Terratread Engineering

TerraTread provides numerous options for your specific project. The engineering behind our treads, beams and additional precast structures have been researched and examined from multiple professionals. Our TerraTread Team will analyze, guide and design the structure that is best suited for you.

Our products are produced by a NPCA certified plant complying with the highest standards in the industry. Using strong, wet cast concrete provides the long lasting, maintenance free structures our customers have come to know. Constructing TerraTread in a controlled environment allows our products to meet these high engineering standards.

The Benefits of Concrete vs. Wood: Breaking Things Down

At TerraTread, while we think that there are specific projects that wood would be a solid choice for, we typically recommend concrete for a wide range of different reasons.

Perhaps the most important of these is that it is very durable. Concrete is resistant to the weather, it can stand up to intense weight and more. This makes it very low maintenance, which is especially important when you’re talking about structures that are going to be in public areas. It also doesn’t rust like steel, it doesn’t rot like wood, and there’s no potential for it to burn.

To that end, lighter concrete actually brings with it a host of weather-related benefits – like the fact that it will reflect sunlight and warm more slowly throughout the day. Then, it will release that heat during the cooler hours of the night – thus keeping the temperature in an environment far more consistent than wood would ever be capable of.

Likewise, if lighting is used along a particular path, the concrete material will reflect that light as well. This makes the path look and feel brighter than what would be possible had wooden materials been used during the construction phase. Not only does it improve the ambiance, but it also means less lighting is required to achieve the desired effect – allowing for a significant savings in terms of energy usage as well.

Concrete also helps to avoid a lot of the common issues that people deal with when talking about wood construction. Wood has a natural tendency to warp when it shrinks, for example. Individual wooden boards can also shrink when they age. These natural tendencies can present a potential safety hazard depending on the nature of the project.

Wood – and in particular, timber – also requires a lot of maintenance in general. You’ll be dealing with various treatments and repairs, and it will also need to be sealed or repainted on a regular basis to extend the life of the wood. All of this can be avoided by choosing concrete, which is why it is something that we always recommend to our clients at TerraTread.

We are excited to answer your questions. Feel free to call or submit a request for information below. We can also provide an in-person or virtual learning session which includes PDH certificates.