Q. What is formwork?

Forms or moulds or shutters are the receptacles in which concrete is placed, so that it will have the
desired shape or outline when hardened. Once the concrete develops adequate strength, the forms
are removed.

Forms are generally made of the materials like timber, plywood, steel, etc.

Q. Why camber is provided in shuttering?

Camber is provided in the formwork for horizontal members to counteract the effect of deflection
caused due to the weight of reinforcement and concrete placed over that.

Q. Why lubrication is required on shuttering surfaces?

Shuttering boards/Planks should be properly oiled or greased with shuttering oil before the
placement of reinforcement. The oil film sandwiched between concrete and formwork surface not
only helps in easy removal of shuttering but also prevents loss of moisture from the concrete
through absorption and evaporation.

Q. When formwork should be removed?

The removal of formwork after the concrete has set is termed as stripping. The period up to which
the forms must be left in place before they are stripped is called stripping time. The factors affecting
the stripping time are the position of the forms, the loads coming on the elements immediately after
stripping, temperature of the atmosphere, the subsequent loads coming on the element etc. As a
guideline, with temperature above 20 degree following time limits should be followed:

Elements and Supporting conditions Stripping Time in Days

Walls, columns, vertical sides of beam 1 to 2
Slabs removal of props
a) Span up to 4.5m 7
b) Span over 4.5 m 14
Beam and arches: removal of props
a) Span up to 6m 14
b) Span over 6m 21
Q. What is steel reinforcement? Why is it required in a concrete structure?

Steel reinforcements are used, generally, in the form of bars of circular cross section in concrete
structure. They are like a skeleton in human body. Plain concrete without steel or any other
reinforcement is strong in compression but weak in tension. Steel is one of the best forms of
reinforcements, to take care of those stresses and to strengthen concrete to bear all kinds of loads.

Q. What is bar-bending-schedule?

Bar-bending-schedule is the schedule of reinforcement bars prepared in advance before cutting and
bending of rebars. This schedule contains all details of size, shape and dimension of rebars to be
cut.

Q. What are the different types of steel reinforcements being used in a reinforced
concrete structure?

Mild steel bars conforming to IS: 432 (Part I) and Cold-worked steel high strength deformed bars
conforming to IS: 1786 (grade Fe 415 and grade Fe 500, where 415 and 500 indicate yield stresses
415 N/mm2 and 500 N/mm2 respectively) are commonly used. Grade Fe 415 is being used most
commonly nowadays. This has limited the use of plain mild steel bars because of higher yield stress
and bond strength resulting in saving of steel quantity.

Some companies have brought thermo mechanically treated (TMT) and corrosion resistant steel
(CRS) bars with added features.

Bars range in diameter from 6 to 50 mm. Cold-worked steel high strength deformed bars start from
8 mm diameter. For general house constructions, bars of diameter 6 to 20 mm are used.

Q. Why cover blocks are required to be placed before concreting? What are their sizes?

Cover blocks are placed to prevent the steel rods from getting exposed to the atmosphere, and to
place and fix the reinforcements as per the design drawings. Once the steel is exposed to the
atmosphere, corrosion starts. Sometimes it is commonly seen that the cover gets misplaced during
the concreting activity. To prevent this, tying of cover with steel bars using thin steel wires called
binding wires (projected from cover surface and placed during making or casting of cover blocks) is
recommended. Covers should be made of cement sand mortar (1:3). Ideally, cover should have
strength similar to the surrounding concrete, with the least perimeter so that chances of water to
penetrate through periphery will be minimized. Provision of minimum covers as per the Indian
standards for durability of the whole structure should be ensured.

Shape of the cover blocks could be cubical or cylindrical. However, cover indicates thickness of the
cover block. Normally, cubical cover blocks are used. As a thumb rule, minimum cover of 2” in
footings, 1.5” in columns and 1” for other structures may be ensured.

Q. How important are transverse reinforcements like links and stirrups? What
precautions should be taken while tying them?

Transverse reinforcements are very important. They not only take care of structural requirements
but also help main reinforcements to remain in desired position. They play a very significant role
while abrupt changes or reversal of stresses like earthquake etc.
They should be closely spaced as per the drawing and properly tied to the main/longitudinal
reinforcement.

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Q. What is a lap or development length? Where and how should they be provided?

Lap length is the length overlap of bars tied to extend the reinforcement length.. Lap length about
50 times the diameter of the bar is considered safe. Laps of neighboring bar lengths should be
staggered and should not be provided at one level/line. At one cross section, a maximum of 50%
bars should be lapped.

