Trench Specifications
Trench Specifications
1-A. These specifications cover any precast Fibercrete ® (G.F.R.C.) and/or concrete cable trench system manufactured
by Concast Incorporated in Zumbrota, Minnesota. The manufacturer must have experience in design and fabrication of
these products and also the facilities for fabricating them with the quality specified herein and without delay to
the agreed upon schedule.
1-B. The trench system shall be designed and constructed to provide a serviceable life of 35 years and warrantied for 5 years when
installed outdoors in full sunlight and without any protection from the weather at any location in the continental
United States or Canada.
1-C. The Supplier shall design, construct, perform dimensional and quality control tests, and prepare the trench for truck shipment.
Shipping and delivery responsibilities shall be defined in the project specific purchase documents. The Supplier shall
provide all necessary documentation as stated in this specification.
2-A. Drawings shall be made available for engineering approval and field installation. Final drawings will include individual
details, the layout, a complete BOM (Bill of Materials), and installation guidelines. Electronic individual component
drawings in PDF format are available upon request. Standard part drawings shall be available online.
2-B. The tolerances of the dimensions of each trench component shall not exceed +/-1/8". These tolerances apply to the
components when ready for shipping, when set on a flat and level surface with no loads applied to it.
2-D. The precast components are designed to conform to requirements stated in ASTM C857-07 "Practice for Minimum
Structural Design Loading for Underground Precast Concrete Utility Structures, ASTM C858-07 "Specifications for
Underground Precast Concrete Utility Structures".
2-E. Provisions, such as cast-in threaded inserts, must be offered for lifting traffic rated trench channels. Mounting holes
must be adequately reinforced to avoid damaging the channel, and to provide an ultimate strength of at least 5
times the part weight when the unit is lifted in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
3-A. Cement shall conform to ASTM C150-07 "Specification for Portland Cement".
3-B. Course and fine aggregates shall conform to ASTM C33 "Specification for Concrete Aggregates".
3-C. Preparation of concrete shall conform to ASTM C94 "Specification for Ready-Mix Concrete" & ACI 304 "Guide for Mixing,
Transporting and Placing Concrete".
3-D.1
Composed of cement mortar reinforced by alkali resistant glass fiber, and deformed high tensile welded wire. It
is fabricated via the Concast spray lay-up method which incorporates a minimum of 4 percent volume A.R.
glass fibers.
3-D.2 Conforms to AIA Masterspec Section 03491 for Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete and quality control
procedures per PCI# MNL-130-91.
3-E.1 Composed of cement mortar reinforced by alkali resistant glass fiber, and a deformed prefabricated high tensile
welded steel wire. It is fabricated via casting into steel forms.
3-E.2 A.R. Glass is required to prevent glass deterioration if in contact with any poured cement or grout foundation.
3-E.3 Shall obtain a minimum compressive strength of 6000 PSI at 28 days of age.
3-F. MICRO-CONCRETE
3-F.1 Precast concrete trench components shall be cast into steel forms using Type I/II Portland Cement.
3-F.3 Shall obtain a minimum compressive strength of 7500 PSI at 28 days of age.
3-G. REINFORCEMENT
3-G.1 Steel reinforcing bars shall conform to ASTM A615/A615M - 16 "Standard Specification for Deformed and Plain Carbon-Steel Bars for
Reinforcement".
3-G.2 Steel reinforcing wires shall conform to ASTM A496 "Specification for Steel Wire, Deformed for Concrete Reinforcement".
3-G.3 Steel reinforcing weld wire cages shall conform to ASTM A497 "Specification for Steel Welded Wire Fabric, Deformed
for Concrete Reinforcement".
3-H. With equipment installed; the trench system shall be capable of withstanding temperature variations of -40° Fahrenheit to 149°
Fahrenheit without crack ing, splitting, or other wise deforming. Material shall be have been tested and conform to
ASTM C666/C666M-03.
3-I. Fire Resistance: Per ASTM E-84 surface burning test must provide Class A level with a flame spread index of 0 and smoke
developed index is also 0.
3-K. Concrete properties will vary depending upon the particular formulation of the concrete mix design. Customized properties can
be achieved by using nonstandard ingredients, by changing or adding reinforcements, and by tailoring the overall mix design.
3-L.1 All galvanized steel covers, hardware, and embedments shall meet the following requirements:
• Steel Angles & Flats - ASTM A-36 | Galvanized Covers - ASTM 123
3-L.2 All stainless steel hardware and embedments shall meet the following requirements:
3-L.3 All aluminum covers, hardware, and embedments shall meet the following requirements:
• Aluminum Flats 6061-T6511 - ASTM B221 | Aluminum Sheet Smooth 5052-H32 - ASTM B209
• Aluminum Angles 6061-T6 - ASTM B308 | Aluminum Channels 6061-T6 - ASTM B308
3-M.1 All polymer concrete covers shall meet the following requirements:
• Compressive Strength ASTM C-39 Min: 16,000 psi
• Modulus of Rupture ASTM C-293 Avg: 1670 psi
• Modulus of Elasticity (Tension) ASTM D-790 Min: 1.15x106 psi
• Direct Tensile Strength ASTM D-638 Min: 2070 psi
• Splitting Tensile Strength ASTM C-494 Avg: 1670 psi
• Tensile Elengation ASTM 638 1.48%
• Shear Strengh ASTM D-732.02 Min: 11,000 psi
• Flexural Strength ASTM D-790 Avg: 3,750 psi
• UV Radiation ASTM G-154 No effect to slight fading
• Water Absorption ASTM D-570 Max: .047%
• Fire resistance ASTM D-635 Will not sustain burning. Self-extinguishing sur face.
Flammability value less than 25 (E-162)
• Smoke Density ASTM E662-03 Less than .5 minutes and less than 15 at 4 minutes
• Freeze/thaw resistance 1000 cycles ASTM D1037 No effect
• Salt Spray ASTM B-117 No effect
• Impact Resistance 160 in-lbs. ASTM -2794 No Cracking. 1/4" diameter indentation
• Sodium Chloride 5% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Sulfuric Acid 0.1N ASTM D-543 No effect to slight discoloration
• Ammonium Hydroxide 28% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Potassium Hydroxide 20% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Calcium Chloride 5% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Sodium Hydroxide 0.1N ASTM D-543 No effect
• Ethyl Alcohol 100% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Acetic Acid 5% ASTM D-543 No effect
• Nitric Acid 30% ASTM D-543 Slight Discoloration
6-E. Provisions, such as cast-in threaded inserts, must be offered for lifting traffic rated channel. Mounting holes must be
adequately reinforced to avoid damaging the part and to provide an ultimate strength of at least 5 times the channel
weight when it is lifted in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions.
6-F. All steel reinforcement is held inside the concrete part using rebar chairs. These chairs ensure a proper concrete coverage
of 3/4" minimum over all areas of steel reinforcement.
7. INSTALLATION REQUIREMENTS
7-A. When the bottom of the excavation is soft, or where in the opinion of the soils engineer unsatisfactory foundation conditions exist, the
contractor shall over excavate to a depth to ensure a proper foundation as directed by the soils engineer. The excavation can then be
brought back up to the prescribed grade with a thoroughly compacted granular material.
7-B. All trench excavations shall be backfilled to restore pre-existing conditions or to the final grade as specified by the owner.
7-C. All backfill material shall be a granular material as required by the soils engineer. Trench shall be designed to have no
limitations of backfill height.
P.O. Box 69
1010 North Star Drive
Zumbrota, MN 55992-0069
February 2018
Fibercrete® Trench System
4 EMAIL:info@concastinc.com WEB: www.concastinc.com