Comparison of material and labor costs for two methods of strengthening short of flexible compressed pillars loaded at high eccentricities was made. Pillars reinforced on a stretched face with two strips of carbon laminates with a cross section of 50x1.2 mm, in combination with three-layer transverse clamps of carbon bars, located with a pitch of 190 mm, demonstrate, when tested, the maximum strength. The breaking load was 503.5 kN, which is 2.076 times more than the reference sample. Classical reinforcement, designed for maximum load, dramatically increased the cross-section of the pillars and the amount of additional load, because the thickness of the bead with unilateral extension was 90 mm. Comparison of only the cost of material and labor costs does not give a final answer to the question about the effectiveness of one or another method of reinforcement. It is necessary to take into account the time of work, the preservation of usable space, the possibility of strengthening without stopping production

Keywords: concrete, reinforced concrete, compressed element, flexibility, strength, composite, carbon fiber