Buckley Road Extension | San Luis Obispo, California

Formwork Liners Used on Wall Formwork System

San Luis Obispo, California

Retaining Wall Needed Aesthetic Concrete Finish

Whitaker Construction Group, Inc. was awarded the contract to build an 820′ two-sided concrete retaining wall as part of the Buckley Road extension project in San Luis Obispo, California. The contractor noted that flexibility and a quality concrete finish were critical factors in selecting a formwork solution.

Formwork Liners

Using form liners on formwork is popular when a job requires specific textured patterns on cast-in-place concrete. Form liners create distinct concrete finish impressions, from art to simple stone or brick designs. A form liner gets fastened onto the facesheet as part of the formwork assembly process. The form liner by Whitaker and EFCO’s solution provided a consistent pattern in this successful retaining wall project.

Flexible and Light Wall Formwork System

Flexibility was an essential factor in the formwork solution for Whitaker Construction Group due to the number of steps in the footing. They used EFCO’s E-BEAM® & SUPER STUD® wall formwork system with a plywood facesheet to construct part of the retaining wall. A benefit of using this lightweight formwork system was the ability to easily manage and move it with a smaller-capacity crane.

Plywood Facesheets

Whitaker Construction assembled the EFCO system into 8′ wide gangs and then securely attached the form liner to the plywood facesheet. EFCO’s elevation views in the drawings made it easy for Whitaker to determine where the cut-up pony wall sections with form liner needed to go. Working with these dimensions guaranteed a nice architectural finish while providing the required versatility.

Ready-to-Use Radius Formwork Panels

For the curved section of the retaining wall, Whitaker Construction used the EFCO all-steel faced REDI-RADIUS® system. It is a misconception that form liners can only be attached to plywood or a similar facesheet. All form liners, grade strips, reveals, etc., can be easily attached to EFCO’s all-steel facesheet formwork panels, utilizing the correct type of fastener. EFCO delivered the REDI-RADIUS formwork panels on-site already shaped to the required radius enabling the Whitaker crew to erect the formwork and pour the final concrete quickly. EFCO’s formwork solution helped the Whitaker crew meet tight deadlines and produce high-quality results.