MODULE - 5

Formwork is the mould used during the building to give the desired
structural form by pressing concrete into the mould. In a single term,
formwork is a mould that cast concrete in various shapes and sizes.

REQUIREMENTS OF GOOD FORMWORK

A good formwork should satisfy following requirements:-

1.It should be strong enough to take all loads coming on it.

2. It should be water proof & should not absorb water from concrete.
Shrinkage and swelling should be minimum.
3.Material of formwork should be cheap & can be reused many time.
4.It should be stiff enough so that deflection is minimum.
5.It should be light as far as possible.
6.Surface of formwork should be smooth for easy stripping.
7.All joints of formwork should be stiff so that lateral deflection
under load is minimum.

FORM WORK MATERIALS

Formwork materials can be classified as:-

Timber Formwork:- should comply with the following

requirements:

1.It ought to be well seasoned

2.It ought to be light in weight
3.Timber must be easy to work with nails without splitting.
4.It’s supposed to free from loose loops.
5.The timber being used formwork must have a smooth and
sometimes even surface from all sides, that also comes in direct
contact with concrete.
6.Timber formwork is being used in a small amount of concrete
work.
Advantages of Timber Formwork:
1.Timber can even make it perfect in any size you want.
2.Timber is extremely lightweight so that it can be managed rapidly.
3.Timber is indeed a good thermal resistance, which helps prevent
concrete harm in colder areas.
4.The fabrication process for that kind of sort of formwork is easily
understandable, so it does not involve skilled labor.

Disadvantages of Timber Formwork:

1.Dry timber contains moisture from concrete, which also reduces
the workability of the material.
2.Timber formwork should only be modified 5 to 6 times.
3.Timber with such a higher moisture content (<= 20%), wet
concrete would then reduce as well as Cement slurry would then
spill.

Steel Formwork

1.Steel formwork consists of a sheet consisting of thin steel plates.

2.Steel Formwork is common nowadays because it gives you a long
life cycle and gives you better replication.
3.The steel panel units may be mounted together using the necessary
clamps, nuts, and bolts. Steel Panels can be manufactured in either
modular form or scale.
4.Often this style of formwork is used for circular and curved
construction.

Advantages of Seel Formwork:

1.Steel panels are sturdy, robust, and also have a longer life cycle.
2.Steel panels can also be quickly assembled and removed at high
speeds.
3.It is cost-effective if there is a significant volume of development
going on.
4.Glass panels do not retain Concrete water or moisture.
5.This style of formwork does not shrink or warp.
6.The consistency of the concrete surface of the steel formworks is
smooth and does not need further treatment.

Disadvantages of Seel Formwork:

1.It’s very pricey compared to Plywood.

2.The steel sheet is very high in weight, it requires moving
equipment to lift the panel.
3.It’s limited to scale and form.

Plywood Formwork

1.Formwork of Plywood for structural concrete is often waterproof

Boiling level plywood, seems to be a preservative-treated material,
and has been particularly suited to be used in shuttering and
formwork.

2.Plywood formwork is quite economical, and can also be used

repeatedly, based on the precautions given all through erection as
well as demolishing.

3.Formwork of Plywood for structural concrete is often waterproof

Boiling level plywood, seems to be a preservative-treated material,
and has been particularly suited to be used in shuttering and
formwork.

4.Plywood formwork is quite economical, and can also be used

repeatedly, based on the precautions given all through erection as
well as demolishing.

5.The major benefit that the use of plywood shuttering is that it is

long-lasting under intermediate weathering situations, Plywood
seems to have a solid surface and also has sufficient strong enough
to withstand the loading of concrete as well as the needs to produce
by the spilling of concrete as well as sound waves.

Advantages of Plywood Formwork

1.Plywood can be conveniently cut to the appropriate scale.

2.Plywood is sturdy, robust, and lightweight.
3.Plywood offers a flat concrete surface finish.
4.Plywood makes the formwork smoother and simpler.
5.Compared to Timber Formwork plywood, there is more repetition.
CHOICE OF FORMWORK

Different Parties involved in formwork selection:-

The proper selection of the formwork systems to be used in concrete

structure is concern to all involved parties.

Project Planning/speed of work

The over-all construction sequence must be planned to use formwork
in efficient manner and to permit the optimum investment in
formwork to meet schedule requirements.

