12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

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Wooden Concrete Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas

 Wooden Concrete Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas

Wooden formworks are generally used for construction due to its ease of use. Di erent criteria for design of
wooden formwork and their calculation is discussed.

Formwork is substantially signi cant temporary construction element in the construction of structures. It
provides necessary support until the concrete member achieves required strength and can support its own
weight in addition to the imposed loads.

There are various materials for example steel, aluminum, ber composite and wood from which formworks can
be constructed. Manufacturers can produce steel, aluminum, and ber composite formworks and can be utilized
directly based on the information and speci cation provided by the manufacturer.

However, wood formworks as shown in Figure-1 can be made in the construction site, but is needs to be designed
properly. There are di erent criteria that must be considered when wood formwork is designed.

In the following sections, di erent formwork design criteria will be discussed.

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Fig.1: Wooden Formwork

Table of Contents 

Wooden Formwork Design Criteria for Concrete Construction

Following are the di erent criteria for design of wooden concrete formwork

ASD adjustment factor for lumber stresses

Factor of overall member size

Stability factor for beam

Column stability factor

Factor of load duration

Bearing area factor

Moisture factor

Flat application factor

Safety factor for formwork accessories

Repetitive factor of member utilization

Manufactured wood products

Adjustment factor for plywood stresses

ASD Adjustment Factor for Lumber Stresses

National design standard for wood construction 2015 recommends various adjustment factors to adjust
reference design values (F) and consequently achieve permissible design values (F’) for bending stress, shear
stress, bearing stress, compression stress, and elastic modulus as follows:

It should be noted that, adjustment factors in the parentheses is employed in case of truss member. Apart from
those factors in the brackets, the adjustment factors will be explained in the following sections

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Factor of Overall Element Size

This factor is denoted as (Cf) and it is demonstrated through tests that the size of the element, which intended to
be constructed, in uence the stress that causes failure. Therefore, the member size should be taken into
consideration and this can be done by multiplying basic bending and compression values by size factor.

Stability Factor for Beam for Wooden Formwork Design

National design speci cation provided recommendation regarding the value of beam stability factor (CL). In the
case where the compression edge of rectangular bending member is unstable, the stability factor for beam is
calculated as per the equation provided by NDS 3.3.3.8.

Moreover, the national design speci cation recommends values for beam stability factor may be taken as 1 for
sawn lumber based on lateral support condition and member depth to with ratio which is provided in Table-1.

Table-1: Beam Stability Factor Based on Depth to Width Ration and Lateral Support Conditions

Depth to width Beam Stability

Lateral Support Condition
ratio, b?d Factor (CL)

b >= d < 2 Lateral support is not needed 1

Formwork ends should be supported by nailing, or bridging, full

4>=b/d >2 1
depth solid blocking, or other means

Member compression edge must be kept in position by suitable for

5 >= b/d >4 its full length to prevent lateral displacement, and rations should be 1
prevented at the end bearing point of the element

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Compression edge of the member should be kept at its position by

sub ooring or other means, lateral displacement at end bearing
6 >= b/d>5 1
point must be avoided, and at spacing of 20 cm bridging or diagonal
cross bracing or full depth solid block should be provided

Not only does the point of end bearing need to be supported to

7>=b/d >6 prevent rotation but also both compression edge of the member 1
should be kept at their original position

Column Stability Factor for Wooden Formwork Design

Column stability factor, which is denoted as (Cp) is found out as per the provisions of national design standard.
The value of column stability factor is taken as 1 if lateral displacement of compression member is avoided in all
direction by providing supports throughout the entire length of the member.

However, if members such as shores or braces are likely to fail in buckling instead of crushing, the column
stability factor reduces the permissible compression stress that is parallel to the natural lines (grain) in the wood.
The following equation is employed to compute column stability factor.

Where:

Fc*: reference compression design value parallel to natural line on wood (grain) multiply by applicable adjustment
factor apart from Cp, look at section 2.3 of national design speci cation for wood construction

c: taken as 0.8 for sawn lumber, 0.85 for round timber poles and plies, and 0.90 for structural glued laminated
timber, structural composite lumber, and cross laminated timber

FcE: is computed by applying the following expressions

Where:

le: is the e ective length

le?d: is the larger of slenderness ratio about the possible buckling axis and usually do not surpass 50 apart from
short loading during construction and in this case, it can be up to 75.

Factor of Load Duration for Wooden Formwork Design

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

It is demonstrated through tests that, the ultimate load which is carried by wood in short duration is massively
greater than the maximum load that is supported by wood in normal duration. This property of wood is adjusted
and arranged by applying load duration factor. Table-2 provides load duration factor for certain cumulative
maximum load duration.

It is worth mentioning that, the load duration factor for most formworks is taken as 1.15, but if di erent parts of
the formworks are reutilized for larger cumulative durations then load duration factor need to be decreased
appropriately for the formwork.

