GB2475862A

GB2475862A - Building formwork that facilitates the support and location of tiles on its surface

Info

Publication number: GB2475862A
Application number: GB0921143A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jonathon David Barnett
Original assignee: Simplipac Ltd
Current assignee: Simplipac Ltd
Priority date: 2009-12-02
Filing date: 2009-12-02
Publication date: 2011-06-08
Anticipated expiration: 2029-12-02
Also published as: GB2475862B; GB0921143D0

Abstract

The building formwork 10 comprises at least one panel 11, wherein a surface of the panel includes a series of features 15,21 extending the length of the panel and permitting the support and location of tiles on the surface. The features may comprise elongate ribs 15 spaced from one another so that tiles 20 placed on the surface fit between the ribs. At least one dovetail shaped groove 21 may be located between the ribs. A plurality of spacers 22 may be provided in the form of discreet projections from the surface. The projections raise any tiles placed on the surface away from the surface to permit a large portion of the rear surface of the file to be exposed to any adhesives used in bonding the tile to the surface. The formwork may comprise a second panel in a spaced parallel relationship with the at least one panel. The formwork may be thermally insulating. The ribs and grooves may be integrally moulded in the at least one panel.

Description

IMPROVENTS IN BUILDING SYSTEMS

The present invention relates to improvements in building systems, and in particular to a building system that combines the benefits of insulated concrete formwork and brickwork.

During recent decades, a large proportion of building construction has moved away from traditional building materials and methods, e.g. brick and wood, and towards the use of concrete. Concrete has many advantages over traditional materials, such as cost and speed of construction. One method of constructing concrete walls is through the use of permanent formwork'. Permanent formwork essentially comprises two parallel panels, which are connected by a webs, ties, or bridges. Concrete (or another solid material or materials such as rammed earth) is poured into the space between the parallel panels. Permanent formwork specifically refers to the use of formwork that remains in place after the wall has been constructed.

Insulated concrete formwork' (ICF) is a type of permanent formwork where the formwork is fabricated from an insulating material such as, but not limited to, expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (XPS), polyurethane (PU) foam, phenolic foam, and wood fibre. ICF has the additional advantages of being lightweight and providing insulation to a wall. ICF is generally manufactured in a modular form, wherein the ICF components are designed to fit together in order that the structure of a wall may be built from the ICF bricks, after which concrete is poured into the cavity between the two panels. An example of a modular ICF system is disclosed in WO 2004/022881.

One disadvantage of ICF is that many consumers desire the appearance of a brick wall. In order to comply with this consumer demand, a number of methods of facilitating the application of a brick veneer to a concrete wall have been developed. Generally, the methods comprise affixing a panel to an ICF wall, to which brick tiles (slips') are bonded with adhesive or mechanically attached. The panel usually provides a mechanical key to enable the adhesive to bond securely to the panel, as well as often including guides to facilitate the location of the brick tiles on the wall. An example of such a panel is disclosed in US 2009/0007515.

However, there are a number of disadvantages to such panels. One such disadvantage is that the application of a panel to the ICF wall adds complexity to the construction of the wall and therefore incurs additional build time and cost. The panel must be physically attached to the wall carefully to ensure that it is straight, otherwise the brick tiles applied thereto will also not be straight.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide building formwork, such as an ICF component, incorporating features enabling tiles to be applied directly to the ICF building component, without the need for an intermediary panel.

The present invention provides a building formwork comprising at least one panel, the external surface of which comprises a series of horizontal means for the support and location of tiles on the surface extending along the length of the at least one panel.

More preferably the building formwork comprises two panels and means for interconnecting the two panels to hold them parallel to each other.

This formwork enables tiles (such as brick tiles) to be bonded directly to the surface of one of the panels to provide coursed rows of tiles. It obviates the need for a separate panel to be applied between the ICF component and the tiles and thus additionally eliminates the need for mechanical fasteners. This results in fewer components being required, as well as a faster build due to the removal of the secondary operation of securing the panel to the wall.

