Today's concrete technology takes the term "retaining wall" to a new dimension. Whether holding back mother earth, keeping the water in the lake, or simply adding a touch of beauty, concrete retaining walls are a landscapers dream. They are made from environmentally safe materials and since they are manufactured and sold locally, availability is never a problem.

An Emerging Product

In the early 1970’s, a Canadian company began manufacturing a new kind of concrete block on their machinery. These concrete masonry units were designed to lock together without mortar, forming a strong barrier against emerging soil.

Back then, only one company made Segmental Concrete Retaining Wall units. But within a decade, that number grew. Several proprietary segmental wall systems entered the market and were later licensed for production around the world.

By the end of the 1980’s, segmental retaining wall systems had become a growing part of the construction industry. Use of the wall systems grew at a rate of 20 to 25% every year.

Concrete Products Fill the Need

One reason for the popularity of SRW’s came from homeowners and architects eager to find a low cost alternative to ordinary retaining walls.

Traditional retaining walls are expensive to build with ordinary materials like rock, timber, or steel.

The concrete block industry met the market demand by offering a wide variety of modular concrete blocks made from high strength concrete that when buried below ground, create their own foundation.

This dry-stack method of construction creates a massive wall that prevents sliding and soil shifting.

Steps and walls made from pressure treated lumber decay over time allowing weeds to grow between the cracks and spaces of the structure.		In contrast, steps and walls constructed from Segmental Retaining Wall Systems are durable, attractive, and long-lasting.

Designed to Meet Strict Construction Standards

For residential and commercial use, Segmental Retaining Wall units are manufactured to conform to standard specifications set by the American Society for Testing and Materials. You can read more about ASTM standards for SRW units on their website.

In highway construction, Segmental Retaining Walls are built to meet standards set by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

Browse the links below to explore one of the hottest products on the construction market today and see why Segmental Retaining Wall Systems are a cost-effective option for your next project.

Designed for Durability

While there are many Segmental Retaining Wall units on the market in various sizes, shapes and appearance, all of the systems are designed to lock together tightly.

How they lock together depends on the particular segmental retaining wall system. Some have a tongue and groove or rear lip to hold each unit into place. Others use high-strength pins to keep the wall in place while a third design gets its strength from a hollow cavity filled with backfill.

No matter which Segmental Retaining Wall System you choose, you can be sure your new wall will be strong and structurally sound.

Construction Process

When it comes to constructing a Segmental Retaining Wall, there are two methods: conventional and soil-reinforced.

In a conventional installation, the Segmental Retaining Wall units can be placed by a single construction worker simply stacking the units in place without mortar.

This "dry-stack" construction process allows the wall to rapidly take shape. In this method of construction, the Segmental Retaining Wall units sit on a gravel base that has been leveled and compacted.

The first one or two courses must be buried depending on the wall height. As subsequent block are stacked to the desired height, they automatically step back.

Crushed stone is used to back fill the wall every course or two.Generally, the wall is finished with a cap, or coping unit that is secured with a construction grade adhesive.

Soil-Reinforced construction comes into play when the height of the walls exceeds four feet or when lower structures are surcharged by sloping backfills, live loads, and/or have poor foundations.

A soil-reinforced SRW is designed and constructed with multiple layers of soil reinforcement placed between the SRW courses and extending back into the soil behind the wall at designated heights and lengths.

The soil reinforcement makes the soil in the reinforced zone a cohesive mass, increasing the size and weight of the gravity wall system.