The Ultimate Guide to Choosing Climbing Formwork For Sale

Formwork is available in different materials: wood, steel, and plastic. Here are a few points to help you choose the best material.

Link to Zolo

Wooden formwork

Wood is one of the most widely used materials for formwork construction, as it offers several advantages:

• It’s an easy-to-cut material, which makes it suitable for small, intricately shaped elements.
• It offers many compositional possibilities.
• Its texture makes it ideal for exposed concrete structures and complex, non-repetitive structures with varied textures.

However, there are several things you should bear in mind:

• The boards should be thick (27 to 40 mm) to prevent warping.
• The wood must be lightweight and free of cracks.
• Plywood panels are recommended for large, flat surfaces.

The main disadvantage of wood is that its characteristics change over time. It loses porosity and the surface wears away, which can affect the color and appearance of the concrete. Wooden formwork can therefore only be reused a limited number of times.
If you need to reuse your wooden formwork many times, choose waterproof marine plywood panels with a thickness of 16 to 19 mm. They make the formwork more durable.

Steel formwork

Metal formwork is the most widely used, as it can be reused many times over – 20 to 25 times more than wooden formwork. It is particularly suitable for floors and posts.

It also offers other advantages:

• It is sturdy and allows large concrete surfaces to be poured.
• It can be installed and dismantled quickly.
• It is recommended for circular or tall structures.
• For ease of transport, some metal formworks are available in foldable versions.
• Steel does not absorb moisture from fresh concrete, so steel formwork will not warp.
• Steel allows the heat released by cement hydration to be dissipated, which is an advantage in hot weather.

However, steel formwork has one drawback. In cold weather, concrete is less well protected against temperature drops. It is therefore advisable to add thermal insulation to the formwork.

Mixed steel and wood formwork is also available. The structure is metal (aluminum or steel) and the face is made of wooden plywood panels.

These mixed formworks have several advantages:

• Flexible assembly
• They can be moved manually

Formwork can be designed on-site or prefabricated.

On-site formwork

These are the traditional formworks used for various constructions such as walls, floors, or pillars thanks to their great adaptability.

Frame formwork is recommended for walls, as it protects the panel edges from mechanical stress. These formworks are strong, durable, and easy to assemble. Column formworks are designed with beams and are used in residential and industrial buildings. However, these formworks are time-consuming to install.

Prefabricated formwork

Prefabricated metal formwork is designed to withstand various casting pressures (> 70 kN/m², <>= 60 kN/m² and <= 50 kN/m²).

Self-climbing formworks are hydraulic systems mainly used in the construction of high-rise buildings.

Formwork design must meet several requirements:

Rigidity: Formwork must be sufficiently rigid and stable to withstand the pressure of fresh concrete. The aim is to ensure that the concrete remains stable until it hardens. It must also be easy to dismantle to avoid damaging the concrete during demolding. The formwork material must not be deformed by high or low temperatures.

Watertightness: It must be watertight to prevent laitance from leaking at joints, for example.

Surface texture: Formwork must achieve the desired surface texture to meet aesthetic and functional requirements. You must also consider the number of times it will be reused when choosing the material for your formwork. Wooden formworks are subject to deterioration over time, which can affect the final appearance of the concrete.

What is Formwork?

In a nutshell, formwork is the mold wherein fresh concrete is poured and formed. The mold, which can be permanent or temporary, holds the poured concrete and shapes it until it solidifies and becomes strong enough to support itself and other loads.

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Climbing Formwork For Sale.

Formwork is also known as “shuttering.” However, in certain parts of the world, shuttering refers to using plywood or timber to create the mold.

Formwork systems can be classified according to the following parameters:

• Types of material used to create the mold (plastic, steel, timber, aluminum)
• Types of concrete structure it supports (slab, column, wall)

Construction costs usually consist of building materials (ca. 45%), labor (ca. 45%), and operating expenses (ca. 10%). Formwork material comprises 15% of the total building material and contributes roughly 44% of the total labor. Meanwhile, formwork construction accounts for up to 25% of the total cost of building the structure. For this reason, many builders and construction companies prefer reusable forms (panel forms). The process of removing formwork is called “stripping.”

2. Column

As the name suggests, column formwork is used in the construction of circular or rectangular columns. Columns have formwork sections with a “closed load transmission,” which is supported by the formwork’s design and the guaranteed tensile strength rather than by using ties.

Steel formwork is often used to form circular columns as it is economical and available in incremental dimensions. Single-use forms, which are destroyed and disposed of during stripping, can be used as an alternative. However, using single-use formwork is not advisable if you need to construct multiple circular columns.