When working with buildings with large construction areas and

horizontal spread, projects can be expedited by the introduction of
additional sets of formwork, to create more independent work fronts.

Construction process, methods

For selecting formwork one must know the sequence of
construction activities and methods to be followed.

Construction method will always give idea about inter dependency

of the activities, specifications and additional requirements in pour.
This will enable us to workout appropriate system which fulfils the
construction needs.

Involvement of other construction techniques

Tensioning and prefabrication activities are often involved in

construction. This may create certain impacts on the use of
formwork, especially where precast elements are to be incorporated
during the casting process. Provision should be made for temporary
supports or slot spaces and box out positions in the formwork for the
precast elements, or extra working space for placing stressing
tendons and onward jacking

Maintenance & storage cost:

It includes cost of stripping, repair, storage, etc. Formwork materials
are a valuable asset of company, If proper care is taken during
handling and storage, much return is obtained on the investment.
Formwork needs to be handled correctly, maintained, repaired if
necessary and finally, cleaned regularly. Avoiding damage reduces
costs incurred.

Labour efficiency

Considering the availability and qualification of the work force,

improving labour cost efficiency is a major factor, especially in
markets experiencing a building boom. Here, the qualification of
workers tends to be low in relation to ever higher demands posed by
construction methods.

Cost of formwork system

This is a vital factor for deciding formwork system as one must

know the capital provision for formwork in the project. It is always
beneficial to work out these details at the time of bid. Cost is
influenced by three components;
Initial cost or make-up cost:
Includes cost of transportation, materials, assembly and erection.

various types of loads and pressures act on

concrete formwork:-

Vertical Loads on Concrete Formwork:-

Vertical loads are exerted on formworks and may consist of dead

loads such as formwork dead load, steel reinforcement embedded in
the forms, molded fresh concrete and live loads such as the weight of
workers, equipment's, and tools.
It is recommended to compute weight of materials separately in the
case of heavy reinforcement to specify accurate unit weight.

Lateral Pressure on Concrete Formwork

Internal pressure resulted from accumulated depth of placed concrete

is imposed on vertical formworks such as walls and columns. During
vibration and for short period after vibration, placed fresh concrete
close to the top and to a small depth of formwork behaves like a
liquid and impose lateral pressure on the formwork that is equal to
the vertical liquid head.

Fresh concrete is granular with internal friction but vibrations

eliminate bonds in the mixture and generate liquid state.

There are different reasons such as placement rate, concrete

temperature, and internal frictions that affect lateral pressure of
below vibration controlled depth and make lateral pressure smaller
than liquid pressure head.

When vertical placement is carried out at slow pace, fresh concrete

could have time to start stiffening. Moreover, unless concrete
temperature is low, the time to start setting is not short.

Horizontal Loads on Concrete Formworks

Horizontal loads might result from forces like wind, concrete

dumping, equipment starting and stopping, and inclined supports
should be opposed by properly designed braces and shore.

For building construction, assumed value for these loads should not
be less than the larger of either 1.5 KN/m of floor edge or 2% of
total dead load spread as uniform load per slab edge linear meter,
these assumptions is specified by ACI 347-04.

For wall forms exposed to elements 0.72 kPa or greater is used as

minimum wind design load. Wall from bracing need to be designed
for loads no less than 1.5 KN/m of wall length which is applied at
the top.

Special Loads on Concrete Formworks

It is required to design formworks for uncommon construction

conditions that could occur such as reinforcement concentrated loads,
unsymmetrical placement of concrete, machine-delivered concrete
impact, uplift, form handling loads.

Constructing walls over spans of slab or beams that could impose

different loading pattern before concrete hardening than that for
which the supporting structure is designed for, is an example of
special conditions that should be taken into consideration.

STRIKING OF FORMS

As column and beam side formwork will be removed before beam

and slab soffit formwork, provision must be made for easy removal
and in the correct order. If beam and slab soffit formwork is to be
removed before the concrete has achieved working strength,
permanent propping or shoring is required. Take care to avoid
damage to formwork which is to be re used. Eight or more uses may
be obtained from timber formwork.

Maintenance Clean forms with stiff brush and clean cold water. Use
scrapers only as a last resort. Keep forms well oiled to prevent
delamination of plywood or rusting of steel and always oil the edges.

