Est. 1979 · 47 years in practice St. Paul (651) 292-1123
Reigstad Engineers, Inc.

Concrete Construction Services

Engineered concrete solutions for new construction, renovation, and complex structural challenges nationwide.

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Concrete Construction Services

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Structural Concrete Construction, Engineered Right

Reigstad Engineers has delivered concrete construction services for architects, contractors, and owners across the country for 47 years. We approach every concrete project as a structural engineering problem first: mix design, reinforcement, base preparation, and long-term load performance all matter before a single yard gets poured. If you need a structural engineer who understands concrete from the ground up, call us at (651) 292-1123.

What drives cost and complexity on a concrete project is rarely the concrete itself. It's the conditions underneath it, the load it has to carry, and the exposure it'll face over its service life. Freeze-thaw cycling demands specific air-entrainment levels and proper base depth. Structural slabs serving different purposes need different reinforcement layouts and thickness. Renovation projects on existing concrete require an honest assessment of what's worth saving and what isn't. Our structural engineering background means we look at the whole picture, not just the surface. Every job is different. Contact Reigstad Engineers for an accurate estimate.

Large-scale reinforced concrete foundation with rebar grid, measuring tape, construction plans, and formwork before concrete

What Concrete Construction Services Include

  • Structural slab design and construction for new and renovation projects
  • Reinforced concrete systems sized and detailed for actual load conditions
  • Base preparation specifications and subgrade assessment
  • Concrete repair vs. replacement evaluation for existing structures
  • Coordination with construction inspection throughout the pour and cure sequence
  • Licensed engineering in Minnesota and Mississippi

Engineering Context

Why Concrete Needs an Engineer, Not Just a Contractor

The difference between concrete that lasts 40 years and concrete that cracks in five is usually decided before the truck arrives.

Freeze-Thaw Durability

Concrete in northern climates fails when it's placed without adequate air entrainment or poured on a base that holds water. We specify mix designs and drainage details that account for the actual frost depth and thermal cycling your slab will see.

Reinforcement Sizing

Standard rebar grids work for light foot traffic. Structural slabs carrying vehicles, equipment, or stacked storage are a different conversation. We detail reinforcement to the load, not to what's cheapest to put in the ground.

Repair vs. Replacement

Not every cracked slab needs to come out. Some surface cracking is cosmetic; some is a symptom of subgrade settlement or inadequate thickness that will keep recurring. We'll give you a straight answer about which situation you're actually in.

Existing Structure Integration

Adding concrete to or alongside an existing structure creates connection details and load paths that have to be engineered. Our exterior structural repair and renovation work gives us direct experience with what those transitions demand.

Precast Coordination

Many projects mix cast-in-place concrete with precast elements. Our precast concrete engineering background means we can coordinate both sides of that interface without the gaps that show up when two different firms aren't talking to each other.

Foundation Systems

Concrete slabs don't exist in isolation from what's below them. Where soil conditions or building loads require a formal foundation, we tie the concrete work into a complete structural system. See our foundation design work for more on how that comes together.

Process

How Reigstad Approaches a Concrete Project

Assess the Conditions

We start with what the concrete has to do and what it's sitting on: soil bearing, drainage, existing structure, and load requirements. That determines thickness, reinforcement, and mix before anything else.

Engineer the Details

We produce construction documents that a contractor can actually build from: reinforcement layouts, joint locations, base specifications, and connection details. No ambiguity that gets resolved with a shortcut in the field.

Support Through Construction

Our construction inspection services keep the work honest from formwork through final cure. If something in the field deviates from the design, we find out about it while there's still time to fix it.

Concrete construction site with reinforced structural columns, exposed rebar, concrete walls, and steel framing under develop

Structural Concrete Across Project Types

Reigstad has worked on structural concrete in contexts that most contractors never see: casino resort expansions, university research facilities, corporate campuses, and mixed-use residential projects. The City Vue Apartments project in Eagan, Minnesota is one example of the kind of multi-story concrete coordination we've managed. That range of project types, built up over 47 years since the firm was founded in 1979, produces a different kind of concrete knowledge than a contractor who pours driveways develops. We're not evaluating your project against a standard template. We're evaluating it against decades of what actually works under real construction conditions. For parking structures specifically, our parking consulting services integrate concrete structural design with long-term durability requirements that standard commercial work doesn't always address.

What We Won't Do

47 years in the trade means knowing when to push back.

We won't recommend replacement when repair is the right call
If the slab is worth saving, we'll say so.
We won't stamp drawings that skip the base preparation details
That's where most concrete failures start.
We won't hand you a set of documents and disappear
Construction inspection is part of how we work.
We won't treat every project the same
A structural slab and a sidewalk are not the same engineering problem.

In the field

A look at our work

Concrete surface with spalling and scaling damage showing exposed aggregate and radiating cracks from freeze-thaw deteriorati
Damaged concrete wall with cracks, spalling, and exposed corroded steel reinforcement showing structural deterioration assess

Frequently asked questions

What preparation is needed before pouring concrete in Minnesota winters?
Concrete placed when ambient temperatures drop below 40 degrees Fahrenheit needs heated enclosures, insulated blankets, or both to maintain proper curing temperatures for the first 72 hours minimum. The base also has to be frost-free, which means heaters running well ahead of the pour date if you're working in late fall or early spring. We specify cold-weather concrete plans as part of our construction documents when the schedule requires it.
When should concrete be repaired versus replaced?
Surface cracking that hasn't penetrated through the slab and isn't accompanied by differential settlement is often repairable. When a slab is cracking because the subgrade has shifted, the base is saturated, or the original thickness was insufficient for the load, repair addresses a symptom and not the problem. We evaluate the structural cause before recommending either path.
What causes concrete cracking in Minnesota?
The most common causes are freeze-thaw cycling in a slab that wasn't air-entrained properly, subgrade settlement from poorly compacted fill or expansive soils, and control joints that were spaced too far apart or placed after the concrete had already begun to set. Insufficient slab thickness for the actual load is another contributor that shows up years later when the loading finally exceeds what was originally anticipated.
How do I hire a concrete contractor and what should I watch for?
Any contractor pouring structural concrete should be able to show you a mix design, not just tell you they use a 4000 psi mix. Ask specifically about base preparation depth, control joint spacing, and how they handle curing. A contractor who can't answer those questions in specifics, or who skips the engineering altogether, is a risk. Structural concrete should have engineering drawings behind it.
How thick does a concrete slab need to be for structural use?
A residential garage floor or light-duty interior slab is typically 4 inches over a compacted base. A slab carrying vehicles, equipment, or significant storage loads generally starts at 5 to 6 inches with reinforcement sized to the actual load, and may need more depending on the subgrade conditions. The right answer is always a function of what the slab is carrying and what it's sitting on, not a standard number.
Does Reigstad provide construction inspection for concrete projects?
Yes. Our construction inspection services cover concrete placement, reinforcement placement verification, and cure sequence monitoring. Inspection during construction is how the work in the field matches the engineering on the drawings. We don't treat inspection as optional on structural concrete.
What types of concrete projects does Reigstad handle?
We work on structural slabs, concrete foundations, precast systems, renovation and repair of existing concrete structures, and parking structure concrete design. Our background spans commercial, institutional, and mixed-use projects across the country. Projects requiring civil engineering consulting alongside the structural concrete work are something we can coordinate as well.

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By submitting this form you agree that we may contact you about your request and share your name and email address with partner companies for email marketing. We never share your mobile number or text message consent with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.