Hudson's Site

Detroit, USA

Doka is reshaping Detroit's skyline with full package of innovative formwork & shoring solutions

The Hudson's Site Tower, currently under construction in the heart of Downtown Detroit, is making remarkable progress with the implementation of the fastest formwork climbing system in the US market. This cutting-edge technology is enabling the project to stay on track, meeting its ambitious schedule. The mid-rise building is already completed.

The Hudson's Site project is a symbol of urban renewal, turning the historic Woodward corridor into a modern, vibrant living space. The big plan includes 1.5 million square feet with offices, shops, places to eat, a hotel, homes, event spaces, parking, and nice open areas. With a 209 metre (685ft.) high-rise tower and a 71 metre (232ft.) mid-rise building, it aims to redefine Detroit's skyline. The tower, where Doka is involved with it's formwork & shoring systems, will house offices, high-tech homes, event venues, and a luxurious 5-star hotel, set to be the city's second-tallest building. Doka, as exclusive supplier for this ambitious project, provided a complete package of material, engineering, assembly, and on-site services. Collaborating closely with DCP, Doka ensured early on that the right solutions were in place for this complex endeavor.

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Building type
Mixed-use building

Challenge
Unequal-shaped core, limited on-site space, compounded by the need to reduce schedule and labor risks while maintaining a high safety standard.

Solution
Doka provided custom formwork solutions including Super Climber SCP and Top 50 for the irregularly shaped core, streamlining the process. A mini crane on the Level +1 deck of Super Climber supported the installating of heavy steel embeds and reduction of crane time . An integrated concrete placing boom facilitated concrete pouring for the core, slab, and columns. For slab edge protection, a self-climbing Xclimb 60 Protection screen was designed with storage platforms and a Table Lifting System (TLS) for lifting slab formwork across six levels.

further project data

Doka's full package of formwork & shoring solutions for Hudson's Site

From the basement construction to the towering heights of the structure, Doka’s systems played a fundamental role in every phase of the project. The walls and columns were laid with framed formwork system Frami S Xlife. Efficient construction of basement slabs was achieved with the use of the Dokamatic Tables and 10k Shoring Towers, which worked well together. Later on, the handset slab formwork system SuperDek took center stage, serving as a fast, simple and safe system with integrated drop head function.

The core of the mid-rise building benefited from the combination of Top 50 formwork with inside Super Climber SCP with mounts for CPB (Concrete Placing Boom) and outside Xclimb 60 self-climbing platform. The entire core formwork was hydraulically raised independent of the crane. At the push of a button, all platforms, along with interior and exterior formwork for an entire floor was raised and increased jobsite productivity and reduced labor costs.

The core of the high-rise tower integrated Top 50 formwork with a Super Climber SCP as self-climbing platform with mounts for the CPB (concrete placing boom) and a mini crane, which provided additional support in handling with heavy loads, particularly in core walls with up to 1600 lbs of rebar per cubic yard. For the tower screen protection Doka's Protection Screen Xclimb 60 system with storage platforms for additional storage plage were supplied. Furthermore, a rail-mounted Table Lifting System (TLS) material hoist was utilised for saving crane time and providing safety on site.

Brian Gulick | Superintendent | Barton Mallow

“With all the formwork systems and the design, it was nice to have Doka on board with all their professional help from Operations, Engineering to Field services. All the fellows and ladies, that were there to help us along the way, whether it was trucking, working through design changes with the engineers or the field service guys, that were out here helping us assemble and put the things together. I feel like anytime you call them, they were able to help answer questions or get me the material that we needed for the site for our team.”

Unique formwork applications

Doka's customised formwork solutions not only streamlined concreting and climbing, but also reduced the amount of equipment on site and fitting seamlessly into the project schedule. In particular, the Super Climber SCP was unique on this project in terms of size- 20 brackets in total. It also had a special heavy steel frame to cope with the large openings in the core walls. Each frame was quite heavy, about ~4700kg (10300 lbs), and it was connected to the building with 8 SCP climbing cones. What made it even more special was the addition of a separate crane on top of the Super Climber SCP. This helped the site with material handling and saved time for the main site crane, making the whole construction process more efficient.

The project's U-shaped core and cell drop-off design added to the SCP's unique features. Starting with three fully enclosed cells on the first floor, the core became smaller as it climbed up. To ensure everything stayed in place, additional guiding profiles were added. To put it simply, the SCP Super Climber on this project was special because it had more brackets, a custom frame, a separate crane and handled a unique U-shaped core design.

Another highlight of the special features on this project was the Table Lifting System (TLS). It was used to lift the slab formwork over 6 levels, breaking a record as the highest TLS ever. Instead of the usual 10 lifting masts, there were 14 - achieved by using 4 climbing profiles instead of the standard 2. Custom mast anchors and connectors were also used to improve performance. In terms of site infrastructure and access while working, 2 pcs. of exterior Stair towers were implemented to ensure fast and efficient work as the site crew benefits from access to 5 floors. Furthermore, there were 3pcs. of Storage platforms (16’x33’) to store column formwork while pouring the slab.

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