Tilt-Up: An Innovative Construction Technique

▪ Tilt-Up is the fastest growing construction technique In United States, Asia,

and Africa.

▪ It is also widely used in Australia, New Zealand, and several Caribbean

nations.

▪ But, what is this tilt-up technique?

▪ And how does a tilt-up process take place? Let’s take a basic understanding

of it.

▪ Tilt-Up or Tilt-slab is a type of construction technique that makes use

concrete. In this method, concrete elements like walls and columns are formed horizontally on a concrete slab.

▪ Once the concrete is cured, the elements are tilted to a vertical position. The

elements remain fixed in a vertical position until the remaining components like roofs and walls get prepared.

▪ The components in a tilt-up construction are generally prepared on the

building site.

▪ Now that we are familiar with a tilt-up technique, let’s ponder upon how this

process occurs on a building site.

▪ A successful Tilt-Up process

begins long before the concrete is placed.

▪ It is rightly said, The key to

success is through planning.

▪ Same is the case with tilt-up

construction, planning is required.

▪ Let’s understand the process step

by step.

▪ Site Evaluation: ▪ The site is evaluated with regard to slab layout, movement of materials and

equipment around the slab.

▪ A large, flat, open site is ideal, but not always. If the site is preoccupied with

the building, consider sequencing the pouring of slabs from within the building.

▪ A sketch showing the pouring and erection sequence must be prepared to

identify potential problems.

â–Ş An experienced engineer who is familiar with tilt-up construction should be

a priority. The engineers are required to care of a dozen of things. This includes a floor slab design, load bearing capacities of a crane, thickness of a panel, panel connections to the footings, appropriate selection of the crane, surface treatment, weather conditions, material, and equipment availability, building floor plan, etc. â–Ş Thus, we can say that there are several requirements for engineering a tilt-up

construction and an experienced engineer will be able to meet all these criteria.

â–Ş After a successful planning, construction takes place. The first step for this is

installing the footings. These footings must be installed in level with the attachment plates. â–Ş The footing location, height, and dimension are verified for corrections.

Once the panel is lifted for placement, interruptions in it due to incorrect footing will not be a good idea. However, minor mistakes in floor slabs can be corrected.

â–Ş A standard way to lay out panels is to snap a chalk line on the floor slab.

These lines indicate the panel perimeters. There are several ways to form individual panels. â–Ş One such method is to form a perimeter for a series of panels. Then use strips

to divide the areas into panels. An advantage of this method is reduced lumber costs.

â–Ş The face of a tilt-up panel can be

imparted with a texture or pattern using reveal strips. â–Ş These strips are tied up to the base

slab after side forms are erected before reinforcement takes place.

â–Ş The base slab must be cleaned before the panels are placed in the concrete. A

compresses air blow will remove the dirt, leaves, debris, and water from the slab. â–Ş As like the other concrete construction takes place, plan for unexpected. If

the weather becomes cold, keep installation blankets ready. â–Ş If it is about to rain, delay the pouring process.

▪ The sequence for panel

erection must be planned well before.

▪ The panel erection must be

reviewed before the actual process.

▪ Crane operation, bracing,

details, cable releases and job communication must be discussed.

â–Ş Panel finishing must be done immediately after panel erection. Most of the

tilt-up panel have a splotchy or uneven appearance. These splotches fade with time. â–Ş However, standing water, slab porosity, and other factors might produce this

effect. Sandblasting eliminates all of them.

▪ Silicon Engineering Consultants LLC is a leading engineering consulting

firm based in the USA providing Tilt-Up services Tilt-Up Panel Shop Drawing, Bar Bending Schedule, Tilt Precast Shop Drawing, and Tilt-Up Beam Construction.

▪ Our detailers and designers are experienced to provide the best qualitative

shop drawings, fabrication drawings and detailing services.

▪ We have never failed to live up to the client expectations. Their satisfaction

is our prime goal.

info@siliconconsultant.com