In case, required lap length is not available at junction because of space and other constraints, bars
can be joined with couplers or welded (with correct choice of method of welding).

Q. What is anchorage length?

This is the additional length of steel of one structure required to be inserted in other at the junction.
For example, main bars of beam in column at beam column junction, column bars in footing etc.
The length requirement is similar to the lap length mentioned in previous question or as per the
design instructions.

Q. What is the checklist for steel reinforcement before the placement/pour of concrete?

Reinforcement should be free from loose rust, oil paints, mud etc. it should be cut, bent and fixed
properly. The reinforcement shall be placed and maintained in position by providing proper cover
blocks, spacers, supporting bars, laps etc. Reinforcements shall be placed and tied such that
concrete placement is possible without segregation, and compaction possible by an immersion
vibrator.

Q. For a given diameter, how do we calculate the weight of steel per meter length of the
steel bar and vice versa?

For any steel reinforcement bar, weight per running meter is equal to d2/162 Kg, where d is
diameter of the bar in mm. For example, 10 mm diameter bar will weigh 10x10/162 = 0.617 Kg/m.

Q. Can we receive the quality test certificate of steel from the supplier?

Yes. We can receive the test certificate of the batch of materials supplied at our site. The certificate
will confirm the compliance of quality of supplied materials as per the requirement of relevant
Indian standard code.

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 Formwork types
Formwork comes in three main types:

• Traditional timber formwork. 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 re-usable formwork. It is also the most flexible type of
formwork, so even where other systems are in use, complicated sections may
use it.
• Engineered Formwork systems. This formwork is built out of prefabricated
modules with a metal frame (usually steel) and covered on the application
(concrete) side with material having the wanted surface structure (steel,
timber, etc.). The two major advantages of formwork systems, compared to
traditional timber formwork, are speed of construction (mmodular systems clip
or screw together quickly) and lower life-cycle costs (barring major force, the
frame is almost indestructible, while the covering may have to be replaced
after a few - or a few dozen - uses, depending on the applications).

o Re-useable plastic formwork. These interlocking and modular

systems are used to build widely variable, but relatively simple
concrete structures. The panels are lightweight and very robust. They
are especially suited for low-cost, mass housing schemes.

• Stay-In-Place Formwork systems. This formwork is assembled on site,

usually out of prefabricated insulating concrete forms. The formwork stays in
place (or is simply covered with earth in case of buried structures) after the
concrete has cured, and may provide thermal and acoustic insulation, space to
run utilities within, or backing for finishes.

Stay-In-Place Structural Formwork systems. This formwork is assembled

on site, usually out of prefabricated fibre-reinforced plastic forms. These are in
the shape of hollow tubes, and are usually used for columns and piers. The
formwork stays in place after the concrete has cured and acts as axial and shear
reinforcement, as well as serving to confine the concrete and prevent against
environmental effects, such as corrosion and freeze-thaw cycles.
Usage
For removable forms, once the concrete has been poured into formwork and has set (or cured),
the formwork is struck or stripped (removed) to expose the finished concrete. The time
between pouring and formwork stripping depends on the job specifications, the cure required,
and whether the form is supporting any weight, but is usually at least 24 hours after the pour is
completed. For example, the California Department of Transportation requires the forms to be
in place for 1-7 days after pouring,[1] while the Washington State Department of Transportation
requires the forms to stay in place for 3 days with a damp blanket on the outside[2].

Spectacular accidents have occurred when the forms were either removed too soon or had been
under-designed to carry the load imposed by the weight of the uncured concrete. Less critical
and much more common (though no less embarrassing and often costly) are those cases in
which underdesigned formwork bends or breaks during the filling process (especially if filled
with a high-pressure concrete pump). This then results in liquid concrete escaping out of the
formwork in a form blowout, often in large quantities.

Concrete exerts less pressure against the forms as it hardens, so forms are usually designed to
withstand a number of feet per hour of pour rate to give the concrete at the bottom time to firm
up. For example, wall or column forms are commonly designed for a pour rate between 4-8
ft/hr.[citation needed] The hardening is an asymptotic process, meaning that most of the final
strength will be achieved after a relatively short time, though some further hardening can occur
depending on the cement type and admixtures.

Wet concrete also applies hydrostatic pressure to formwork. The pressure at the bottom of the
form is therefore greater than at the top. In the illustration of the column formwork to the right,
the 'column clamps' are closer together at the bottom. Note that the column is braced with steel
adjustable 'formwork props' and uses 20 mm 'through bolts' to further support the long side of
the column.