The horizontal support means provide an integral method of automatically locating the tiles in coursed rows.

Therefore, as walls are constructed from the formwork the locating pattern for the tiles is automatically created straight and level, thus removing the need for separate levelling operations. As well as ensuring that the tiles are straight, this also results in a faster build, since the secondary operation of ensuring that the tiles are coursed and level is completed during the construction of the building components. The horizontal support means additionally provide a mechanical support for the weight of the tiles.

The formwork therefore lowers the cost of building a wall by requiring fewer components and less labour (fewer operations involved), and thus also reduces the time required to build a wall. Furthermore, the use of the formwork reduces the level of skill required to achieve satisfactory results.

The panels are preferably fabricated from, or incorporate a layer of, an insulating material.

Preferably the horizontal support means are elongate ribs.

At least one groove is preferably located between adjacent horizontal support means and extend along the length of the panel.

The grooves provide a mechanical key which locks adhesive applied to the rear of the tiles into the s-urface of the panel once the adhesive has set.

Preferably, the grooves have a dovetail-shaped vertical cross-section.

Preferably, the formwork further comprises one or more spacers projecting from the surface of the one panel.

The spacers are suitable for raising the one or more tiles away from the surface and enable the tiles to be located on the surface in such a way as to provide a full bed of adhesive between the tile and the surface.

Preferably, the distance between adjacent support means is substantially equal to the dimension of one of the edges of the tiles.

Preferably, the depth of the support means is less than the depth of the one or more tiles.

Preferably the at least one panel is moulded and the horizontal support means are integrally moulded in the at least one panel and more preferably the grooves are also integrally moulded in the at least one panel.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a pictorial view of a formwork according to the present invention; and Figure 2 is a vertical cross-section through the building component of Figure 1.

The formwork 10 of the present invention is illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 and comprises two panels 11,12 of a rigid material which have means for interconnecting them so that they can be joined together in a parallel vertical manner.

The interconnecting means may, for example, be a plurality of cross ties 13. The panels 11,12 are preferably moulded from a lightweight insulating foam material such as, but not limited to, expanded polystyrene (EPS), extruded polystyrene (xPs), polyurethane (PU) foam, phenolic foam, or wood fibre.

The ties 13 may be fabricated from a material such as EPS foam, metal, plastic, or another suitable material.

The ties 13 enable the panels 11,12 to be connected with a space 14 between the panels 11,12 into which a filler material such as, but not limited to, concrete can be poured. The combination of the two panels 11,12 with ties 13 can either be pre-assembled during manufacture, or assembled on site. The panels of the formwork 10 may be provided with means for locating, oininy, and/or interlocking one of more forms 10 adjacent each other. A non-limiting example is tongue-and-groove location and joining means.

The formwork 10 is provided with a number of features to facilitate the application of tiles (slips) 20 to the external surface of the formwork 10. In the embodiment illustrated, these features are present on the external surface of panel 11. However, in an alternative embodiment of the invention, the external surfaces of both panel 11 and panel 12 could be provided with these features. Many variations of tile could be used, non-limiting examples of which are brick or stone.

The external surface of the panel 11 is provided with a series of means for locating and supporting the tiles. These support means are preferably horizontal ribs 15 which extend along the length of the panel 11 and are preferably formed in the panel surface as part of the moulding process.

Alternatively they may be formed in the surface of the panel after moulding. The function of the ribs 15 is to enable a person to very simply and easily locate the tiles 20 in the correct horizontal position on the surface of the panel 11.

This is achieved by locating an edge of the tile 20 adjacent to an edge of a rib 15.

