Commercial Concrete Contractor Services

Commercial concrete contractor services encompass the full range of structural and flatwork concrete operations performed on non-residential construction projects — from foundation systems and tilt-up panels to elevated decks and industrial slabs. This page defines the scope of these services, explains how commercial concrete work is executed, identifies the project types most commonly served, and outlines the decision boundaries that separate one class of contractor or contract from another. Understanding these distinctions matters because concrete decisions made at the design phase directly constrain structural performance, scheduling, and long-term maintenance costs for the life of a building.

Definition and scope

Commercial concrete contractor services refer to the planning, forming, pouring, finishing, and curing of concrete elements within commercial, industrial, institutional, and municipal construction projects. This definition excludes residential flatwork and decorative residential applications, which involve different load specifications, code jurisdictions, and procurement channels.

The scope of work covered under this service category is governed by the American Concrete Institute (ACI 318 — Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete), which establishes minimum standards for design, material strength, and quality assurance on structural concrete elements in the United States. ACI 318 is adopted by reference in the International Building Code (IBC), which most US jurisdictions enforce for commercial structures.

Commercial concrete work divides into two primary classifications:

1. Structural concrete — Elements that bear load: foundations, pile caps, grade beams, columns, shear walls, elevated decks, and post-tensioned floor systems.
2. Flatwork and site concrete — Horizontal non-structural or lightly structural elements: slabs-on-grade, sidewalks, curbs, equipment pads, and parking structures.

A third category, specialty concrete, overlaps both: tilt-up panels, shotcrete, self-consolidating concrete (SCC), and fiber-reinforced concrete used in industrial floors with flatness tolerances measured in F-numbers (FF/FL ratings per ASTM E1155).

The commercial-contractor-services-categories framework positions concrete alongside other structural trades such as commercial steel and structural contractors, reflecting that concrete and steel decisions are often interdependent at the design stage.

How it works

Commercial concrete projects move through a defined sequence of phases, each involving specific contractor responsibilities and quality checkpoints.

Pre-construction — The concrete contractor reviews structural drawings, specifies mix designs meeting project compressive strength requirements (commonly 3,000 to 6,000 psi for commercial slabs, and up to 10,000 psi or higher for high-rise columns), and coordinates with the pre-construction services team on scheduling and material lead times. Formwork engineering is produced at this stage for elevated pours.

Forming — Crews erect forming systems — engineered panel forms, stay-in-place ICF (insulating concrete form) systems, or proprietary flying-form tables for repetitive elevated decks. Form design must carry the hydrostatic pressure of wet concrete plus live construction loads, subject to ACI 347 guidelines.

Reinforcing and post-tensioning — Rebar placement follows structural drawings and is inspected by a special inspector per IBC Section 1705.3, which mandates continuous or periodic third-party inspection for structural concrete in most occupancy categories. Post-tensioning tendon layout, stressing sequence, and elongation records are documented and submitted to the engineer of record.

Placement and consolidation — Ready-mix concrete is delivered from a National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA) certified plant, with batch tickets verifying water-cement ratio, admixture dosage, and slump. Concrete is consolidated by internal vibration to eliminate voids.

Finishing and curing — Slabs receive power-trowel finishing to specified surface tolerances. Curing compounds, wet burlap, or curing blankets are applied for a minimum of 7 days (per ACI 308) to achieve design strength and reduce shrinkage cracking.

Testing and documentation — Cylinders are cast on-site, lab-cured, and broken at 7 and 28 days. Results are compared against the specified compressive strength (f'c). Any failing cylinders trigger the core-sampling procedure outlined in ACI 318 Chapter 26.

Common scenarios

Commercial concrete contractors are engaged across a wide range of project types and building sectors:

• Tilt-up construction — Concrete panels are cast horizontally on the slab, then tilted into vertical position. This method is prevalent for warehouse and distribution facilities and light industrial buildings, where tilt-up can reduce exterior wall framing costs compared to steel stud systems.
• Parking structures — Multi-level post-tensioned concrete decks require specialized contractors familiar with PT tendon schedules, deicing salt protection, waterproof membrane systems, and expansion joint detailing.
• Industrial floors — Industrial contractor services often specify super-flat floors for automated guided vehicle (AGV) operations, with FF floor flatness numbers above 50 measured per ASTM E1155.
• Healthcare foundations — Healthcare facility construction involves vibration-isolated concrete pads for MRI suites and radiation shielding concrete (high-density aggregate mixes reaching 240 lb/ft³) per requirements set by the National Council on Radiation Protection.
• Elevated concrete decks for mixed-use — Mixed-use development projects typically combine post-tensioned concrete podium decks with wood or steel framing above, requiring concrete contractors to coordinate sleeve penetrations and bearing-point loads.

Decision boundaries

Selecting a commercial concrete contractor — and defining the correct contract scope — requires clear boundary-setting across several dimensions.

Structural vs. flatwork specialization — Not all concrete contractors are equipped for structural work. Elevated-deck and post-tensioning contractors maintain PT certifications through the Post-Tensioning Institute (PTI) and employ licensed engineers for shop drawing production. Flatwork-only contractors lack these qualifications. This distinction must be verified during credential verification.

Self-perform vs. subcontracted concrete — General contractors in commercial services may self-perform concrete or subcontract it. On projects exceeding $5 million in concrete scope, subcontracting to a specialist is common because bonding and insurance requirements at that scale typically demand a concrete-specific track record in the contractor bonding requirements underwriting process.

Design-build vs. design-bid-build — Under a design-build delivery model, the concrete contractor may provide pre-engineered foundation systems with proprietary design input. Under traditional design-bid-build, the contractor executes engineer-of-record drawings without design responsibility.

CSI Division 03 scope boundary — Commercial concrete work falls under CSI MasterFormat Division 03. Scope disputes between concrete (Division 03), masonry (commercial masonry contractor services), and structural steel (Division 05) are common at grade-level transitions. Contracts should specify who is responsible for anchor bolt setting, embed plates, and blockout closures.

Licensed contractor requirements — Licensing requirements for commercial concrete contractors vary by state. The Contractors State License Board (CSLB) in California requires a Class C-8 Concrete Contractors license for this work. Other states administer requirements through separate boards, detailed in the commercial contractor licensing requirements reference.

References

• American Concrete Institute — ACI 318-19: Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete
• International Code Council — International Building Code (IBC 2021)
• ASTM International — ASTM E1155: Standard Test Method for Determining FF Floor Flatness and FL Floor Levelness Numbers
• National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA)
• Post-Tensioning Institute (PTI)
• California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) — C-8 Concrete Contractor Classification
• American Concrete Institute — ACI 308: Guide to External Curing of Concrete