Meanwhile, rectangular columns are formed using three systems depending on their specifications. For instance, classic timber girders with steel walers and a plywood facing are often used when builders need to construct a significant number of columns with special dimensions. The windmill system, which is composed of columns or multipurpose panels of frame formwork systems, is suitable for building single columns with a standard dimension.

Finally, a foldable column formwork is highly suitable for columns with great heights. Because all the essential components (panels, connecting devices, ladders, and access platforms) are integrated into this type of column formwork, it helps builders reduce their construction time and costs.

3. Wall

Wall formwork comes in different types and classifications, as outlined below.

Conventional
Conventional wall formwork consists of boards or sheets and squared timber. It is flexible, but it can be costly and time-consuming as each component must be assembled on-site. In addition, all of its parts should be made according to the project’s specifications, and they must be nailed together and dismantled again after concreting.

Girder

This is a better version of the conventional formwork. Its components, which usually consist of dimensionally stable girders with two chords and one web, have been standardized to facilitate the assembly of identical and ready-to-use panels. The connection of the panels has also been systematized.

Frame
This type of wall formwork helps reduce labor time since its essential components (forming face, support for forming face, and steel walers) are assembled as one panel. The profile nose of the frames protects the edges of the forming face, thereby extending its lifespan. Connecting devices are used when assembling the frame panels to large-sized units, which are then usually transported by crane.

Crane-independent (hand-set)

This type of formwork can be moved by hand. Because of weight considerations, it is usually made of aluminum or plastic. It can take less concrete pressure than crane-dependent formwork, and is often used in housing and municipal construction projects.

Crane-dependent 

Crane-dependent formwork systems feature a large frame and formwork panels, usually made of steel. As a result, they cannot be moved manually. Since they can resist more fresh concrete pressures than crane-independent forms, they are suitable for the construction of commercial buildings and other extensive infrastructure projects.

Two-sided
As the name implies, two-sided formwork is erected on both sides of the wall. Its formwork ties, which are usually sleeved by spacing plastic tubes so they can be reused, take up the fresh concrete pressure. Push-pull props or large heavy-duty braces are attached to the formwork to align and secure it against wind loads during operation.

Single-sided
Single-sided formwork is used when the concrete has to be poured against existing structures or when builders need to do concreting against a hill or soil. This is why it is most suitable for reconstruction jobs. With this type of formwork system, concrete pressure is transferred from the formwork to the base plates through a support structure. 

Prefabricated
This formwork consists of two prefabricated concrete panels which are assembled in advance, and then transported and filled with concrete on-site. Braces and push-pull props are often used to secure the walls, while working and safety scaffolds are installed with the help of special adapters to make the construction process more cost-effective. Prefabricated formwork helps minimize project duration and labor costs. However, pre-planning is required to ensure that it is transported safely to the site.

Circular
Circular formwork is designed for the construction of curved and polygonal walls. It is also quite useful in the construction of specific concrete structures, such as septic tanks and car park ramps. This formwork system comes in three different types:  

• Round girder – timber spacers are added between the timber girders and steel walers so the formwork can be adjusted to the required radius. 
• Flexible girder – ideal for the construction of curved walls with different radii. It comprises timber/steel girders and a spindle, which allows builders to adjust the formwork to the required radius without having to reassemble the panels.
• Polygonal – existing “flat” frame formwork panels can be refurbished as polygonal formwork by adding supplementary radius panels and rails, allowing builders to minimize their project costs.

Climbing
Climbing formwork is quite useful in the construction of high-rise concrete structures, such as control towers and skyscrapers, because it climbs with the wall. It comprises large wall formwork mounted to a climbing scaffold. There are three different types of climbing formwork:

• Crane-dependent – the climbing unit (scaffold and formwork) requires the use of a crane to reach the next cycle.
• Self-climbing – an automatic climbing system that does not require the use of a crane to reach the next suspension point. Hydraulic rams/pumps lift the scaffold, secondary platform, and formwork to the next pouring cycle. It is ideal for the construction of very tall concrete structures.
• Slipform – a two-sided formwork that slides upwards along the structure being built at a rate of 20–25cm per hour. A system of pipe rods, which is integrated into the already-set concrete, supports the slipform.
   

MEVA is an industry leader offering a wide variety of wall formwork systems that provide highly efficient shuttering, flexibility, and reliability. Our products are lightweight and easy to assemble, and therefore will facilitate the rapid completion of your construction projects. Click here to learn more.

Want more information on Custom Formwork Systems? Feel free to contact us.