What are the advantages of plastic formwork?

I have found that many contractors do not have sufficient knowledge about the advantages of reusable plastic formwork. Without the knowledge of the advantages of reusable concrete form, the Contractor’s profits and time shall go to waste in this highly competitive market.

You will Save More Money!

You can purchase the Plasform Panel once, and reuse them over 200 times. This means you won’t have to spend more money unnecessarily. With Phenolic Plywood, you will have to keep placing orders for new Phenolic Plywood. Wood forms can only be reused up to a maximum of 3 times. In other words, the reusable plastic formwork will save you money and time in the long term.

You will Ease Up Your Work on Maintaining Formwork

Plywood will absorb moisture, leading to rot and splinter. You’ll also need to scrap wood on every use to remove any concrete build-up. This cleaning process often eats into valuable working time, and so does transport and disposing of used-up lumber.

While plywood is made of plies of timber sheet, Plasform Panel get rids of all these problems as it is made of a durable material called Polypropylene (PP). You can always clean your poly with a pressurized washer or recycle it with other plastics in case you want to dispose of it.

You will Reduce your Construction Time by 50%

Plasform Panel are 50% lighter compared to timber formwork. Wood gains weight over time by absorbing concrete and moisture, unlike Plasform Panel. More weight translates to more working time.

Plasform Panel is less cumbersome to handle and transport. Despite being available in different sizes, reusable green formwork is lighter than timber formwork and easier to work with. It’s much faster to set up Plasform System, hence massively decreasing the time it takes your crew to assemble the formwork.

You will Achieve High-Quality Structure Finishing

Stripping plastic forms takes half the time it takes to strip timber building concrete forms. You simply loosen the wedge and lift your plastic forms. Since there is no adhesion of the concrete to plastic material, it is much faster to remove the stakes and do the finishing.

The process of stripping wood and doing finishing operations is burdensome as concrete adheres to timber. Plastic forms provide smooth, clean, perfect finishing and require minor touch up compared to plywood that requires heavy plastering and hacking.

You will Make the World Greener.

Other construction formwork materials such as wood, steel, aluminum produce various disadvantages which might outweigh their benefits. For example, the application of wood is considerably costly and creates substantial environmental impacts due to deforestation. On contrary, plastic forms can be recycled and it is environmentally friendly in addition to reducing handling time and great reusability index.

Reusable Plastic Formwork & Phenolic Plywood Shuttering Panel Are Different

Most of people want to use formwork type that would save their expenses with better efficiency. In that case, plastic formwork or reusable formwork can be a great option for you due to their strength and toughness. Plasform Panel can be reused around 200 times with proper care and maintenance, achieving a reusable rate than plywood formwork 3 to 5 times reusability. This will bring down the overall cost of your construction.

Plastic formwork is easy to form a structure such as column, wall, slab, or foundation at the location that is wet as it is waterproof. Reusable plastic formwork is way more durable than plywood and can be easily stored after use.

PP formwork doesn’t need mould oil or any release agent to ease dismantling formwork when striking. They lessen the working time and enhance proficiency.

Plasfrom Panel are made through injection moulding to the various standard sizes of panels. The construction workers just need to join the panel and unnecessarily cut or nail at the site. The panel has a precise dimension, unlike plywood that was cut to size by workers at the site. This can ensure the structure size to be formed will be accurate.

Conclusion

This is why all contractors should understand the benefits and advantages of reusable formwork. This is the key to be successful in this competitive construction market.

Send us your structural & architectural drawing to info@jetformwork.com and get a FREE Consultancy and Quotation tailored specially for your construction need. “When you invest, you are buying for a day that your formwork cost is ZERO”

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Use of plastic

Use of plastic formworks for concrete construction has many advantages such as durability, cost and flexibility compared to other materials for concrete formworks. Formworks are used to hold freshly placed concrete at its position until it attains enough strength and with the help of formworks concrete can be easily manipulated and various shapes and forms can be constructed. There are different materials which may be used to manufacture formworks for example timber, steel, and aluminum in addition to plastic that offer number of advantages compared to other materials for example durability, cost effectiveness, and flexibility. It is reported that, not only does the construction of formworks takes time but also spent about 20 to 25% of the total cost of the structure. It is one of the major factors that influence the success of construction of any structure in terms of safety, cost, quality and speed. It is for these advantages and benefits of plastic forms that will be discussed in the following sections.

Fig.1: Plastic Formwork for Concrete Construction

Objectives of Plastic Formworks in Concrete Construction

Form work is not a permanent construction but it requires careful attention to avoid damages of permanent construction. The

• Safety: It depends on the formwork strength substantially. Life of labors and public might be in danger if the formwork does not possess adequate strength.
• Quality: Concrete shape accuracy and the quality of final finished surface of concrete element.
• Economy: The structural frame, which is the most critical factor during construction, is most crucial cost component.

