Formwork service
Suspended Slabs
STRUV forms suspended slabs across Melbourne and Victoria using drophead, table, and conventional deck systems, with propping and back-propping designed and load-checked through the levels below.
Scope of works
Engineering input
The deck is only half the design. We check the load path down through the levels below, set the number of back-propped levels from the strength gain the concrete actually achieves, and nominate strip times against test results rather than the programme.
Service FAQs
Back-propping involves installing temporary props under a newly stripped slab to distribute construction loads down through lower levels while the concrete continues to gain strength. It is essential whenever a suspended slab supports loads—from formwork and wet concrete above or stacked materials—before achieving its full design strength.
When the concrete reaches the characteristic strength nominated by the structural engineer for that specific span and loading condition, verified by test cylinder breaks. Elapsed time alone is never a stripping criterion.
The system with the highest repetition for your building footprint. Flying tables win on large, repetitive floor plates with dedicated crane time; drophead systems win where fast cycle times require stripping panels while leaving props undisturbed; conventional timber/plywood systems win on small, complex, or irregular layouts.