The history of precast concrete can be traced back as far as the Ancient Roman Era in which the ancient Romans were the earliest large-scale users of concrete technology. Whilst searching for ways to strengthen their infrastructure throughout the Empire, they came across concrete as a suitable material to carry out their architecture design plans. Soon thereafter, they began developing forms and moulds, allowing them to shape the concrete into many sizes and use them throughout their building processes.
Many of the ancient Roman infrastructures were based on this precast innovation. After the Fall of the Roman Empire, use of concrete became rare until the technology was re-pioneered in the mid-18th century.
Initially accredited with the official precast concrete design in 1905, John Alexander Brodie, an English engineer from Liverpool, was the first to develop and perfect the idea of using precast concrete forms in modern architectural design.
Although precast concrete was not widely used until the early 1950s, today it is one of the most globally used man-made materials in construction.
