The Pune Construction Engineering Research Foundation (PCERF) has developed what it claims is the country’s first indigenous Concrete Maturity Meter that determines the strength of concrete used in construction. PCERF is a a non-profit organisation that works to introduce new and cost-effective technologies in the sector.
The device can help in significantly reducing the margin of error in estimating the strength of a structure while cutting project costs as well. “This diminutive device, which we have dubbed as the ‘Intelligent Concrete Maturity Meter’, is affordable and easy to use. It will be available at 30% to 40% of the cost of the foreign maturity meter that is in use in the market,” said Vishwas Lokare, president, PCERF.
Despite the importance of concrete in infrastructure construction, its in-place strength is often erroneously estimated by using the cumbersome and time-consuming ‘standard cube’ or cylindrical tests, said Dr. Hemant Dhonde, an executive member of PCERF, who developed the instrument along with another structural engineer, Dr. Rajesh Ghongade.
Improving accuracy
“These methods are destructive and less accurate, which leads to many glitches in the development of the structure. To counter that, the Maturity Method, which is a 30-year old proven Non-Destructive Testing method, is used to estimate the real-time and realistic strength development of in-place concrete,” Dr. Dhonde explained.
Considered as more reliable, the method is based on the principle that concrete strength is directly related to its hydration (temperature) and age (time). However, it is mostly used in major infrastructure enterprises in foreign countries and seldom in major Indian construction projects. A foreign-produced maturity meter was also used in the construction of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link in Mumbai.
“The Indian maturity meter will be able to measure the strength of concrete accurately at a lower cost, to the advantage of the construction sector. The equipment has been tested and is ready for commercial use,” said Mr. Lokare
The device, which can be directly connected to mobile phones, has been specifically developed to suit the techniques and skills of end users in India.
“By using this maturity meter, one can have savings of around 10% to 12% of the overall project,” said Mr. Lokare.
The foreign-made maturity meter kit is available in the range of ₹3 lakh to ₹5 lakh, while the India-produced maturity meter kit is priced between ₹50,000 and ₹5 lakh, he said.
He said PCERF had recently filed a patent for the meter. The device will be presented at the 16th edition of an International Expo called ‘Constro 2020’ organised by PCERF, to be held next month.