Advantages of Plastic Formworks in Concrete Construction

Formworks expend large labor force and total cost of the project that is why efforts have made to introducing a formwork system that is cost effective and can be assembled, dismantled and handled easily by labor. There are several advantages provided by plastic formworks in concrete construction:

• Cost effective
• Labor friendly
• Eco friendly
• Low maintenance
• Versatile

Plastic Formwork System

It is manufactured from specific grade plastic that neither placed materials adhered to it nor chemical reactions occur between poured materials and the plastic form and consequently there will be no any patch on the surface of reinforced concrete element. Water or freshly placed concrete leakages from different parts of the form is avoided because of the perfect fitness of various parts of the system. Added to that, it is most labor friendly system because not only does it fit and plugged easily but also it is considerably light weight compare with other types of formwork systems. Nailing and oiling plates are not required prior to concreting because of auto leveling of plugging system that make plates level automatically and consequently it takes about 30% lesser time during installing and dismantling compare with conventional form systems. Additionally, after its utilization, the plastic forms can be cleaned with water easily and if it breaks due to bad handling, low voltage hot air gun is used to seal it. Other formwork materials such as wood, steel, aluminum produce various disadvantages which might outweigh their benefits. For example, the application of wood is considerably costly and create substantial environmental impacts due to deforestation. With regard to aluminum formworks, it can be employed many times but its high cost makes it as not very suitable option to use. In contrary, plastic forms can be recycled and it is environmentally friendly in addition to reduce handling time and great reusability index. Table-1 provides a comparison between plastic forms and other form types. Table-1: Comparison Between Plastic, Traditional, And Steel Formworks Items Plastic formwork Traditional formwork Steel formwork Recycled 40% No 10% Water resistant Yes No No Deformation condition No Yes Yes Stripping process Easy Moderate Difficult Size Any size can supply Restricted Restricted Corrosion resistant Excellent Bad Bad Availability time More than 100 times 8 times 100 times

Different Types of Commercially Available Plastic Formworks

Siscon Plastic Formwork System

It is one type of commercially available plastic form which can be used to construction various structural elements such as walls, columns, and slabs. It provides substantial precision.

Plastic Formworks for Walls

It is used for the construction of boundary walls,

Form work is not a permanent construction but it requires careful attention to avoid damages of permanent construction. The formwork design and construction are controlled by three principles:Formworks expend large labor force and total cost of the project that is why efforts have made to introducing a formwork system that is cost effective and can be assembled, dismantled and handled easily by labor. There are several advantages provided by plastic formworks in concrete construction:It is manufactured from specific grade plastic that neither placed materials adhered to it nor chemical reactions occur between poured materials and the plastic form and consequently there will be no any patch on the surface of reinforced concrete element. Water or freshly placed concrete leakages from different parts of the form is avoided because of the perfect fitness of various parts of the system. Added to that, it is most labor friendly system because not only does it fit and plugged easily but also it is considerably light weight compare with other types of formwork systems. Nailing and oiling plates are not required prior to concreting because of auto leveling of plugging system that make plates level automatically and consequently it takes about 30% lesser time during installing and dismantling compare with conventional form systems. Additionally, after its utilization, the plastic forms can be cleaned with water easily and if it breaks due to bad handling, low voltage hot air gun is used to seal it. Other formwork materials such as wood, steel, aluminum produce various disadvantages which might outweigh their benefits. For example, the application of wood is considerably costly and create substantial environmental impacts due to deforestation. With regard to aluminum formworks, it can be employed many times but its high cost makes it as not very suitable option to use. In contrary, plastic forms can be recycled and it is environmentally friendly in addition to reduce handling time and great reusability index. Table-1 provides a comparison between plastic forms and other form types. Table-1: Comparison Between Plastic, Traditional, And Steel FormworksIt is one type of commercially available plastic form which can be used to construction various structural elements such as walls, columns, and slabs. It provides substantial precision.It is used for the construction of boundary walls, retaining walls , shear walls, rainwater drains, flood or storm drain walls, irrigation canals, and in concrete banking.

Fig.2: Wall Plastic Formwork Applications at Different Location of the Structure

Fig.3: Plastic Formworks used for Wall Construction

Plastic Formworks for Floors

Fig.4: Plastic Formwork for Concrete Floor Concrete

Fig.5: Plastic Formwork for Slab Construction

Plastic Formworks for Column

Fig.6: Installation of Plastic Formwork for Column

Nova Plastic Formwork System

It is produced from composite plastic material and it is the only plastic form that can be employed in both salt and fresh water without damage. Various applications of NOVA plastic forms are shown in Figure-7, Figure-8, and Figure-9.

It is produced from composite plastic material and it is the only plastic form that can be employed in both salt and fresh water without damage. Various applications of NOVA plastic forms are shown in Figure-7, Figure-8, and Figure-9.

Fig.7: Application of Nova Plastic Forms

Fig.8: Application of Nova Plastic Form in the Construction of Column

Fig.9: Use of Nova Plastic Form in Construction of Concrete Walls

  Read More: Concrete Formwork Design Considerations – Basis for Concrete Formwork Design