Miami Freedom Park Stadium | Miami, Florida

The Challenge: Raker Beams at 25 Degrees

The project’s most demanding structural element involved forming and pouring 41 massive raker beams—angled structural supports that function like inclined staircase beams supporting the stadium seating. Each raker presented a unique engineering challenge, with horizontal spans ranging from 59 to 61 feet (18 to 18.6 m) at a steep 25° upward incline. Rising over 15 feet (4.6 m) vertically at the top, these beams featured step configurations with progressively increasing tread heights as they ascended the raker, requiring precise formwork adjustments at each level.

Traditional formwork methods would have required extensive vertical shoring from the ground up—a costly, time-consuming approach that would have added months to the schedule and significant expense to the project. The team knew there had to be a better way.

The Solution: Self-Spanning PLATE GIRDER® System

Rather than fighting against the structure with brute-force vertical shoring, EFCO’s solution worked with the structure’s inherent strength. This fundamental shift in formwork philosophy leverages engineering principles, including cantilever action, triangulated load paths, and progressive support, to enable complex geometries that conventional methods cannot achieve.

Concrete Formwork System that Eliminated Ground-Based Support

EFCO’s self-spanning system eliminates the need for ground-based support towers by making each completed section the foundation for the next. The system relies on cast-in thru-tubes—steel sleeves embedded in each concrete column that become permanent anchor points for the following construction cycle.

The Support Brackets serve as the critical connection points where formwork attaches to the permanent structure. Each bracket is rated to handle up to 70,000 pounds (311 kN) of load. With only two brackets mounted on the raker column (one per side), they provided 80% of the total support, while additional support came from the lower slab at the end of the raker formwork. Each Support Bracket unit bolts through the cast-in tubes and bears against the concrete face, carrying approximately 54,000 pounds (240 kN) during peak concrete placement in a cantilever support configuration.

The PLATE GIRDER® raker form spans between support points to carry the full weight of the concrete, while the SUPER STUD® frame provides bracing for the very top of the raker and allows early stripping of the form as the concrete cures.

The Construction Cycle

Each raker section advanced through a carefully orchestrated sequence. The crew began by assembling formwork on brackets attached to the thru-tubes from the previous pour. Once the framework was in place, they positioned reinforcing steel and new thru-tubes, ensuring everything remained level and properly aligned.

Concrete placement followed a strategic two-stage process—first the steps, then the beam sides—with careful attention to placement rates to prevent overloading. After proper curing, the crew stripped the forms, and the cycle repeated with the newly completed section ready to support the next pour.

At the lower end, brackets provided primary support, while the upper end was cantilevered and stabilized with cable guying. These tensioned steel cables, anchored to fixed points, prevented lateral movement under wind and construction loads, ensuring stability throughout the curing process.

Strategic Execution: Speed Through Smart Deployment

Baker Concrete deployed four form sets strategically—two on the North end and two on the South end of the stadium. This rotation kept concrete placement moving continuously, allowing multiple trades to operate simultaneously throughout the work area. The strategic approach maximized efficiency gains across the entire project, eliminating the bottlenecks that typically slow sequential concrete placement.

The Results: Outstanding Efficiency

The PLATE GIRDER® system delivered measurable success across all metrics. Setup times plummeted from three-plus days to just three hours, creating labor efficiency that accelerated the entire project timeline. This remarkable efficiency translated directly into the Lowest in-Place Concrete Cost (LIPCC) for the project.