For Architects, Engineers & Contractors
Panel Weight Calculator
Piece weight drives crane selection, connection design, and how many panels fit on a truck. Size a panel here and get the weight, the dead load it puts on the structure, and a shipping estimate.
Confirm weights with the producer before you rig or erect
This tool gives the theoretical concrete weight from the dimensions you enter. It does not include reinforcement above the assumed unit weight, embedded plates, lifting hardware, corbels, returns, or applied finishes. It does not size cranes or design lifting inserts. Stripping and handling forces can exceed the piece weight because of form suction and dynamic impact, and the producer accounts for that. Use these numbers for planning and confirm final weights with the precast producer and the erector.
Calculator
How to read these numbers
Piece weight
The number the erector cares about. Add rigging and lifting hardware, then check it against the crane's capacity at the required radius, not its headline rating. A crane rated at 90 tons may pick far less at 60 ft out.
Dead load, psf
Weight spread over the panel's face area, net of openings. This is what the supporting beam, spandrel, or foundation sees. A 6 in. solid normalweight panel runs 75 psf, which is a useful sanity check on any result here.
Truckloads
Based on payload alone. Real loads are limited by trailer type, panel geometry, stacking, route, and permits. Panels wider than 8 ft 6 in. or taller than 13 ft 6 in. on the trailer generally need an oversize permit in Illinois and Wisconsin. The producer and hauler set the real number.
Insulation
Sandwich panel results count the concrete wythes only. Rigid insulation runs roughly 1 to 3 pcf, so a 2 in. layer adds well under 1 psf. It is normally neglected in piece weight. Wythe connectors are also excluded.
Ready to check a real panel?
Producers run these numbers against actual mix designs, embeds, and shipping routes every day. Bring them in while panel sizes are still moving.