The ribs 15 additionally provide mechanical support to the tile 20 if the tile 20 is located adjacent to and above a horizontal rib 15. This is particularly important to prevent slippage whilst the adhesive 23 used to affix to the tiles 20 to the surface of the panel 11 sets. The vertical distance between the ribs 15 is substantially equal to the width of the tiles 20 intended to be affixed to the panel 11. Preferably, the depth of the rib 15 is smaller than the depth of the tile 20. This provides a space 16 for mortar to be inserted between the installed tiles, in order to further improve the appearance of the tiled veneer. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the tiles 20 could be located and supported on the panel 11 by metal or plastic clips or rails rather than ribs 15.

The external surface of the panel 11 is further provided with horizontal grooves 21 extending along the length of the panel 11 between the ribs 15. The function of the grooves 21 is to provide a mechanical key for the adhesive 23 used to secure the tile 20 to the panel 11.

Preferably, the groove 21 has a dovetail-shaped vertical cross-section (as shown in Figure 2). This dovetail shape has the effect of locking the adhesive 23 into the external surface of panel 11 once the adhesive 23 has set. There are, however, other possible groove shapes which could produce the same desired effect. Preferably, there is at least one groove 21 for each rib 15 on panel 11.

The external surface of the panel 11 may also be provided with a number of spacers 22, in the form of discrete projections from the surface. The function of the spacers is to raise the tile 20 away from the surface of the panel 11. Raising the tile 20 off the surface of the panel 11 enables a large portion of the rear surface of the tile to be exposed to the adhesive 23. In this way, a full bed of adhesive 23 is provided between the tile 20 and the panel 11. Preferably, there are secured rows of spacers 22 between each rib 15 on panel 11. The spacers 22 are also preferably formed as part of the moulding process, although they may be attached subsequently.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A building formwork comprising at least one panel, the external surface of which comprises a series of horizontal means for the support and location of tiles on the surface extending along the length of the at least one panel.
2. A building formwork as claimed in claim 1 comprising two panels and means for interconnecting the two panels to hold them parallel to each other.
3. A building formwork as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the at least one panel is fabricated from, or incorporate a layer of, an insulating material.
4. A building formwork as-claimed in any one-of the preceding claims, wherein the horizontal support means are elongate ribs.
5. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising at least one groove located between adjacent horizontal support means.
6. A building formwork as claimed in claim 5, wherein the grooves extend along the length of the at least one panel.
7. A building formwork as claimed in claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the grooves have a dovetail-shaped vertical cross-section.

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8. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a plurality of spacers projecting from the surface of the at least one panel.
9. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the distance between the support means is substantially equal to th width of the tilcs.
10. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the depth of the support means is less than the depth of the tiles.
11. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the at least one panel is rnoulded and the horizontal support means are integrally moulded in the at least one panel.
12. A building formwork as claimed in claim 11 in which the grooves are integrally rnoulded in the at least one panel.
13. A building formwork substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows CLAIMS: 1. A building formwork comprising: at least one panel, the external surface of which comprises a series of horizontal means for the support and location of tiles on the surface extending along the length of the at least one panel; and a plurality of spacers projecting from the surface of the at least one panel.2. A building formwork as claimed in claim 1 comprising two panels and means for interconnecting the two panels to hold them parallel to each other.3. A building formwork as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, * ** * ** * wherein the at least one panel is fabricated from, or incorporate a layer of, an insulating material.4. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the a...preceding claims, wherein the horizontal support means are * a. S*.* a elongate ribs.5. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising at least one groove located between adjacent horizontal support means.6. A building formwork as claimed in claim 5, wherein the grooves extend along the length of the at least one panel.7. A building formwork as claimed in claim 5 or claim 6, wherein the grooves have a dovetail-shaped vertical cross-section. 4'8. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the distance between the support means is substantially equal to the width of the tiles.9. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the depth of the support means is less than the depth of the tiles.10. A building formwork as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the at least one panel is moulded and the horizontal support means are integrally moulded in the at least one panel.S**.5 SO w U * 15 11. A building formwork as claimed in any one of claims S **.* I. * U to 7 in which the grooves are integrally moulded in the at a. *s * * least one panel.12. A building formwork substantially as hereinbefore a...described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying * drawings.