occurs after only a few passes.

When to Use Tilt-Up Construction Services

With the evolution of tilt-up to a more “uptown” setting, problems with floor slab performance have become more common. After the tilt-up panels are cast, it is necessary that a service crane lift the panels and place them on the exterior wall footings. For safety reasons, the “lifts” are almost always performed with the service crane being supported on the interior building floor slab. This subjects the floor slab to the initial lifting loads and dynamic wheel loading as the service crane carries the panel across the slab to its designated position.

Where tilt-up is used as an industrial product, this is less of a problem. Industrial floor slabs are usually designed for heavy loads. Retail and commercial construction place less loading demands on the floor slab and more emphasis on the external appearance. Accordingly, commercial and retail construction typically have floor slabs that are not designed for industrial or construction-type loading.

For retail and commercial tilt-up, the floor slab can rarely “theoretically” support the load of the service crane.
Although a heavily overloaded slab can usually tolerate one or two passes of the crane, structural failure often
occurs after only a few passes.

Our “Lessons Learned” experience to reduce the impact of slab overloading include the following observations and suggestions:

  • When a building is planned for tilt-up construction, the governing floor slab thickness may be the construction load, not the service load. Both should be considered.
  • Repeated passes of the service crane is the primary mechanism of failure. The lifting sequence should be designed to minimize repeated passes over a single floor slab area.
  • Open-graded gravel tends to allow more flexure in the slab than what is caused by a slab supported directly on a properly prepared subgrade or on a well-graded granular layer. Consistent with subgrade drainage requirements, supporting the slab directly on the subgrade or on a more densely packed gravel (example: 21-A) reduces flexure and cracking.
  • Seal the slab joints with an elastomeric sealant prior to construction of the panels. Water infiltration through control joints in the slab softens the subgrade, which greatly reduces the strength of the floor slab subgrade soils. Procedures to minimize water infiltration through cracks in the slab and removing water from the perimeter of the building area helps minimize floor slab cracking.
  • Use wooden matting, or even the unlifted panels, as a working platform for the crane to help reduce the load on the floor slab surface.
  • On small buildings, consider other building systems. Small buildings generally require repeated passes of the service crane over small areas. Tilt-up construction may not be appropriate for very small buildings with high bay requirements.

Our “Lessons Learned” experience to reduce the impact of slab overloading include the following observations and suggestions:

  • When a building is planned for tilt-up construction, the governing floor slab thickness may be the construction load, not the service load. Both should be considered.
  • Repeated passes of the service crane is the primary mechanism of failure. The lifting sequence should be designed to minimize repeated passes over a single floor slab area.
  • Open-graded gravel tends to allow more flexure in the slab than what is caused by a slab supported directly on a properly prepared subgrade or on a well-graded granular layer. Consistent with subgrade drainage requirements, supporting the slab directly on the subgrade or on a more densely packed gravel (example: 21-A) reduces flexure and cracking.
  • Seal the slab joints with an elastomeric sealant prior to construction of the panels. Water infiltration through control joints in the slab softens the subgrade, which greatly reduces the strength of the floor slab subgrade soils. Procedures to minimize water infiltration through cracks in the slab and removing water from the perimeter of the building area helps minimize floor slab cracking.
  • Use wooden matting, or even the unlifted panels, as a working platform for the crane to help reduce the load on the floor slab surface.
  • On small buildings, consider other building systems. Small buildings generally require repeated passes of the service crane over small areas. Tilt-up construction may not be appropriate for very small buildings with high bay requirements.

Work With ECS for Tilt-Up Construction Project Engineering

Consulting with an ECS engineer should be your first step if you are considering a new tilt-up project. Our professionals draw from decades of industry experience to deliver the range of services your project needs for success. 

Contact a tilt-up specialist online or request a free project quote today.

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