What's formwork, and how does it climb? If these questions have been keeping you up at night, you've come to the right place. If not, let's learn about self-climbing formwork anyway. Courtesy of our sister site, SkyriseCities.com, this week's 'Explainer' takes a look at one prominent method for moving the temporary moulds used for pouring concrete up the tower levels during construction. 

Self-climbing formwork at Toronto's Shangdi-La Hotel, circa 2011, image by Marcus Mitanis

A previous edition of Explainer described how formwork—temporary moulds into which concrete is poured—can be "flown" by the tower crane to be reused for the construction of the next building storey. Though it's generally more expensive and complicated, an alternative and special type of formwork rises automatically with the help of hydraulics as the building progresses.