Welcome

Formwork

Presented By:
Md. Ramjan Ali
Lecturer
Department of Building Engineering and Construction Management
Khulna University of Engineering & Technology (KUET)
Khulna-9203, Bangladesh
Formwork

Form is a temporary structure or mold for the support of concrete

while it is setting and gaining sufficient strength to be self-
supporting. Thus formwork is a total system of support for freshly
placed concrete, including the mold or sheathing that contacts the
concrete, all supporting members and necessary bracing.

In building and designing formwork, three major objectives must

be considered:

 Quality: In terms of strength, rigidity, position, and dimensions

of the forms.
 Safety: For both the workers and the concrete structure.
 Economy: The least cost consistent with quality and safety
requirements.
Classification of formwork: Formwork can be classified in various
categories such as according to:

 Sizes
 Location of use
 Materials of construction
 Nature of operation

Classification according to sizes:

1. Small-sized formwork:

 Operation by workers manually.

 Timber and aluminium.

2. Large-sized formwork:

 Crane facilities are required in the operation.

 Reduce the number of jointing and minimize the number of lift.
 Stiffening components - studs.
 Fig: Aluminum formwork Fig: Timber formwork

Classification according to location of use:

Some systems are more adaptive for specific location of use such as:

Irregular frame structure – traditional timber form or aluminum form

Cross wall – gang form, climb form or jump form, floor – table form
Repeated regular section – tunnel form
Fig: Tunnel form/Gantry form system
Fig: Climb form operated by the
use of a series of synchronized
hydraulic jack systems
Fig: Jump form for the construction of a high-rise residential tower
 Fig: Traditional timber formwork system

Classification according to nature of operation:

• Manually operated formwork
• Self-lifted formwork
• Crane-lifted formwork
• Gantry, traveling and tunnel type formwork system
Classification according to materials of construction:

(a) Timber - Most popular formwork material

- Low initial cost
- High adaptability to complicated shape
- Labour intensive and environmental unfriendly

(b) Steel - hot - rolled or cold - formed sections

- Heavy weight
- Suitable for large-sized panels

(c) Aluminum - stiff and light weight

- Higher material and labour cost
- Excellent finish
Some varieties of formwork are given below:

1. Foundation Formwork
2. Wall Formwork
3. Slab Formwork
4. Beam Formwork
5. Column Formwork
Figure: Foundation formwork
Figure: High wall formwork
Figure: A typical slab formwork
Figure: Beam formwork
Fig: Steel formwork for column structure
Again formwork can be classified in the following way:

1. Conventional formwork: This is the oldest type of formwork used in the

construction industry. This type uses timber, bamboo, masonry and carpentry
in the construction.

2. Modern conventional formwork: This type is very much closer to the

conventional formwork and in simple words this is one step advanced than the
conventional type. The same technique has used in the both types and the only
difference is the materials use for the formworks. The differences of both
types are that steel props and various types of jacks (U jacks, T jacks) are
used as supports in the formwork instead of timber supports and ply wood
sheets are used instead of timber planks on slab decks, beams and columns.

3. System formwork: System formwork has prefabricated modular components

with casting panels. The system formwork is fabricated as it suits the required
shape. The biggest advantage of this type is the speedy and quality
construction. But the high initial cost is the main disadvantage and hence it is
not economical to use in low rise buildings. But this is the most economical
form of formwork type to be used in high-rise building.
Planning for formwork:
 Placing schedule and stripping time requirements;
 Capacity of equipment available to handle form sections;
 Capacity of mixing and placing equipment;
 Construction joints;
 Reuse of forms;
 Relative merits of job-built, shop-built and ready-made forms;
 Weather (protection requirements and stripping time);
 Crew efficiency;
 Concreting i.e. the ease and speed of pouring the concrete.

Thus all formwork should be well planned before construction

begins. The amount of planning required will depend on the size,
complexity, and importance (considering reuses) of the form.
Formwork should be designed for strength and serviceability.
Design of formwork:

The structural engineer is responsible for structural design within the

constraints imposed by the architect (number of stories, floor plan etc.).
Important factors in design are:

 Safety (the structure doesn’t fall down);

 Serviceability (how well the structure performs in term of
appearance and deflection);
 Economy (an efficient use of materials and labor).

