Temporary works are the category that surprises people: formwork, scaffolding and shoring never appear on the drawings, yet they carry a large share of cost and programme, and they are measured by completely different rules — formwork by contact area, scaffold by elevation or enclosed volume, and reusable material by turnover count.
What these tools share is heavy parameterisation and hard code limits. Stud spacing, lift height and tie arrangement all have upper bounds; formwork pressure varies with pour rate, temperature and slump and directly sets the tie spacing; sheet pile embedment needs overturning and heave checks; crane bases need bearing and stability checks. The outputs here are quantities and preliminary checks — anything affecting safety needs a sealed design from a qualified engineer.
FAQ
How are scaffolding quantities calculated?
External scaffold is measured on the vertical elevation (length × height, openings not deducted), internal scaffold on wall area, and birdcage scaffold on net floor area and only above 3.6 m. Steel content per square metre runs about 12-15 kg/m² for a double-row external scaffold including couplers and boards; use the calculator to get actual member counts from spacing.
How is formwork lateral pressure calculated?
Take the lesser of F = 0.22γct₀β₁β₂V^½ and F = γcH. Faster pours, colder weather and higher slump all raise the pressure. That pressure sets the tie bolt spacing and diameter — underestimate it and the form bursts, overestimate it and you waste material and struggle to strip.
How big does a tower crane base need to be?
Three conditions together: maximum bearing pressure ≤ 1.2 × allowable, eccentricity ≤ B/6, and overturning factor of safety ≥ 1.5. A base typically ends up 5-6 m square and 1.2-1.5 m deep to satisfy all three. Use the manufacturer's load data for in-service and out-of-service states, never an estimate.
Results are estimating aids only and are not a design basis. Construction and final accounts must follow the drawings, the applicable standards and an approved method statement. Anything affecting structural safety, shoring or falsework must be checked by a suitably qualified engineer.