What is a Concrete Test Report?
A Document that records data obtained from an experiment of evaluation in an organized manner, describes the environmental or operating conditions, and shows the comparison of test results with test objectives. The data included in a concrete test report is used in specification compliance determination and can be used in quality control evaluations. Effective use of the data comes from a better understanding of the report process. On a large concrete construction project there could be hundreds of individual reports representing thousands of test specimens.
When are Concrete Test Reports Usually Released?
On average, reports are issued at 7 and 28 days. The initial 7-day data is an indicator of the concrete potential compressive strength.
How do Concrete Test Reports Help?
When constructing a building, we want to make sure the location is suitable to support the structure and we also want to make sure that the quality of the concrete at the bottom of the structure is the same at the top and all layers in-between. Concrete test reports help us to achieve higher quality and standards. When tested, concrete is sampled for evaluation, the “plastic” properties of the test sample are determined and this data is included in the report. The concrete is tested for consistency (slump), air content and temperature. In some projects the density (unit weight) of the concrete is required. The primary purpose of these tests is to verify compliance with project specified limits and can provide important data should there be non-compliant compression strengths.
Special Note: The process of sampling and testing of concrete must comply with the project specifications and ASTM C172 sampling and testing as required in ASTM C31 for casting cylinders and ASTM C39 for compression strength tests.
What Types of Information is Included in A Concrete Test Report?
Ambient temperature at the job site.
- Curing method at job site and laboratory.
- Compressive strength of each specimen to nearest 10psi.
- Date and time of the test and the name of the testing technician.
- Fresh concrete test results (slump, air content, and concrete temperature).
- Location in project represented by sample.
- Project name and location, name and location of testing lab, and identification numbers of the test specimens.
