A post-tensioned slab is a slab with a plan for its own stress. Steel cables run through the concrete in sleeves, and after the concrete reaches a set strength they are pulled tight and locked off. That compresses the slab, which lets it span farther or run thinner, and it keeps cracks closed. It also means the calendar has an extra date that ordinary slabs do not have: the stressing day.
Concrete Contractors of Midland coordinates and places post-tensioned slabs for commercial buildings, parking decks, medical facilities and other owners in Midland and the surrounding Permian Basin communities. The cable supplier and stressing crew work as trade partners under our schedule, while concrete trade partners form, place and finish the concrete.
The risk with this system lies in the details. Cables must be at the right height, in the right layout, with the right anchorages, and nobody should drill or cut into the slab afterward without knowing where the tendons run. We document each of those items before and after the pour.
Connected scopes
Post-tensioning often sits next to other concrete work. Slab-on-grade floors in the same building may use conventional reinforcing, and cast-in-place structural concrete frames may use tendons in their decks. We quote the combined scope when the drawings allow.
Foundations matter as well. Post-tensioned slabs transfer force into edge beams and footings, so the foundation details need to match the stressing sequence. We review those details with the engineer before pricing.
What the post-tensioned package includes
The package covers formwork or subgrade preparation, edge forms, tendon placement by the supplier, chairs and supports, embed plates, concrete placement, finishing, curing, stressing after the specified strength is reached, cutting and grouting tails and patching pockets.
We also coordinate shop drawing review, delivery of materials, inspection of tendon layout and recording of tendon elongation after stressing. Each of these items has a date on the calendar and a person responsible.
Projects that shape demand
Midland's public investment cycle affects private demand. TxDOT moved the bid letting for the Loop 250 and Todd Drive interchange up to December 2025, with the Midland Development Corp. committing $974,060 to design it and nearly $26 million in state funding secured. A September 4, 2025 City of Midland release lists the I-20 and Midkiff signal among the projects completed in 2025.
Road improvements open land for buildings, and buildings with large floors or parking structures often use post-tensioning. We pay attention to those corridors because they set where the next round of projects will appear and how truck access will behave during construction.
Engineering, permits and inspections
Post-tensioning is designed by an engineer, and the shop drawings come from the supplier. We review them against the structural drawings, raise questions and keep a log of approvals. The adopted building code and the local permit office govern inspection, and we schedule inspections before each placement.
Inspectors check tendon profile, spacing, anchorage details and sleeves before the pour, and elongation records afterward. We keep the work accessible until each inspection passes and hold records for the owner.
Buildings that use this system
Typical buildings include office floors, parking structures, hospital additions and large slabs on soil that is likely to move. Post-tensioning also appears in aircraft hangars and other large-span structures.
Odessa-Schlemeyer Field is a general aviation airport inside the city limits of Odessa, while Midland International Air and Space Port lies halfway between Odessa and Midland. Aviation growth around both, including our airport area coverage, creates demand for long-span floors and aprons, and we plan access around operating areas. Aprons and hangars cannot close for a week, so we phase pours and keep taxi and tug routes open wherever the airport operator requires.
Owners who ask for post-tensioning
Commercial developers choose it to reduce thickness and control cracking. Healthcare and education owners choose it for large open floors. Aviation owners, including those considering the Phase 1 Spaceport Business Park, a 50 acre first phase southeast of the airfield with ground-leased sites offered through the Midland Development Corporation, look at it for large aprons and buildings.
We adjust our reporting to the buyer. A developer wants a clean sequence and a clear date. An institutional owner wants complete records. We provide both.
Spaceport and aerospace users bring their own conditions, including ground leases, sensitive equipment and strict access, and we ask for those constraints before we price rather than after the first mobilization.
Planning the stressing window
We begin with a calendar that lists tendon delivery, placement, concrete pour, strength testing and stressing. The stressing date depends on cylinder breaks, and we agree on the strength threshold with the engineer in advance. If the weather slows strength gain, we adjust the calendar.
During the pour, we protect tendon profiles from foot traffic and concrete drop. Crews place and consolidate carefully near anchorages, and we avoid vibrating directly on tendons, since a displaced sleeve changes the profile the engineer designed. Curing starts right away, and we mark the slab so nobody drills or saws where tendons run.
What we do and what the supplier does
Concrete trade partners handle forming, concrete placement, finishing, curing and patching. The tendon supplier and stressing crew are trade partners under our schedule, and we coordinate their access, equipment and timing.
We do not stress tendons ourselves. That work belongs to specialists with the equipment and training, and we respect the safety zone behind the jack during stressing. Concrete trade partners stay clear of that area, and we post signs and barricades before the first tendon is pulled.
Send us the structural drawings
Share the drawings, the tendon shop drawings if you have them and the date the floor must be stressed. We will return a pour calendar and a price. Related slab work can be bundled in the same proposal.
Common Questions
Why use post-tensioning instead of conventional reinforcing?
It lets a slab span farther, run thinner or resist cracking in poor soil. The engineer decides whether it is the right choice. We build whichever system is drawn and tell the owner what each means for the calendar.
How long before the cables are stressed?
Stressing happens when the concrete reaches the strength specified, often within a few days. The exact timing depends on mix, temperature and cylinder results.
Can I cut or drill into a post-tensioned slab later?
Not until the tendons have been found by scanning or by the as-built layout. Cutting a stressed tendon is dangerous and expensive. We mark the slab and leave a record of the layout for the owner.
Is post-tensioning more expensive?
The materials and stressing add cost, but the slab can be thinner and use less concrete and steel. The net effect depends on span, soil and loads. We price it clearly so the owner can compare.
What inspections happen on a post-tensioned pour?
Inspectors check the tendon layout and anchorages before the pour, then elongation records after stressing. We keep the work accessible and hold the records. If an inspector asks for a correction to a sleeve or an anchorage, we make it before concrete is placed, because fixing it afterward is far harder.