FORMWORK

INTRODUCTION TO FORMWORK
What is Formwork?
Formwork in construction is the use of support structures and
moulds to create structures out of concrete which is poured
into the moulds. Formwork can be made using moulds out of
steel, wood, aluminium and/or prefabricated forms.

Formwork is an ancillary construction, used as a mould for a

structure. Into this mould, fresh concrete is placed only to
harden subsequently.

The construction of formwork takes time and involves

expenditure up to 20 to 25% of the cost of the structure or
even more.

The operation of removing the formwork is known as stripping.

Stripped formwork can be reused. Reusable forms are known
as panel forms and non-usable are called stationary forms.

Formwork is designed according to The ACI document SP-4.

 A good formwork should satisfy the following requirements:
- Strong enough to withstand all types of dead and live loads
- Rigidly constructed and efficiently propped and braced both horizontally and vertically, so as to
retain its shape
- The joints in the formwork should be tight against leakage of cement grout
- Construction of formwork should permit removal of various parts in desired sequences without
damage to the concrete
- Material of the formwork should be cheap, easily available and should be suitable for reuse
- The formwork should be set accurately to the desired line and levels should have plane surface.
- As light as possible
- Material of the formwork should not warp or get distorted when exposed to the elements
- Should rest on firm base
 The following points are to be kept in view to effect economy in the cost of formwork:
 The plan of the building should imply minimum number of variations in the size of rooms, floor area
etc. so as to permit reuse of the formwork repeatedly.
 Design should be perfect to use slender sections only in a most economical way.
 Minimum sawing and cutting of wooden pieces should be made to enable reuse of the material a
number of times. The quantity of surface finish depends on the quality of the formwork.
 CATEGORIES OF FORMWORK
 Conventional: The formwork is built on site out of timber and plywood or moisture-resistant particleboard. It is
easy to produce but time-consuming for larger structures, and the plywood facing has a relatively short
lifespan. It is still used extensively where the labour costs are lower than the costs for procuring reusable
formwork. It is also the most flexible type of formwork, so even where other systems are in use, complicated
sections may use it.
 Modern-Day Formworks: This formwork systems are mostly modular, which are designed for speed and
efficiency. They are designed to provide increased accuracy and minimize waste in construction and most
have enhanced health and safety features built-in. The main types of formwork systems in use now are:
1. Table form/flying form
2. System column formwork
3. Horizontal panel
4. Slip form
5. Tunnel form
 Engineered/Pre-fabricated Formworks: This formwork is built out of prefabricated modules with a metal frame
(usually steel or aluminium) and covered on the application (concrete) side with material having the wanted
surface structure (steel, aluminium, timber, etc.). The two major advantages of formwork systems, compared to
traditional timber formwork, are speed of construction and lower life-cycle costs (barring major force, the
frame is almost indestructible, while the covering if made of wood; may have to be replaced after a few – or a
few dozen – uses, but if the covering is made with steel or aluminium the form can achieve up to two thousand
uses depending on care and the applications).
MATERIALS USED
Formwork are mainly of two types
- Steel formwork
- Wooden formwork

Steel formwork is made of

- Steel sheets
- Angle Iron Wooden formwork
- Tee Iron

Wooden formwork consists of

- Props
- Planks battens
- Ledgers
- Sheeting

Steel Formwork
Timber formwork:

- Most common material used for

bracing the member, hence called
as the traditional formwork.

- can easily be cut to size on site.

Joist are replaced with engineered
wood beams and supports are
replaced with metal props. This
makes this method more systematic
and reusable.

- Various sizes of members of timber

Sheeting for slabs, 25 mm to 40mm
beam, column side thick
and beam bottom
Joints, ledges 50 x 70 mm to 50
x 150 mm
Posts 75 x 100mm to
100 x 100 mm
Plywood

- This is by far the most common material

used for the facing panel. It is easily cut
to shape on site, and if handled and
stored carefully, it can be used many
times.

- A standard plywood thickness on site is

18mm. This is usually sufficient for most
pours.

- However, if the formwork is curved, a

thinner plywood is used to facilitate
bending.

- Thicker plywood may be used when the

weight of concrete causes a standard
thickness plywood to bow out, distorting
the concrete face.
Steel formwork:

- Steel forms are stronger, durable

and have longer life than timber
formwork and their reuses are more
in number

- Steel forms can be installed and

dismantled with greater ease and
speed.

- The quality of exposed concrete

surface by using steel forms is good
and such surfaces need no further
treatment.

- Steel formwork does not absorb

moisture from concrete.

- Steel formwork does not shrink or

warp
Aluminium formwork

- Often used in pre-fabricated

formwork, that is put together on site.

- Aluminium is strong and light, and

consequently fewer supports and ties
are required.

- The lighter sections will deflect more,

but this can be avoided by simply
following the manufacturers
recommendations.
Plastic formwork

- Glass reinforced plastics (GRP) and

vacuum formed plastics are used
when complicated concrete shapes
are required (e.g. waffle floors).

- Although vacuum formed plastics

will always need support, GRP can
be fabricated with integral bearers
making it self supporting.

