What Is a Ready Mix Concrete Delivery Ticket?

A ready mix delivery ticket is the paper or electronic record that travels with each truckload of concrete. It is also called a batch ticket or truck ticket.

ASTM C94 requires the producer to furnish a delivery ticket with each batch before the concrete is unloaded at the site. Read it before the concrete comes down the chute, not after the pour is finished.

Why Should You Read the Ticket Before the Pour Starts?

The ticket is your chance to catch a problem while it can still be fixed. Common issues include:

• The wrong job.
• The wrong mix.
• The wrong quantity.
• The wrong admixture.
• An old load.
• Water added without approval.

The simplest rule is: ticket first, chute second.

Is a Delivery Ticket the Same as a Mix Design?

No. The delivery ticket identifies what was delivered. A mix design gives the approved mixture proportions and performance data.

Some tickets print detailed batch weights, but that still does not replace the approved mix-design submittal. The ticket normally carries a mixture identifier that ties the load back to that approved mixture.

For background on mix proportions, see the Concrete Mix Design Calculator and the Concrete Mix Design Chart.

What Information Does ASTM C94 Require on the Ticket?

ASTM C94 sets a core list of ticket information. Ticket layouts vary between suppliers, so the boxes may be arranged differently, but the information should be there.

Newer editions of the standard also address documenting adjustments made after batching. The example below is fictional, with core fields in orange.

Producer Name and Batch Plant

The plant name matters most when a supplier operates several plants. It tells you where the load was batched.

• Traceability if a question comes up.
• Comparing loads that came from different plants.
• Quality-control questions later.

Ticket Number and Truck Number

The ticket number is a unique record for that batch. The truck number identifies the mixer truck that carried it.

Together they make a later investigation possible. ASTM’s user guide to C94 notes that the truck number helps in trying to isolate problems.

Purchaser, Job Name and Job Location

Check the purchaser, job name, and job location before the truck unloads. This matters most on large subdivisions or when a contractor has several pours on the same day.

A load meant for the next lot is easy to pour into the wrong slab when everyone is busy.

Concrete Mix ID, Class or Designation

The mix ID is the most important field for most homeowners. It ties the load to the mixture you ordered or that was approved.

It may be labeled Mix ID, Mix No., Mix Code, Class, or Designation. ASTM C94 requires the concrete class or designation named in the project specification to appear on the ticket.

Compare it with your order confirmation, the specification, the approved mix design, and earlier loads on the same pour. NRMCA guidance notes it is the purchaser’s responsibility to verify the mixture delivered when a job uses more than one mix.

Specified Strength: What Does “3,000 PSI” or “4,000 PSI” Mean?

A strength like 3,000 or 4,000 psi is the specified compressive strength, usually written f’c. It is normally evaluated at a specified test age, often 28 days. See the Concrete PSI Chart for strength classes.

It is not the measured strength of the fresh concrete in the truck. NRMCA explains that strength acceptance is based on standard-cured cylinders, with a test result being the average of two specimens tested at the same age.

You cannot verify psi by reading the ticket.

Cubic Yards This Load

The quantity field shows the volume of that single truck’s batch, such as 8.0 yd³. It is the amount in that load only.

Typical truck mixers hold about 9 to 11 cubic yards, according to Concrete Network, though loads can be smaller. Planning details are in the Ready Mix Truck Load Chart.

Cumulative Yards or Total Delivered Today

Many tickets show both a load quantity and a running total. They are not the same thing, and you should not add cumulative figures together.

The actual quantity delivered is 20 yd³, not 44. Do not add the cumulative column.

How to Compare Ticket Quantity With Your Concrete Estimate

Compare the total with your order. The Concrete Cubic Yard Calculator and the Ready Mix Truck Calculator help with estimates.

Ticket quantity comes from the producer’s batching and yield process. If yield is disputed, ASTM C138 unit-weight and yield testing is the right route, not just eyeballing the truck. Concrete Network notes unit weight can be used to check whether you received the amount you paid for.

For pricing context, see the Concrete Cost Per Yard guide, which stresses local supplier terms.

Batch Time, Load Time and Arrival Time

These time fields are related but different. ASTM C94 requires the time loaded, or the first mixing of cement and aggregates.

• Batch or load time: required, and it starts the delivery clock.
• Arrival time: optional supplier field.
• Jobsite time: optional site entries, such as when discharge started and finished.

Do not mix them up. The batch time is a quality-control field, not just logistics.

Is There Still a 90-Minute Concrete Delivery Rule?

Not as a universal rule. Older ASTM C94 editions required completing discharge within 90 minutes of batching, and 300 revolutions is a long-quoted companion number.

Starting with the 2021 edition, that default was replaced with a time limit established between the purchaser and the producer, per ACI’s Concrete Q&A. The American Concrete Pumping Association summarizes that if the purchaser does not state a limit, the producer sets one, and the limit is stated on the ticket.

