Insulated Concrete Form Engineering Services

NorthStar Engineering can assist with the building design, engineering or energy calculations for commercial or residential projects involving insulating concrete forms (ICFs). We have worked with a few different ICF manufacturer’s products including Quad-Lock, Rastra, Arxx, Nudura and Royal Building Systems.

All ICF’s are not the same. Though we have not worked with every ICF manufacturer’s product, (structurally-speaking) they all can be lumped into one of three distinct types:

• Flat-grid
• Waffle-grid
• Screen-grid (and / or Post-and-Beam)

Flat-grid is basically a solid concrete wall. Waffle-grid is a series of horizontal and vertical concrete members with the void between them filled with a thin wall of concrete. Screen-grid is like the waffle-grid without the thin wall of concrete in the void between the horizontal and vertical concrete members.

Each of these ICF designs has advantages and disadvantages. Some are stronger than others. Some are more energy-efficient. Some take more materials and time to install. Some are well supported by their manufacturer; others are not. Some are more readily available and cheaper to ship than the rest.

As you can see, it is very important to do your homework and to know the strengths and weaknesses of your particular ICF system. The time to find them out is prior to purchasing, not after they’ve shipped or during installation. Some of the best ways to learn about a given system is to visit the manufacturer’s website, talk to other who have used the system in question and / or meet with a design professional who is familiar with ICF design and engineering.

For additional information, feel free to contact us directly at (530) 893-1600 or send an email to sturnquist@northstareng.com . Ask for Scott Turnquist, PE, LEED AP.