Scott System
Case Study
Custom EPS Formwork for Kōʻula Tower in Honolulu
Project
Overview
Kōʻula is a residential tower in Honolulu that draws on the natural landscape of Hawaii while meeting the demands of contemporary urban architecture. The building’s design features distinctive wall-like column elements that give the structure its visual character, setting it apart from the uniform facades common to high-rise residential construction.
Scott System partnered with PERI Formworks to engineer and fabricate custom EPS foam formwork for those column elements, focusing on the adjacent parking garage structure. The forms were designed for cast-in-place concrete construction and built to integrate directly with PERI-USA’s Vario Form system, combining Scott System’s custom fabrication capability with PERI’s established forming infrastructure.
The Challenges
The wall-like column geometry presented a challenge: too specific for standard forms, yet too repetitive for inefficient bespoke methods. The solution required high precision for the architectural geometry and engineering for reuse across multiple pours.
Additionally, the custom EPS formwork had to integrate seamlessly with the project’s existing PERI Vario Form infrastructure to maintain standard site procedures.
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The Vision
Kōʻula’s design features distinctive, wall-like column elements that blend urban sophistication with the Hawaiian setting and are central to the building’s visual character.
To realize this geometry in cast-in-place concrete without losing precision or surface quality, Scott System’s in-house engineering team translated the 3D design files directly into physical formwork geometry.
Proposed Solution
Scott System’s engineering team developed custom negative formwork for the wall-like column elements using EPS foam, precision-cut with a CNC hotwire system and engineered for reuse, repetition, and seamless integration with PERI’s Vario Form system.
- In-House Engineering: Scott System translated 3D models directly into fabrication-ready geometry, optimizing forms for casting accuracy and on-site efficiency before production began.
- CNC Hotwire Cutting: Precision CNC hotwire cutting produced clean, accurate profiles in EPS foam, providing the consistency needed for repetitive architectural column pours.
- Engineered Reuse: Designed for repeated use, the form sets maximized job site efficiency and reduced material requirements across the full scope of column work.
- Polyurethane Hard Coat: All casting surfaces received a protective coating to preserve the CNC profile geometry and ensure high-quality architectural finishes through multiple pours.
- Vario Form Integration: Plywood lamination on the form sides enabled seamless integration with PERI-USA’s Vario Form system without requiring special site adaptations.
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Components for Success
- CNC Precision: Hotwire cutting ensures geometric accuracy and surface consistency for repetitive architectural pours at scale.
- Engineered Reuse: Forms designed for repeated use reduce material needs and standardize on-site logistics across multi-story construction.
- System Integration: Custom plywood lamination enables seamless compatibility between EPS components and PERI’s Vario Form system.
- Direct Workflow: Converting 3D designs directly into fabrication geometry maintains precision and ensures architectural intent is accurately realized.
Products Used
Custom EPS Foam Negative Formwork: CNC Hotwire-cut, engineered for reuse and repetition across cast-in-place column pours.
Polyurethane Hard Coat: Applied to all casting surfaces for durability and surface consistency.
Plywood Lamination: Applied to form sides for integration with PERI-USA’s Vario Form system.
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The Outcome
Kōʻula’s distinctive wall-like columns were cast in place using Scott System’s custom EPS formwork, integrated within PERI’s Vario Form system, with the geometric accuracy and surface quality the design required. The reuse-optimized form strategy delivered efficiency across the column pours, and the engineered integration with PERI’s system kept the site forming process coherent and consistent throughout the work.
This project demonstrates the impact of Scott System’s in-house engineering on complex cast-in-place projects: bespoke formwork transitioned from design files to fabrication, precision-engineered for system compatibility, and optimized for the demands of a multi-pour construction schedule.