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Looking for a Masonry Contractor Who Serves Virginia? We Are a National Masonry, Steel Erection and Concrete Company That Serves All of Virginia. We Offer Our Services to General Contractors of Large Scale Projects In And Around VA That Include; Walmart, Lowe's, Best Buy, K-Mart, Home Depot and Any Other Major Retailers in Need ofNew Location Construction. The Word Co, Inc. - VA's Masonry Contractor.
Fast Track Masonry Construction in VA
Wordco specializes in
Fast-Track commercial Masonry construction and serves your retail construction needs in Virginia.
Fast-tracking streamlines permitting and
construction so that custom buildings can
be built, occupied and operational in as
little as six months. It is a scheduling
process in which design and construction
activities overlap. Wordco, Inc. has recently
shifted focus to working with big-box retail
developments (Walmart, Best Buy, Lowe's,
Home Depot, K-Mart, etc.) in and around VA. With our expedited
building methods and state of the art scaffolding
system, any one of our normal 200,000 sq.
ft. projects can be substantially completed
in 5-6 weeks. The benefit for our client
is earlier project completion, which enables
quicker store occupation and a reduction
of owner interim financing cost.
Quality
Assurance Program / Thermal
Imaging
WordCo has recently taken the initiative
to implement its own in-house quality assurance
program, including infrared thermography.
WordCo's dedicated
Quality Assurance
Team goes the extra mile
to maintain the quality of work their clients
have come to expect in Virginia. This level of attention
saves the company time and money by treating
problems quickly and efficiently. Utilizing
the latest technology (infrared
cameras, digital photography, advanced
software) and full-time skilled inspectors,
the inspection process never stops. Thermal
imaging using infrared cameras also
provide a cheap and effective means of non-destructive
testing to assure our customers are getting
exactly what they pay for. Our testers provide
high quality infrared images to our masons
several times during the building process
to assure correct placement of concrete
and reinforcement. Benefits of this innovative
system include:
- Immediate response to arising problems, eliminating costly repairs
- Unparalleled documentation of jobsite status throughout building process
- Peace of mind for our VA clients who need the job done right the first time
 
Wordco has over 100 years of combined experience in
this type of construction. During that time
we have become a trusted leader by producing
timely results with a level of quality unparalleled
in our industry and throughout Virginia. Our commitment to quality
and innovation is evident in every one of
our building projects. As a masonry contractor,
we work closely with the general contractors
to assure quality for their clients, including
these retailers and various other retail
shopping facilities in Virginia.
Rebar Positioners
Traditional rebar positioners sit on top of the block, relying on the
weight of the next block and the strength
of the mortar joint to keep the rebar in
position. If the rebar is indeed not centered
in the cell before placing the positioner,
these positioners are useless at correcting
the mistake, leaving broken mortar joints
and frustrated masons (not to mention general contractors and clients). Wordco has created a new rebar positioner that they use and offer to other masonry contractors as well.
Steel Erection
Are you considering building a masonry building for retail purposes? The WordCo can not only handle your masonry construction, but we have also become licensed to tackle the steel erection processes which are very often included as part of your masonry construction project in Virginia.
About Masonry Contstruction in VA
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar, and the term "masonry" can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone such as marble, granite, travertine, limestone; and concrete block. Masonry is a highly durable form of construction. However, the materials used, the quality of the mortar and workmanship, and the pattern the units are assembled in can strongly affect the durability of the overall masonry construction. The WordCo makes use of their many, many years of service and experience to choose the right materials, offer the best workmanship and to use the best methods to do your job right in Virginia - every time.
Applications of Masonry Construction
Masonry is commonly used for the walls of buildings, retaining walls and monuments in VA and around the world. Brick and concrete block are the most common types of masonry in use in industrialized nations and may be either weight-bearing or a veneer. Concrete blocks, especially those with hollow cores, offer various possibilities in masonry construction - this is the most common construction method offered to our Virginia construction clients and general contractors. Concrete blocks generally provide great compressive strength, and are best suited to structures with light transverse loading when the cores remain unfilled. Filling the cores with concrete or concrete with steel reinforcement (typically "rebar") offers much greater tensile and lateral strength to structure. The WordCo uses rebar and fills the cores for a super-strong building project. We also make use of our own patented rebar positioners to be sure the job is done as precisely as possible for you new Virginia building.
Read Some of Our Feedback From Previous General Contractors
Advantages of Masonry Construction
- The use of materials such as brick and stone can increase the thermal mass of a building, giving increased comfort in the heat of summer and the cold of winter and can be ideal for passive solar applications.
