Concrete formwork is a kind of structure that makes use of liquid concrete poured into molds to build architectural structures. As long as the structures were made by liquid concrete, the concrete formwork system will be used as necessary tools at the site.

The strength of a building, the tidy of the construction site, the speed of construction, and the cost of the project will depend to a great extent on the type of formwork used in the site. Read below to understand the differences between the five major types of formwork systems used for concrete construction work.

#1 Traditional Timber Formwork Systems

A combination of plywood and timber are used to create these traditional formwork systems at the construction site. Moisture resistant particle boards are often used as a substitute for plywood for making formwork of this type. If you use traditional formwork for larger architectural structures, then it will take you a lot of time to complete the construction, and waste lots of wood, even though it’s very easy to produce.

#2 Re-Usable Plastic Concrete Forms Systems

This type of formwork can be used again and again and modular for constructing different types of architectural structures. These systems are modular and are simply set up to use as compared to other types of formwork systems. Houses built under mass housing schemes often utilize plastic formwork as they are robust and lightweight. They help to incredibly lower the cost of construction and faster the construction speed as they can be reused about 100 times.

#3 Steel Formwork Systems

These types of formwork use metal frames for the prefabricated modules. Aluminum and steel are the common choices for metal frames used in engineered formwork systems. The use of aluminum formwork can highly speed up any construction project, as compared to traditional formwork. The life-cycle cost of such formwork is low compared to other types of formwork as their metal frames cannot be damaged easily, although they need to repair when used up. However, the heavyweight is the disadvantage of such formwork, generally, the crane is necessary to set up the formwork.

#4 Permanent Insulated Formwork Systems

Insulating concrete forms (ICF) are typically used to construct permanent insulated formwork systems. Such formwork is usually assembled at the construction site. Once the concrete has been cured, this formwork stays in place. It is much stronger than other types of formwork and also enhances the speed of construction. Acoustic and thermal insulation offered by such formwork are higher compared to other types.

#5 Stay-In-Place Structural Formwork Systems

This kind of formwork is assembled on location using plastic forms that have been reinforced with fiber and prefabricated for use. Piers and columns are often built using stay-in-place structural formwork systems. They are usually available in the shape of hollow tubes. As the name suggests, the formwork stays where it is following concrete cure. Shear and axial reinforcement are provided by these concrete formwork. They also protect the structure from environmental hazards such as freeze-thaw cycles and corrosion.

Now that you know about the different types of formwork systems, you must consult a professional formwork supplier to select the right type of formwork suitable for your construction projects. For more information about the formwork system, please feel free to Contact Us.