Storage of forms Any formwork with steel components should be

stored in the dry. Avoid direct sunlight on timber forms. Store clear
of the ground without twist or bend, and keep free of dirt.

Erection of formworks

Verify lines, levels and measurement before proceeding with

formwork.
Hand trim sides and bottom of earth forms, remove loose dirt.
Align form joints.
Do not apply form release agent where concrete surfaces receive
special finishes or applied coatings, which may be affected by agent.
Avoid contact with reinforcement.
Co-ordinate work of other sections in forming and setting openings,
slots, recesses, chases, sleeves, bolts, anchors and other inserts
position ties passing through concrete to approval of Company’s
Engineer
Where part of a metal tie remains embedded in concrete, it shall not
have less cover than reinforcement. Fill holes with concrete or
mortar.
Position chamfer molding strips on exposed corners of columns and
beams.
Depth of beams at all points in the span shall be as indicated.
Strip formwork carefully to avoid sudden shocks from removal of
wedges or vibration, which might damage concrete.
Where finished surfaces have re-entrant angles, remove formwork as
early as possible to avoid shrinkage cracks.
Place re-shoring to beams and slabs, immediately after stripping
formwork
Where re-shoring is required for early stripping whilst minimizing
sag or creep, the capacity and spacing of such re-shore shall be
adequate for the purpose.

PRIME REQUIRMENTS OF FORMWORK DESIGN

1. Quality
2. Safety
3. Economy

Following are some properties for the designing of formwork

Rate of a pour of Concrete: during pouring of Concrete, the weight
of Concrete is directly proportional to the rate, which is it pours by
transit mixer.in this case, the two conditions will love the Concrete
will start hardening during pouring, which leads to less pressure
developed on formwork, but if the Concrete does not start hardening,
then pressure develops greater on formwork.

Weight of concrete poured: pressure exerted on formwork is

directly proportional to the weight of concrete.if the weight of
concrete is less than the pressure exerted is also less.

Height of framework required for Concrete: the height of Concrete is

the most important aspect because height and weight are directly
proportional to the pressure applied on formwork. If the height of the
casting member is is more than pressure develops on homework is
also large.

Cement type used for concreting: type of cement is related to the rate
of hardening of the cement. If Concrete harder and faster, which
allows a faster poor rate.so that is site engineer at just the polling
rate of Concrete.

The method adopted for vibrating: there are two types of vibrating
techniques used, internal and external vibration. If internal vibrating
is used with the help of a vibrating needle, then concrete acts like a
pure liquid. So pressure act on formwork is large. (ACI recommends
if external vibration used then reduce 10% in pressure formula).

Water to cement ratio of Concrete that is a slump of Concrete: if a

slump value of Concrete is more than concrete acts like a liquid
which exerts a large pressure on formwork.

External admixtures or additives used: chemical admixtures effects

on hardening time of concrete. Basically, it acts as a retiring agent or
plasticizer. Which also affects on formwork design.
DESHUTTERING in simple means, the process of removing
the shuttering (Formwork for Concrete).Order and method of
removing formwork: Shuttering forming vertical faces of walls,
beams & column sides should be removed first. Shuttering
forming sofit to slab should be removed next. Shuttering
forming soffit to beams, girders or otherheavily loaded members
should be removed in the end.Factors considerd :Concreting is
done under normal circumstancesCement used is Ordinary
Portland CementAdequate curing is doneAmbient temperature is
not fall below 15 degree

EXPLORIN FORMWORK TECHNIQUES

29 SLIPFORM TECHNOLOGY INTRODUCTION:
CHEUNG KONG CENTRE
Method of vertically extruding a reinforced concrete
section and is suitable for construction of core wallsin
high-rise structures – lift shafts, stair shafts,towers.The
formwork rises continuously, at a rate of about 300 mm
per hour, supporting itself on the core and not relying on
support or access from other parts of the building or
permanent works.Allows for the continuous pouring of
concrete into walls of a structure and only stops when the
full required height of the structure has been reached.The
height of the formwork is designed in such a way that
while the top of the formwork is being filled by concrete
the lowest layer of concrete poured earlier has already
gained an initial set. When the formwork is moved
upwards the concrete that is then exposed remains
firm.CHEUNG KONG CENTRE