From schools to churches, YMCAs to hospitals, ice arenas to community centers, the right building can bring people together. No matter the purpose, our experience has shown that projects like these share common themes…budgets run tight, and timelines even tighter. Both criteria put Fabcon precast panels in the sweet spot for those planning this type of project.
Fabcon Sales Engineer Dick Duckstad has been a part of hundreds of planning meetings. And while there’s often a desire to do something splashy, community projects tend to keep an eye on the larger prize—the building’s impact on the people and the community. Duckstad notes, “The mindset eventually becomes, ‘Let’s get real with this. Let’s spend more on panels on the front and be selective in other spots. But let’s get the strength and durability and be smart with our money.” That’s where Fabcon precast panels can help.
“Costs keep going up everywhere,” Duckstad continues. “And while we’re not a custom precaster like some out there, ours is very much a system. We’re fast, and our panels are really efficient. That makes them a very economical choice in a lot of these instances.” This can be attributed to the design of the panels themselves, along with the ease in which they’re delivered to the build site.
“The insulation makes our product lighter so you can get incrementally more on a truck, and that’s where the economies come in,” says Duckstad. “And the fact that our automated facilities can produce as much as they can is a big factor. Plus, we can achieve r-values a lot of other precasters can’t.” These are all reasons why many builders rely on our 12-inch VersaCore+Green™ sandwich panels and their impressive r-value of 28.2.
MODULAR BY NATURE, BUILDINGS MADE WITH FABCON PRECAST PANELS CAN BE REIMAGINED DOWN THE ROAD.
Because Fabcon maintains control of all facets of the production process, it’s possible to match existing aggregate panels…even as they’ve weathered over the years.
While specs like r-values and weights certainly matter, it’s important to keep an eye on the bigger picture. What happens if you outgrow a property? Or need to consider a sale? Fabcon buildings have inherent advantages, and they tend to have multifunctional appeal.
MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN YOUR COMMUNITY HAS NEVER BEEN FASTER, MORE EFFICIENT OR MORE CUSTOMIZABLE.
What may originally have been built as a church can easily be reconfigured to be a showroom or a warehouse. This creates clear advantages at resale. Our panels, too, are part of a system. So if you’re a school and enrollment swells, or if you need to add another sheet at the ice arena, it’s entirely possible to expand the footprint of a building or make adjustments to the original functionality with new doors and windows.
“We’re getting more and more calls to come in and revamp buildings we helped build 20 years ago,” said Fabcon’s Dave Stanton. “Called ‘remove and relocate’ projects, we can actually grow the building using a combination of new and existing panels. We’ll remove a section of wall, move it 100 feet down and install new panels to expand the footprint of the building.”
The Flandreau-Santee Community Center features a medium sandblast finish as well as customized imprint patterns.
And while the overall structure of a building is one consideration, so too is aesthetics when you’re looking to renovate an existing building. Fabcon’s commitment to Functional Aesthetics™ means you never have to compromise on performance or design.
“Steel form panels, of course, can be painted any color,” said Stanton. “But we can also incorporate pigment and colored aggregate that’s specific to the region it’s pulled from. Since we maintain control of all facets of the production process, we’re quite adept at matching existing aggregate panels…even as they’ve weathered over the years.”
So whether you’re building from scratch or repurposing an existing structure, Fabcon Precast brings value to community projects. Making a difference in your community has never been faster, more efficient or more customizable.
