Journal of Economic Perspectives
ISSN 0895-3309 (Print) | ISSN 1944-7965 (Online)
Markets: Ready-Mixed Concrete
Journal of Economic Perspectives
vol. 22,
no. 1, Winter 2008
(pp. 217–234)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
Concrete's natural color is gray. Its favored uses are utilitarian. Its very ubiquity causes it to blend into the background. But ready-mix concrete does have one remarkable characteristic: other than manufactured ice, perhaps no other manufacturing industry faces greater transport barriers. The transportation problem arises because ready-mix concrete both has a low value-to-weight ratio and is highly perishable -- it absolutely must be discharged from the truck before it hardens. These transportation barriers mean ready-mixed concrete must be produced near its customers. For the same reason, foreign trade in ready-mixed concrete is essentially nonexistent. This article is an introduction to the basics of the market for ready-mix concrete, focusing mainly on its consumers and its producers in the United States, but with occasional comparisons to other countries when contrasts are useful.Citation
Syverson, Chad. 2008. "Markets: Ready-Mixed Concrete." Journal of Economic Perspectives, 22 (1): 217–234. DOI: 10.1257/jep.22.1.217JEL Classification
- J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
- L11 Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
- L14 Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation; Networks
- L23 Organization of Production
- L61 Metals and Metal Products; Cement; Glass; Ceramics
- O33 Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
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