Table-2: Load Duration Factor Employed for Provided Cumulative Maximum Load Duration

Duration of loading Load duration factor, CD

Load duration > 10 years 0.9

2 months < load duration ? 10 years 1.0

7 days < load duration ? 2 months 1.15

load duration < 7 days 1.25

Wind/ earthquake 1.6

Impact 2.2

Bearing Area Factor for Wooden Formwork Design

This factor is utilized to increase concentrated load design values on wood perpendicular to grain or natural lines
of wood. As per national design speci cation for wood construction, the bearing area factor is employed to
bearings of any length at the end of the member, and to all bearing that 6 inch or more in length at any other
location.

If the above conditions are reached, then the factor is computed using the following formula otherwise it is 1.

Where:

lb: is the bearing length measure parallel to wood grain.

Moisture Factor
If wood lost about thirty percent of its moisture content, its strength will increase. The essential design values
have been established for a wood with moisture content of nineteen percent or smaller.

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

However, this moisture content might be increased because wood could expose to external conditions. In this
case moisture factor need to be applied to adjust the design values.

Flat Application Factor

When 50.8cm to 101.6 cm thick wood is subjected to loading on its wide face, it will de ect around weak axis. In
this situation, the stress which causes failure will be larger by small amount. Therefore, at use factor (Cfu) is used
to adjust basic design values of bending stress. Table 3 provided at use factor.

Table-3: Flat Use Factor

Width, mm Thickness

50.8mm and 76.2mm 101.6mm

50.8 and 76.2 1 —

101.8 1.1 1

127 1.1 1.05

152.4 1.15 1.05

203.2 1.15 1.05

254 and wider 1.2 1.1

Safety Factor for Formwork Accessories

Hangers, anchors, and ties are examples of accessories which are employed in formwork. These accessories are
commonly manufactured from steel and either ultimate or allowable strength of such tools are provided by
producers.

So, if the ultimate strength is given, then it should be multiplied by safety factor to achieve permissible strength.
Minimum safety factors for accessory are provided by ACI 347-04 and shown in Table 4.

Table-4: Minimum Safety Factor used for Accessory Formwork

Accessory Type of construction Safety factor

Form tie All applications 2

Form hangers All applications 2

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Formwork supporting form weight

Form anchor 2
and concrete pressure only

Formwork supports form weight,

Form anchor concrete, construction live load, and 3
impact

Precast concrete panel when

Anchoring inserts used as form ties 2
employed as a formwork

Repetitive Factor of Member Utilization

Bending design values is multiplied by repetitive use factor if minimum three lumbers with thickness of 5.08cm to
10.18cm are employed like plans, joists, studs, rafters, decking, or other similar members with maximum spacing
of 60.96cm and connected to each other by an element that can withstand design loads.

Flooring, sheathing, sub ooring are examples of members, which can withstand and distribute design load, may
be used to connect lumbers. Generally, the repetitive use factor which is employed is 1.15.

Manufactured Wood Products

There are di erent manufactured wood products that may be used in the construction of formworks for example
laminated veneer lumber (Figure 2 and Figure 3), parallel strand lumber (Figure 4 and Figure 5), laminated strand
lumber (Figure 6).

Fig.2: Laminated Veneer Lumber

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Fig.3: Laminated Veneer Lumber Used to Construct Formwork

Fig.4: Parallel Strand Lumber

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Fig.5: Parallel Strand Lumber Used in Formwork

Fig.6: Laminated Strand Lumber

Adjustment Factor for Plywood Stresses

There are three adjustment factors namely: load duration, wet use, and experience factor which are applied to
permissible stress values provided by The Engineered Wood association. The load duration factor is the same as
of wood while both experience and wet use factor are considered in permissible plywood stress.

Read More:

Types of Formwork (Shuttering) for Concrete Construction

(https://theconstructor.org/building/formwork-shuttering/types-of-formwork-shuttering/3767/)

Plastic Formworks for Concrete – Applications and Advantages in Construction

(https://theconstructor.org/building/plastic-formworks-concrete-construction/15885/)

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12/14/2018 Wooden Formwork Design Criteria with Calculation Formulas for Concrete

Concrete Formwork Design Considerations – Basis for Concrete Formwork Design

(https://theconstructor.org/building/concrete-formwork-design-considerations/8279/)

Concrete Formwork Loads and Pressure Calculations (https://theconstructor.org/building/concrete-

formwork-loads-pressure-calculations/14521/)

Formwork Removal Time & Speci cations (https://theconstructor.org/building/formwork-removal-time-

speci cation/11083/)

Measurement of Formworks (https://theconstructor.org/building/formwork-measurement/11098/)

Formwork (Shuttering) for Di erent Structural Members -Beams, Slabs etc

(https://theconstructor.org/building/formwork-shuttering-types-walls-columns-footings-slabs/11076/)

Formwork Safe Practices Checklist (https://theconstructor.org/building/formwork-safe-practices-

checklist/9547/)

About Madeh Izat Hamakareem (https://theconstructor.org/author/madeh-izat-hamakareem/)

Madeh is a Structural Engineer who works as Assistant Lecturer in Koya University. He is the author, editor and partner at
theconstructor.org.

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