Column Formwork

Special Formwork is the UK’s leading manufacturer of purpose made steel column formwork. We supply columns to several high profile projects throughout the UK, Ireland and even the Caribbean.

Major Projects where you can find our SF Columns includes

– BBC Television Centre.

-Heathrow Airport.

-Docklands Light Railway and Canary Wharf Station.

-Paddington Station, Charing Cross Station and Stratford station.

– Francis Crick Institute – London, Cambridge Biomedical Campus.

– Midsummer Place Milton Keynes.

– John Radcliffe Hospital Oxford.

We also have our column formwork present at Manchester Transport Interchange, Manchester Metrolink,  M25 widening, A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon.  

-M1 / M6 / A14 interchange, Midland Metropolitan Hospital, Liverpool Royal Infirmary. Second Forth Crossing approach structures – Scotland.

– M74/M73/M8 upgrade Scotland and LUAS light rail project, Dublin.

Steel Formwork is exceptionally economical when the user requires a high number of repeat uses, but at times we do supply steel moulds for single pours.

We can make Steel Column Formwork to any shape with an extremely high-quality concrete finish where columns are in a prominent location.

The steel forms are suitable for withstanding the higher concrete pressures that we associate with tall columns and fast rates of pour.

Our steel forms fit easily with pump ports and shut off valves, to permit concrete to be pumped from the base.  

We can manufacture Column Formwork to fit around structural steelwork when installing fire protection.  Special inserts allow the forms to follow the contours of steel sections, cut-outs. Blanking plates can be provided to accommodate intersecting steel members.

Bespoke steel rectangular and circular columns

We have advanced manufacturing techniques, including CNC-controlled laser plate cutting and profiling. Additionally, CNC plate rolling ensures that we manufacture our steel column formwork to a high degree of accuracy. The laser cut faceplates, flanges and edge flats produce extremely close fitting joints and eliminate the need for additional rubber grout seals.

We typically use Fast Thread bolts to speed erection and dismantling of column formwork on site. The forms we supply are complete with connections for push-pull props and with certified lifting eyebolts.

As well as conventional square, rectangular and circular column formwork, we manufacture oval, elliptical, tapering, conical, and sloping forms that traditional proprietary systems would struggle to achieve.

Our manufacture of column framework can be paired with integral or removable working platforms and ladder access to suit site requirements.

Adjustable rectangular forms provide flexibility and greater re-use on multi-storey construction where column cross-sections often reduce in the section on upper floors.

Column formwork is a requirement on all types of building and civil engineering project including; high rise buildings, bridge piers, car parks, reservoirs etc.

Reservoir columns often includes circular, rectangular conical or pyramid-shape capitals and pedestals.

 As well as in-situ concrete columns, we also manufacture formwork for columns to be pre-cast off-site.

Some projects require permanent steel formwork in stainless steel to provide impact protection to structural members in high traffic areas such as airport baggage handling facilities.

All steel columns that we manufacture at Special Formwork conforms to the relevant design standards and codes of practice.

Special Formwork uses only prime quality the UK and European steel plate and structural sections in the manufacture of our column forms and accessories.