One way on, one way off
From Al Quoz the trucks head to Al Sufouh Road and onto the trunk. The plant is about 9 km away in a straight line, but traffic on the trunk and at the frond entrances can stretch the trip, so for crescent and outer frond plots we set the retarder for a longer journey than the map suggests.
Fronds are narrow cul de sacs. A mixer that reaches the plot needs space to turn or reverse out, and a pump needs its outriggers on stable ground beside the road, clear of the neighbour's driveway and the irrigation lines. Walk the frond with that in mind before booking, and tell us if the plot sits at the closed end.
Villa pours on the fronds
A villa raft of 60 m³ is five trucks. On a frond we rarely have more than one at the plot. The others wait at a point agreed with security and are released one at a time, and the site calls the dispatcher when it is ready for the next. A 43 m boom is usually enough for a villa, and it keeps the pump footprint small in a narrow street.
Hotels and residences on the trunk and crescent are bigger pours with longer queues. A 360 m³ raft is 30 truckloads, which needs a staging area agreed with the developer and the security gate, plus a 57 m boom for the reach, then a placing boom once the structure rises.
Reclaimed ground below the slab
Palm Jumeirah is reclaimed land with saline groundwater close to the surface. Piles, rafts and basement walls get mixes designed for chlorides and sulphates, with GGBS, a low water/cement ratio and the cover the consultant specifies. Blinding goes in first to give the reinforcement a clean, level base above the wet sand.
Ask about night pours in summer. The plant runs 24/7, but deliveries on the island follow the developer's hours, so check with them first.
Questions from Palm Jumeirah sites
- Do trucks need a permit to enter Palm Jumeirah?
- Access is controlled by the master developer and the frond security. Check with them for the paperwork and hours, and send us what they require for the vehicles.
- How many trucks for a villa slab?
- Divide the volume by 12. A 60 m³ raft is five trucks, released one at a time so the frond road stays clear.