Some older web pages still repeat the 90-minute rule. Check the project specification and the ticket for the limit that applies.

Slump: Target vs. Measured Slump

A slump on the ticket is not necessarily the measured field slump. The ticket may show a target or design slump, an estimated slump, or a plant value.

Field slump is measured with ASTM C143 when testing is required, on a sample taken under ASTM C172. A printed value is not field verification.

The Concrete Slump Chart explains slump terms.

Air Content

Air entrainment matters most for freeze-thaw exposure. The ticket may show a specified or target air content.

The actual air content of the fresh concrete requires field testing, such as the pressure method in ASTM C231. NRMCA notes the required air depends on exposure and the maximum aggregate size.

Maximum Aggregate Size

Maximum aggregate size is the largest stone size in the mix. Suppliers may write it as 3/4 in., 3/8 in., or an ASTM C33 size number.

It matters for reinforcement spacing, thin sections, pumping, and finishing. NRMCA lists nominal maximum aggregate size or size number among the details for a mixture submittal.

Cementitious Materials

Some tickets list cement, fly ash, slag cement, silica fume, or other supplementary materials. Many residential tickets do not.

Do not assume a ticket will show detailed batch weights. If you need them, ask the supplier.

Admixtures: What the Ticket May Show

The ticket may show admixtures, which are chemicals added to change how the concrete behaves. Common categories include:

• Air entrainer.
• Water reducer.
• High-range water reducer.
• Retarder.
• Accelerator.
• Hydration stabilizer.
• Corrosion inhibitor.
• Fibers, where used.

No universal dosage rules apply. Dosages depend on the mix and the supplier.

Batch Water, Added Water and Water Held Back

Water appears in several ways on a ticket. Not every supplier shows every one.

• Design or batch water: water metered into the mix at the plant.
• Aggregate moisture contribution: water carried by the stone and sand.
• Water held back: water withheld for possible adjustment.
• Allowable jobsite water: the amount that can still be added.
• Water actually added: what was added on site.

NRMCA’s specification guide counts all of these in the mixing water: batch water, ice, free moisture on aggregates, wash water in the mixer, jobsite water, and water from admixtures if it raises the water-cementitious ratio by more than 0.01. The Water-Cement Ratio Chart explains the ratio.

Can Water Be Added to the Concrete Truck at the Jobsite?

Yes, under controlled conditions. NRMCA confirms that ASTM C94 permits water at the jobsite if the slump is below what is required and the mix-design mixing-water limit is not exceeded.

That requires all water sources to be accounted for, and the limit is preferably stated on the ticket. After any addition, the drum should turn at least 30 revolutions at mixing speed so the water is blended in.

Do not add arbitrary water to make a pour easier. Check the ticket and the approved mixture limit first.

How to Read “Maximum Water Allowed” or “Water to Add”

Ticket layouts differ, but a typical pattern looks like this. These numbers are hypothetical.

Confirm how your supplier’s ticket works before relying on the arithmetic. Then walk through the decision flow below.

Why Unauthorized Water Addition Matters

Extra water changes the concrete. It can affect the water-cementitious ratio, strength, shrinkage, durability, and setting and finishing behavior.

There is no universal conversion such as a fixed psi loss per gallon. NRMCA recommends documenting purchaser-requested water and having it signed on the ticket, because it affects the quality record of that load.

Its guidance for purchasers adds that water requests should not be so large that they cause segregation or reduce quality below what is required.

Admixtures Added at the Jobsite

Adjustments can involve more than water. ASTM C94 also permits adjusting a batch with an air-entraining admixture to raise air content, or a water reducer to raise slump.

NRMCA says adjustments should follow controlled procedures, be followed by the required mixing, and be documented on the ticket. Let the supplier advise, since they cannot be held responsible for concrete you alter yourself.

What to Check Before the Driver Starts Discharging

Use this 60-second check before the driver starts discharging. It follows job, mix, quantity, batch time, admixtures, water, and testing.

Also photograph or copy the ticket before the truck leaves.

What Should Be Written on or Added to the Ticket?

Write down anything that changes the load. ASTM C94 requires purchaser-requested water and its acknowledgment to be documented.

• Arrival time.
• Water added, and the amount.
• Admixture added, and the amount.
• Who requested or authorized it.
• Test sample information.
• Rejection or acceptance notes.
• Unload start and finish, if useful.

If no water is added, the ASTM user guide suggests writing a zero so the field is not left blank. Keep your copies. NRMCA suggests that record retention periods of about 3 to 5 years may be worth defining for forensic purposes.

What If the Ticket Does Not Match the Concrete You Ordered?

Stop before unloading and call the supplier or dispatcher, or the project inspector. Do not try to fix the mixture yourself.

Examples include a wrong mix ID, a wrong strength designation, missing fiber, a wrong air specification, a wrong quantity, a questionable batch time, or unapproved water. Document what you find before any decision.

Ready Mix Concrete Delivery Ticket FAQs