- Like steel, plastic formwork can be

re-used many times, as long as care
is taken not to scour the surface
whilst vibrating the concrete.
PROCESS OF FORMWORK
CONSTRUCTION
FORMWORK FOR VARIOUS STRUCTURAL MEMBERS

Construction of formwork:
This normally involves the following operations:
1. Propping and centering
2. Shuttering
3. Provision of camber
4. Cleaning and surface treatment
FORMWORK FOR COLUMN

• It consists of the following

– Side & End Planks
– Yoke
– Nut & Bolts
• Two end & two side planks are
joined by the yokes and bolts.
 FORMWORK FOR BEAM
 Beam soffit must be thickened timber or strengthened plywood.

 Beam sides 18mm plywood or 25mm boards, with studs (cleats)

at 500 to 600mm centres.
 Deep beams (over 600mm) should have walkers and ties.
 Use angle fillets in the beam side to soffit joint where possible.
 Allowance must be made for height adjustment of the props or
falsework.

Erection sequence for constructing beam formwork includes

• Position of sole plates;
•Marking out and setting heights for falseworks;
•Assemble and position props, adjustable head jacks, falseworks ,
bearers and Spreaders;
•Construct and erect side walls and beam soffit.
• Position of sole plates
FORMWORK FOR STAIRCASE
•Points to consider when designing stair form work :
Stair formwork must support the weight of concrete.
The weight of the throat of the stair and the steps will
have to be supported.
Because of the slope of the stair, some of the force is
transmitted sideways. All formwork must be well tied
together to prevent sideway movement.
Consider the finish of the stair treads and type of nosing.
Space may have to be left for purpose made nosing.
SUSPENDED SLABS

Suspended floor slabs can be constructed using cast in‐

situ, precast units or a combination of both.

Whichever method is used, it is important to support the

proposed method ofconstruction using a combination o
f timber or steel bearers and adjustable shoring.

The spacing and type of support system required is

determined by the load imposed during the The erection sequence for constructing a
construction process.
suspended floor slab includes:
Manufacturers provide tables to assist in the selection • Determining the bearer spacing;
and spacing of adjustable shoring
systems. • Erecting bearers and joists;
• Fixing the sheeting;
• Preparation for concrete.
 SOLE PLATE

 The purpose of a sole plate is to transfer vertical load from

one vertical support member to the foundation
 The vertical support requires a base plate fitted to help
distribute the load to the sole plate, which is usually a
sleeper.
 If the sole plate is positioned on natural ground, it is
important the ground is graded and consolidated to a
level surface.
 The objective is to achieve maximum bearing beneath
sole plate. Once sole plates are positioned and firmly be
dded they should be checked for level.
CURING
 Curing is the process in which the concrete is
protected from loss of moisture and kept within
a reasonable temperature range. The result of
this process is increased strength and
decreased permeability. Curing is also a key
player in mitigating cracks in the concrete,
which severely impacts durability
• The length of adequate curing time is
dependent on the following factors:
• Mixture proportions
• Specified strength
• Size and shape of concrete member
• Ambient weather conditions
• Future exposure conditions

• Deshuttering is a process after curing

 DESHUTTERING
 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 other
heavily loaded members should be removed in the end.

 Factors considerd :
• Concreting is done under normal circumstances
• Cement used is Ordinary Portland Cement
• Adequate curing is done
• Ambient temperature is not fall below 15 degree
DESHUTTERING AGENTS

 There are chances of concrète sticking to the formwork

 Hence deshuttering agents are used to ease the process

 Dosage / Coverage:

 Dilution ratio: KEM MRA 2: water at 1:10. Coverage: 1600 sq. ft. depending
on conditions of formwork

 KEM MRA 1 - 25 / 30 m� / liter depending upon the porosity and usage
condition of the substrate
Time of Removal of formwork
Sr. OPC Rapid Hardening
No Structural Member (Ordinary Portland Cement) Cement

1 Beam sides, walls & Columns 2-3 Days 2 Days

2 Slab (Vertical Supports remains intact) 4 Days 3 Days

3 Slab (Complete Formwork removal) 10 Days 5 Days

4 Beams (Removal of Sheeting, Props 8 Days 5 Days

remains intact)

5 Beams & Arches (Complete formwork 14 Days 5-8 Days

removal) (up to 6 m span)

6 Beams & Arches (Complete formwork 21 Days 8-10 Days

removal) (more than 6 m span)
FAILURE OF FORMWORK
 Formwork failures are the cause of many accidents
and failures that occur during concrete construction
which usually happen when fresh concrete is placed
 Generally some unexpected event causes one
member to fail, then others become overloaded or
misaligned and the entire formwork structure collapses
 Improper stripping and shore removal
 Inadequate bracing
 Vibration
 Unstable soil under mudsills, shoring not plumb
 Inadequate control of concrete placement
 Lack of attention to formwork details
 Inadequate cross bracing and horizontal bracing of
shores
 Forms sometime collapse when their shores/ jack are
displaced by the vibration caused by:
 passing traffic
 movement of workers & equipment on the formwork
 the effect of vibrating concrete to consolidate it
SAFETY PRECAUTION

 Material used for the construction of formwork must fulfill the

specification.
 Formwork is fixed firmly & properly
 Construction area must be protected to prevent vandalism of
formwork.
 Warning sign must be put up at the area where the formwork is fixed
to prevent entrance of people that may damage the formwork.
 The formwork must be inspected before the concrete is poured.
THANK YOU