• Ice machines and protection from direct sunlight help contractors keep concrete components and the mix from exceeding temperature restrictions.
• By the time it's done, the project will use over 5 million cubic meters of concrete that is expected to stand up for a century.
• Where two locks are being excavated, two on-site concrete plants each have cooling units that include a wet-belt cooling system, a plant to make and deliver ice, a sand-cooling plant, a chilled-water plant and an air-blast cooling system.

From the article:

Meeting the quality level called for in the Panama Canal's new locks while producing the massive volume of concrete required to finish the job by the expected fall 2014 completion date has called for extreme equipment solutions. For each primary process—batching, conveying and placing—the material is tightly controlled. ...