Combine increasing demand for housing, a crowded urban environment, a quiet, residential neighborhood and a prestigious university – and you know your job site to construct new student housing will be small.

That's the challenge contractors Caston Plastering, Mirage Builders and Martin Brothers, Inc. faced after being awarded contracts to support the construction of additional housing for an increasing number of University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) students. Instead of managing the delivery, storage, staging and mixing of materials for the stucco required, the plastering contractors had a better solution - use pumpable, pre-blended stucco from Quikrete.

Not only did the materials require far less space on the jobsite, but consistency and quality were assured. Additionally, labor was reduced, waste was minimized, and a smaller amount of deliveries ensured the neighbors near this project saw fewer large trucks in their neighborhood.

While this job benefitted from the use of bulk bags and a silo system for stucco, these techniques can also be used for mortar, shotcrete or concrete with similar benefits.