Glassfibre Reinforced Concrete (GRC) is not a single material but a range of high strength special concretes which can be engineered to suit particular products and applications, such as cladding and decorative components, restoration of old structures, special finishes and sculptured shapes, etc...

Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete (GRC) is one of the most innovative construction materials available today. The low weight of the GRC decreases the loads on the building's structural frame, therefore making opportunities for creative architectural design limitless.

GRC as manufactured by Gulf Precast allows the architect great flexibility in designing the most visible element of the structure. GRC panels can be produced in many colors or textures. It can be easily produced to match a granite or limestone facing.

GRC is a portland cement-based composite with alkali resistant glass fibers that are randomly dispersed throughout the product.

The fibers serve a purpose similar to the reinforcing steel in reinforced concrete which is placed primarily in tensile stress areas.

Because the glass fibers add flexural, tensile and impact strengths, the resulting material allows the production of strong, yet lightweight, GRC architectural cladding panels.

Glassfibre Reinforced Concrete products are manufactured using various techniques.

The most popular are:
- Spray;

manufactured by spraying a microconcrete mix, prepared in a high shear mixer, through a special spray gun which incorporates the AR glassfibre reinforcement at the nozzle. The materials are sprayed onto moulds to from thin sectioned, lightweight products.

- Premix;

manufactured by mixing a microconcrete with the AR glassfibre reinforcement in a special two-stage mixer. The premix material is poured into moulds and compacted by vibration.

- Sprayed Premix;

a form of Premix is prepared with the pre-cut glassfibre reinforcement in a special mixer, then sprayed.

Like steel reinforced concretes, ORC's properties vary according to cement content, water/cement ratio, Alkali Resistant Glassfibre type, content and orientation.

Traditional Spray can produce the highest strengths due to the high AR glassfibre content, low water/cement ratio, long fibre length and plane fibre orientation.

Premix strength is generally lower than that of the Traditional Spray method due to lower AR glassfiber reinforcement contents, higher water/cement ratios, short fibre lengths and 3-dimensional fibre orientation

Advantages

1. Lightweight Structure, Reduced Transport and Installation Costs:

Due to its reduced thickness, a GRC cladding panel can weigh 7 times less than a similar precast concrete panel. Average weight of a GRC element 12 mm thick (with100X100 mm stiffening ribs): 35-40 kg/M3

GRC lightweight panels can be transported in light pickups with no weight restriction, and can be erected easily without the need for heavy cranes or special erection tools

2. Excellent Edge and Corner Strength:

Due to heavy fibre concentration in the GRC mix, GRC edges, chamfers, decorative reliefs, etc... have strong impact resistance and do not spell or break during transport and installation like concrete edges.

3. Improved Surface Details and Quality of Finish:

With GRC, the quality of finish is so outstanding that it allows much greater freedom and creativity in the design of intricate mouldings and patterns.

4. Easy to mould into complex shapes.

With its exceptional strength and impact resistance, GRC allows for all sorts of complex shapes and details, offering an infinite array of possibilities, from arabesques to moushrabias to sculptured columns to decorative open screens, etc...

5. Maintenance Free:

GRC is an inert material, unaffected by salt, freeze/thaw cycles, or corrosive atmosphere. Unlike concrete, as it has no steel components, it is not weakened or cracked by steel corrosion and can live without maintenance for long years.

6. Ideal for Restoration Works:

All the above characteristics point to GRC as the ideal material for restoration of old buildings, facades and decorative features, as GRC can replicate exactly, or improve upon, any original feature.

7. Environment friendly:

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