2011 Archives | The Conco Companies

The former Riverside Continuation High School not only has a brand new building, but it also has a new name. As part of the Pittsburg Unified School District in Pittsburg, CA, the new Black Diamond High School opened its doors to students in time for the start of the new 2012 school year. It is an alternative school that serves students in grades 9-12 that are ages 16 to 18 years old.

The old Riverside High School building was in a deteriorated state when the decision was made to totally replace the structure with a new 34,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art facility. The contractor for the project was Broward Builders, Inc. and the architect was California Design West. The building was engineered by Buehler and Buehler Structural Engineers. Conco was brought in to provide concrete services on the new structure.

The project was completed in slightly under a year from the groundbreaking in August of 2011. The construction team worked diligently throughout the project to effectively meet all timelines and to stay on budget. According to California Design West, the new campus features a steel framed building and walls that are a brick/CMU veneer. There is a large, enclosed courtyard tastefully landscaped and clerestory windows in the breezeway.

In total, the building has 19 general classrooms and two special education rooms, an up-to-date media center, and a large multipurpose/cafeteria complete with a prep kitchen. Furthermore the new school was provided with a designated area for a child development program with its own outdoor playground. Conco recognizes that while this was not one of our large-sized or well-known projects, we are proud of our continued commitment to provide exemplary concrete services that enhance and benefit our communities.

Conco’s team of professional concrete contractors in the Portland area brings the highest level of integrity and principles to each project from pre-construction to finish. With the rapidly growing construction market, Conco is taking an active role in the Portland area with our expansion of high-quality commercial concrete services.

While we have built our reputation on concrete work for large-sized and notable projects, we have also been a part of smaller jobs that are just as important to those who benefit. A commuter bike connection was sorely needed to link two major roads in Novato, CA. to give bike riders a safe alternative to riding along the side of a very busy freeway.

Opened in Dec of 2011, the beautiful Enfrente Pathway is a 0.6-mile, multi-use trail that is completely separated from cars and provides a critical link to central and south Novato. The project was made possible by a grant of $1.95 million from the federal government and is a part of the Non-Motorized Transportation Pilot Program for Marin County. The contractor was Ghilotti Construction and the engineer was SOHA Engineers.

Conco’s expert concrete services were used to help with the construction of the path. The project required installation of soil nails used to retain the hillside. Sculpted shotcrete was applied as a finish over the soil nail walls. Once the walls were constructed, the area was graded in preparation for the paving of the concrete pathway. A concrete retaining wall was constructed at one end of the project and a concrete barrier was built at the other end. For added safety, fencing was also put up along the path.

Now that the connector is complete and offers a safer route, the hope is that more cyclists will opt to ride to work, which will help to reduce traffic and create less greenhouse gas emissions. Conco is pleased to have been a part of a project that enhances the lives of those in the Novato area and helps to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe.

Conco is one of the leading concrete contractors in San Francisco offering a range of innovative, quality services. We have been honored to work on many high-profile projects and were recently awarded the concrete package for the San Francisco 49ers Stadium. Our concrete services include commercial, educational, parking and other construction development as well as public works projects.

Problem: Delivering Material in Tight Spaces

Solution: Portable Belts

Landscape contractor, Valley Crest Landscaping, was confronted with the task of filling newly constructed planter boxes around a new apartment complex in Pleasant Hill, CA. The site consisted of numerous buildings with tight access. The original plan was to use laborers with wheelbarrows to fill all of the planter boxes. It was estimated that the task would take more than a week to complete.

After consulting with Gary Brandt with Conco Pumping, Gary recommended that Valley Crest utilize Conco’s portable belts. These belts are capable of being deployed in tight spaces between buildings, can be configured to transport material around corners, use 110V single phase power, and can deliver material at the rate of 40 TPH.

With Conco’s portable belts, Valley Crest was able to complete the task in half the budgeted time using half the projected labor expense. Most important it allowed the GC the extra days needed to complete this project so the new tenants would be moved in on the dates promised by the owner.

Conco’s portable belts have many other practical uses. Some of the more notable uses include:

Import/export of material in confined space building basements
Back fill of retaining walls, abandoned swimming pools, etc.
Conveyance of masonry block, pavers and other building materials to upper level decks or into tight areas
Transportation of ballot boxes from delivery vehicles to counter rooms.