Concrete manufacturer modernizes Seffner facility

A precast concrete manufacturing plant outside of Tampa is being modernized to make it more environmentally friendly.

The plant, which is at 6324 County Road 579 in Seffner, belongs to Cast-Crete USA.

The modernization plan calls for changes that will make it easier to contain cement dust by using top dust collectors and for mixer washout water to be recycled back into mixers. Cast-Crete is also installing new concrete mixers that run on electric rather than diesel which will produce lest dust and exhaust.

Craig Parrino, a vice president of engineering at Cast-Crete, says in an email that the work is expected to be completed by the end of October and is budgeted at $8 million, “but the expectation is the project will be come in for less.”

 “Not only will the new equipment be more efficient, reliable and safe for our operations, but our neighbors will enjoy the reduced noise and dust it produces,” he says.

The plant will remain fully operational until the work is done.

In addition to the modernization project, the company is planning to hire 20 people in the next two years. The jobs will be in manufacturing, primarily operators and welders. The plant currently employs 190 people, Parrino says.

The Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, which first announced the modernization, says it is providing permitting assistance and connections to CareerSource Tampa Bay to help find the employees.

According to its profile on PitchBook, a private capital data analysis firm, Cast-Crete was founded in 1955 and manufactures and distributes precast and pre-stressed concrete for the residential, commercial and building industries. 

The company was sold to the Connecticut private equity firm Monomoy Capital Partners for an undisclosed amount in late 2021.