Thus when designing concrete formwork, the following design

simplifications and assumptions are made:
o All loads are assumed to be uniformly distributed.
o Beams that are supported over three or more spans are considered
to be continuous;
o When determining size of main form members, the strength of
nailed connections is neglected.
Consideration of loads for the design of formwork:

The loads that should be considered for the design of formwork are:
 Dead loads – permanent; including self-weight, floor covering,
suspended ceiling, partitions, etc.
 Live loads – not permanent; the location is not fixed; including
furniture, equipment, and occupants of buildings
 Wind load (exerts a pressure or suction on the exterior of a
building);
 Earthquake loads (the effects of ground motion are simulated by
a system of horizontal forces);
 Snow load (varies with geographical location and drift);
 Other loads (hydrostatic pressure, soil pressure);
 If the load is applied suddenly, the effects of Impact must be
accounted for.
Considerations when using formwork:

Design related considerations:

• Shape of the building

• Architectural features on building exterior
• Internal layout
• Structural form
• Consistence in building dimensions
• Span and Headroom
• Repetitive nature
• Finishing standard
Considerations when using formwork:

Construction related considerations:

• Complexity of the built environment

• Speed of work
• No. of possible reuses
• Construction planning and arrangement
• Area or volume of cast per pour
• Involvement of other construction technique
• Dependence of work
• Provision of construction joint
• Accessibility to work
• Feasibility of introducing alternative design
Design requirements for formwork:

 Strength: Forms and shutters have to be designed to support dead

weight, live load and hydrostatic pressure. Sheathing must be rigid
enough to resist bulging. Formwork for vertical concrete elements
i.e. columns and walls are subject to pressures on the form face.
This is caused by the fluid action of the fresh concrete. The pressure
of the fluid concrete on the vertical faces increases proportionately
with the depth of concrete. The maximum pressure being at the
bottom of the form. This maximum pressure for the full depth fluid
concrete is the hydrostatic pressure for concrete and usually occurs
when the concrete is placed very quickly.

 Speedy erection and dismantling: The formwork design and the

methods of assembly must be as simple as possible to reduce time
spent in erection and dismantling.
 Tightness of joints: The liquid retaining properties
of the formwork must be adequate to prevent leakage
of cement and fine aggregate from the concrete.
 Rigidity: Formwork and support should be braced so
that no movement may take place under wind
pressure or when the concrete is being placed and
vibrated.
 Reuse
 Ease of handling: Forms and shutters must be of a
size and weight that can be handled by the labour
available on site.
Figure: A typical formwork
• Rubber linings are sometimes used for textured finish.

• Glass fiber or other similar moulds maybe used for various

architectural features on wall or window panels.

Figure: Slab formwork layout

Figure: A typical wall formwork
Figure: Column formwork
Figure: A typical column formwork
Design and construction of beam formwork:

o Beam soffit must be thickened by timber or strengthened plywood.

o Beam sides 18 mm plywood or 25 mm boards with studs.
o Deep beams (over 600mm) should have walers and ties.
o Props or false work must be placed under the head tree or under the
bearers and must be spaced to suit the weight of concrete.
o Use angle fillets in the beam side to soffit joint where possible.
o Allowance must be made for height adjustment of the props or false
work.

Figure: A typical beam formwork

Figure: A reticular slab formwork
Figure: Pressure distribution of concrete
Factors affecting the lateral pressure on forms are:

 Weight of concrete
 Rate of placing (the average rate of rise in the form)
 Vibration
 Temperature (affecting the set time)
 Consistency of concrete
 Ambient temperature
 Amount and location of reinforcement
 Maximum aggregate size
 Cement type etc.

The formwork must remain in place until the concrete is strong

enough to carry its own weight, or the finished structure may
be damaged.
Code Provisions:

Structural Concrete Building Code, ACI 318-11, Chapter-6, Formwork,

Embedments and Construction Joint:

6.1- Design of formwork

6.1.1- Form shall result in a final structure that conforms to shapes, lines
and dimensions of the members as required by the contact documents.

6.1.2- Forms shall be substantial and sufficiently tight to prevent leakage

of mortar.

6.1.3- Forms shall be properly braced or tied together to maintain

position and shape.

6.1.4- Forms and their supports shall be designed so as not to damage previously
placed structure.
6.1.5- Design of formwork shall include consideration of the following
factors:

 Rate and method of placing concrete;

 Construction loads, including vertical, horizontal and impact loads;
 Special form requirements for construction of shells, folded plates,
domes, architectural concrete, or similar types of elements.

6.1.6 - Forms for prestressed concrete members shall be designed and

constructed to permit movement of the member without damage during
application of prestressing force.

Explanation:
Formwork for concrete, including proper design, construction and removal
demands sound judgment and planning to achieve adequate forms that are
both economical and safe.
6.2- Removal of forms, shores and reshoring

6.2.1- Removal of forms

Forms shall be removed in such a manner as not to impair

safely and serviceability of the structure. Concrete exposed by
form removal shall have sufficient strength not to be damaged
by removal operation.

6.2.2- Removal of shores and reshoring

6.2.2.1- Before starting construction, the contractor shall

develop a procedure and schedule for removal of shores and
installation of reshores and for calculating the loads transferred
to structure during the process.
 Note: attached to your report,
The amount of time needed to remove formwork from various
parts, including foundations ,columns ,beams , slabs in
accordance with building codes.