- Brick typically will not require painting and so can provide a structure with reduced life-cycle costs, although sealing appropriately will reduce potential spalling due to frost damage. Non-decorative concrete block generally is painted or stuccoed if exposed.
- The appearance, especially when well crafted, can impart an impression of solidity and permanence.
- Masonry is very heat resistant and thus can provide good fire protection to your Virginia retail location.
- Masonry walls are generally more resistant to projectiles, such as debris from the occasional hurricane or tornado (in VA) than walls of wood or other softer, less dense materials.
Disadvantages of Masonry Construction
- Extreme weather in some parts of VA may cause degradation of masonry wall surfaces due to frost damage. This type of damage is common with certain types of brick, though relatively rare with concrete block. If non-concrete (clay-based) brick is to be used, care should be taken to select bricks suitable for the climate in question.
- Masonry tends to be heavy and must be built upon a strong foundation (usually reinforced concrete) to avoid potential settling and cracking. If expansive soils (such as adobe clay) are present in your area of Virginia, this foundation may need to be quite elaborate and the services of a qualified structural engineer may be required, particularly in earthquake prone regions.
Limited Structural Limitations
Masonry boasts an impressive compressive strength (vertical loads). The tensile strength of masonry walls can be strengthened by thickening the wall, or by building masonry "piers" (vertical columns or ribs) at intervals. Where practical, steel reinforcement also can be introduced vertically and/or horizontally to greatly increase tensile strength.
Masonry, Conrete & Steel Jobs & Careers Available
Concrete Block
Blocks of cinder concrete ("cinder blocks" or "breezeblocks"), ordinary concrete ("concrete blocks"), or hollow tile are generically known as Concrete Masonry Units (CMU)s. They usually are much larger than ordinary bricks and so are much faster to lay for a wall of a given size. Furthermore, cinder and concrete blocks typically have much lower water absorption rates than brick. They often are used in Virginia as the structural core for veneered brick masonry, or are used alone for the walls of factories, garages, retail locations and other "industrial" buildings where such appearance is acceptable or desirable. Such blocks often receive a stucco surface for decoration. Surface-bonding cement, which contains synthetic fibers for reinforcement, is sometimes used in this application and can impart extra strength to a block wall. Surface-bonding cement is often pre-coloured and can be stained or painted thus resulting in a finished stucco-like surface.
The primary structural advantage of concrete blocks in comparison to smaller clay-based bricks is that a CMU or concrete block wall can be reinforced by filling the block voids with concrete with or without steel rebar. Generally, all voids are filled and reinforced in commercial/retail buildings in Virginia. Particularly at corners, wall-ends, and openings, this increases wall strength and stability. The introduction of steel reinforcement generally results in a concrete block wall having much greater lateral and tensile strength than unreinforced walls.
Some concrete blocks are colored, and some employ a split face, a technique that results in two blocks being manufactured as one unit and later split into two. This gives the blocks a rough face replicating the appearance of natural, quarried stone, such as brownstone. For applications such as roadway sound control walls, the face patterns may be complex and even artistic.
Brick Construction
Solid brick masonry is made of two or more layers of bricks with the units running horizontally (called "stretcher" bricks) bound together with bricks running transverse to the wall (called "header" bricks). Each row of bricks is known as a course. The pattern of headers and stretchers employed gives rise to different bonds such as the common bond (with every sixth course composed of headers), the English bond, and the Flemish bond (with alternating stretcher and header bricks present on every course). There are no significant utilitarian differences between most bonds, but the appearance of the finished wall is affected. Vertically staggered bonds tend to be somewhat stronger and less prone to major cracking than a non-staggered bond.
Uniformity and Rusticity
The selection of the brick used, especially for color, will affect the appearance of the final surface. In buildings built during the 1970s, a high degree of uniformity of brick and accuracy in masonry was typical. In later periods this style was thought to be too sterile, so attempts were made to emulate older, rougher work. Some brick surfaces are made to look particularly rustic by including "burnt" bricks, which have a darker color or an irregular shape. Others may use antique salvage bricks, or new bricks may be artificially aged by applying various surface treatments. The attempts at rusticity of the late 20th century have been carried forward by masons specializing in a free, artistic style, where the courses are intentionally not straight, instead weaving to form more organic impressions in their Virginia masonry work.
Solid Masonry Walls
Solid masonry, without steel reinforcement, tends to have very limited applications in modern wall construction. While such walls can be quite economical and suitable in some applications, susceptibility to earthquakes and collapse is a major issue - thus a rare choice for our VA clients and general contractors. Solid unreinforced masonry walls tend to be low and thick as a consequence. 
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