Gulf Construction Online - Formwork innovations aim at savings

Scaffolding & Formwork

Formwork innovations aim at savings

01 December 2011

KEY players in the GCC formwork industry have credited cost savings and technical enhancements to the sector’s recent resurgence.

Citing considerable growth across Saudi Arabia over the past five years, with similar strength predicted for Qatar and Kuwait in the final quarter, representatives from market leaders Doka, Peri and GHI Formwork, all attributed success to small but vital enhancements to their product and service offerings.

With production and shipping expenses amounting to a significant segment of total formwork costs, suppliers have identified and applied new technologies to their manufacturing processes, resulting in significant cost reductions for project developers, averaging nearly 50 per cent. Influencing factors in cost reduction include considerable advancements in materials production, which has decreased the need for cranes and costly heavy equipment.

GHI Formwork’s managing partner Mohamed Soliman comments: "Implementing minor changes, such as the use of lighter yet stronger base materials in specific product lines has resulted in up to 47 per cent savings to our clients with absolutely no compromise on pressure standards. Lighter material that can be manipulated by the manpower on site allows the client to purchase less material overall, as it can be moved easily and is not dependent on precious crane time. Developers want the flexibility to integrate new material with old stock in order to maximise their savings."

Highlighting the importance of research and development across the industry, Ulrich Rottler, general manager of Peri Middle East, states: "The prices of formwork and scaffolding work are determined by the combination of material price and workforce used. By developing systems with easy-to-handle elements, fewer components and increased manoeuvrability, clients benefit from less labour and in turn lower costs. These are the key components to any successful formwork R&D (research and development) department."

Austrian firm Doka stresses the importance of continued technical advancement across the industry. Peter Vogel, regional manager, Middle East, says: "As the formwork leaders in the region, Doka has always been at the cutting edge of research and development with groundbreaking innovations – most recently in the Middle East with new systems specifically developed to suit the market. Services such as our ready-to-use pre-assembly units maximise our clients’ investment by offering value-driven solutions providing significant cost savings and time gain, all with maximum safety, transparency and reduced close-out costs."

GHI, Peri and Doka were among the seven formwork exhibitors at Middle East Concrete (MEC) held last month (November 21 to 24) alongside The Big 5 show in Dubai. They showcased a range of innovative products and technologies in addition to live product demonstrations.