Last November, Smart Engineering completed the writing of the monograph “Curing of concrete structures: from theory to practice”, commissioned by the company Acciona Construcción. The objective of the aforementioned monograph is to deepen the practical knowledge of the topics of curing concrete structures, aimed at responding to the site technician responsible for this activity in any geographical circumstance.

The document lays the main foundations of what curing represents and the consequences derived from its incorrect performance. It also analyzes the main factors involved in the process, as well as different structural typologies and their circumstances from the curing point of view, both internal (concrete composition) and external (climatology and structural typologies). The document also proposes different models that can be applied by the project management. This knowledge is of vital importance both for site managers and for designers and technicians in general. The curing of concrete structures is a key aspect for the correct performance of structures during their service life, as well as to ensure their durability against external agents.

In many construction situations, either due to ignorance or due to lack of rigor, the minimum criteria regarding the practices necessary for the proper curing of the structure are not taken into account. All this leads to unexpected problems, such as early cracking of the structure, loss of mechanical performance or problems associated with durability. It is therefore pertinent and necessary to improve the knowledge available to technicians and designers, and this monograph lays those first bases of knowledge.

The development of this monograph lays the foundations for a new line of business for the Smart Engineering company, which carries out a knowledge transfer through monographs and training activities towards the main companies in the Civil and Industrial Engineering sector. In this way, the experience and knowledge of the technicians and engineers that make up Smart Engineering, both in the academic and professional world, are captured and the practice of companies in the construction, infrastructure and engineering sector is put into service civil.