Beauty from a barrel: a new exhibition at the National Building Museum showcases concrete's contribution to architecture

Concrete Producer, The, July, 2004 by Rick Yelton

Meigs' design included an ingenious system of windows, vents, and open archways, allowing the Great Hall to function as a reservoir of light and air. Beneath the impressive Italian Renaissance design, with a central fountain and eight colossal Corinthian columns--among the tallest interior columns in the world-the museum's Great Hall has hosted presidential inaugural balls for almost 120 years.

To learn more about the National Building Museum, visit www.nbm.org or telephone 202-272-2448.

Producer Profile: Arban & Carosi

Tradition meets innovation at Nick Carosi's precast operation, Arban & Carosi, in Woodbridge, Va. Tradition can be seen in highly ornamental precast concrete pieces, designed to adorn hundreds of high-profile structures. Innovative production techniques and equipment allow his crew to not only cast pieces that are ornate, but also give durable impressions and cost-effective building elements.

Founded 67 years ago by Carosi's grandfather and John Arban, both Italian immigrants who were Washington, D.C., sculptors, the facility now supplies pieces to a wide range of projects along the East Coast. Both were involved in ornamental plastering, which led to architectural precast production.

The plant has changed significantly from the cast stone operation of the 1940s. Today, Carosi's crews are designing, casting, and installing a wide range of architectural pieces, from curtain walls to facades.

The producer draws on its plastering legacy to create exceptionally smooth, ornate, and well-defined pieces. This legacy of detail prompted National Building Museum curators to commission Arban & Carosi to cast the Zen "landscape" of precast concrete panels that cover portions of the exhibition's floor.

Casting difficult pieces for high-profile projects is not new here. Well-known East Coast architects and designers occasionally visit. An experienced team of designers and detailers on the staff develops the plans that successfully cast many dreams into concrete.

To meet the demands of today's high-paced production environment, the producer has blended old with new to develop a modern production facility. It starts with a recently updated control center from which the operator controls the hundreds of recipes used each year. Once selected, the operator selects one of two 1-cubic-yard pan mixers for mixing. Forklifts deliver wet concrete to the casting areas so an overhead crane can place the mix in the form. The plant's long alignment allows crews to cast up to five different projects daily.

Care in handling the elements after casting and clean-up is especially important for the ornate pieces, so Carosi's crew keeps the stockyard clean and orderly. Hundreds of racks are designed to carefully support panels and pieces before shipment.

To learn more about Arban & Carosi's history, awards, and production capabilities, visit www.arbancarosi.com.