Every contractor knows and understands the importance of precisely locating utilities and obstructions within the perimeter of your construction site or area. But many don’t know that without the proper equipment and training, concrete cutting coring and drilling operations can end badly or even tragically, costing your company money, time or potentially lives.
Safe2Core Miami’s trained personnel offer a suite of services which allow your crew to safely and quickly locate, identify, cut and drill around obstacles within the concrete or asphalt matrix. Our services include:
- core drilling
- curb sawing
- concrete cutting & coring
- flat saws
- ground penetrating radar
- slab sawing
- wall sawing
- wire saws
- and more!
Concrete Cutting
As a catch-all term, concrete cutting includes every way to remove a portion, piece or section of cut concrete from the surrounding matrix. The reason, type and location dictates the specific type of cut. Common methods of cutting concrete include chain and wire concrete sawing, cutting, drilling and coring.
Anyone who’s worked more than one concrete pour knows you can’t necessarily rely on drawings to identify the location of rebar, wire mesh, dobies and post tensioning cables, especially after the fact. The force, direction and flow rate of the concrete can shift the structural elements, utilities and other embedded materials within the concrete or asphalt by a small but significant degree. On its face, this is no big deal. After all, what’s a couple of inches?
- When you have to make a concrete cut, a couple of inches can be the difference between a safe, effective cut and a major catastrophe. Safe2Core Miami proudly offers concretecoringandcutting service to South Florida communities including:
- Boca Raton
- Boynton Beach
- Cape Coral
- Coral Springs
- Delray Beach
- Fort Myers
- Hollywood
- Homestead
- Jupiter
- Lake Worth
- Miami
- Miami Beach
- Miramar
- Naples
- Pompano Beach
- Vero Beach
Concrete Coring
Although it’s a subset of cutting concrete, concrete coring is a different, specialized method which combines drilling, concrete cutting and sawing for removal of a circular section of concrete. This can be used for running conduit, patching imperfections up after testing reveals a flaw or void in the matrix or for obtaining in situ samples for laboratory analysis and compressive strength testing, for example. Coring requires a special cutting rig, which is typically powered by a generator, and extra caution, as well as a more detailed knowledge of what lies within the matrix in order to avoid reinforcing elements and utilities.
Just because a concrete cutting company offers this service does not ensure they have the equipment or skills to identify obstructions within the concrete or to extract a suitable core for laboratory testing. Safe2Core Miami proudly offers concrete sawing coring and drilling in South Florida communities including:
- Boca Raton
- Boynton Beach
- Cape Coral
- Coral Springs
- Delray Beach
- Fort Myers
- Hollywood
- Homestead
- Jupiter
- Lake Worth
- Miami
- Miami Beach
- Miramar
- Naples
- Pompano Beach
- Vero Beach
When you need concrete coring services, Safe2Core Miami suggests you call or email us first to get a pricing estimate from our friendly office staff! To learn more about why, check us out on Facebook, visit our home page or keep reading for FAQs about concrete cutting & coring asked by contractors just like you!
Frequently Asked Questions About Concrete Cutting & Coring
Are you looking for a concrete cutting and coring company who can meet all your location and cutting needs and does the job right the first time, every time? Safe2Core Miami is here to help!
Question: What is concrete cutting? –Elbert, Miami, FL
Answer: Concrete cutting is any method used to cut into or through concrete or asphalt. This may be necessary to install conduit or ductwork through a wall, inset epoxy bolts or other reinforcing measures, obtain laboratory testing samples, repair weaknesses or defects in the structure or simply remove a section of the concrete or asphalt. Each type of concrete cutting is dictated by its location, purpose, size and other factors. Done correctly, concrete cutting is a simple, straightforward operation which can be safely and easily executed. Done improperly, it can damage the reinforcing or utilities, jeopardize the integrity of the structure and potential create hazardous situations for both your crew and the general public. This is why it’s so important to have a qualified, certified concrete cutting contactor like Safe2Core Miami performing your concrete cutting operations.
Question: What tools are used for concrete cutting? –Leigh, Miami, FL
Answer: Concrete cutting requires specialized masonry tools with hardened bits and blades which are made of a high-strength steel alloy, often impregnated with industrial-grade diamond, to create a smooth, even cut. Because of the high temperatures generated by cutting into concrete and asphalt, most concrete cutting tools such as saws and coring rigs use a gravity-fed water system to cool the blades and prevent them from warping. The water also serves as lubricant for the bits. Drills are the exception to this rule, because they are typically used to bore out small holes rather than being used for sustained periods, so the bits have time to cool between engagements. Like other concrete cutting apparatus, drill bits rated for boring into concrete or other masonry are usually made of tungsten carbide or a similar industrial-grade hardened steel alloy.
Question: Do you have to use water when sawing? –Miguel, Miami, FL
Answer: While it’s not strictly essential for so-called “dry-cutting” rigs, masonry cutting tools rely on water both to lubricate the blades and bits, keep down dust and to cool the equipment and the material being cut. This helps ensure straight, smooth, even cuts, minimizes dust generation and prevents warping and bending in the blades and material alike. Dry-cutting is usually okay for small cuts, but for larger area cuts, water-cooling is generally better for both the rig, the operator and the people in the work area.
Question: What is concrete coring? –Bethany, Miami, FL
Answer: Concrete coring is a specialized type of cutting which requires a dedicated bit with a hollow shaft. This allows for cutting access for conduit runs through walls and obtaining in-place core samples for lab testing from concrete, masonry and asphalt. A coring machine is usually electric and run off a portable generator, and frequently uses water to cool and lubricate the material and the bit. Concrete coring can be one of the more difficult cutting operations, both because of the necessity of creating a smooth, clean cut and because coring within a building or sidewalk especially requires avoiding any utilities, lines or structural support members within the concrete. If the cut is only slightly off, it could create an unusable core or a safety hazard, as well as an unnecessary expense because of the repairs necessary. Taking this into account, it’s important to make sure the technician doing the coring is properly trained and has the right equipment for the job, as well as having possible impediments to the operation located and marked out before the coring begins. Safe2Core Miami offers both concrete scanning to ensure all subsurface obstructions are accurately located, and concrete coring to consistently deliver precise, excellent results no matter what the cut or the reason for it.
Question: What should I expect when concrete cutting and coring are being performed on my jobsite? –Rick, Miami, FL
Answer: Our technicians will come out and review the site drawings for the work area. If needed, we’ll bring a ground penetrating radar scanner to survey the area and mark out the locations of anything we detect under the surface. Once that’s done, we’ll begin the cutting operations. Depending on the size and nature of the area, this could take anywhere from a couple of hours to several days. Usually, we recommend keeping all personnel not directly involved in the work at a safe distance, to minimize the net risk of injury. After the cutting is done, we will patch the area if required and get out of the way so your crew can proceed with the work. Safe2Core Miami’s skilled, trained, licensed technicians always maximize safety and precision, which is why many general contractors who don’t have their own dedicated cutting equipment trust us for their concrete and asphalt cutting and coring needs.
To learn more about how Safe2Core Miami can meet your concrete cutting and coring needs safely and effectively, click here to contact us and let us show you why Safe2Core Miami is South Florida’s trusted solution for scanning and cutting operations done right the first time, every time!