Climbing safely and efficiently to great heights

Doka is one of the world's leading companies for the development, production and distribution of formwork technology for the construction industry. In addition, the company is a supplier of scaffolding solutions for a diverse spectrum of applications. With more than 160 locations in 60 countries, the company offers solutions for residential complexes, road construction, the energy sector and high-rise buildings, such as a customized climbing system for Justus Amsterdam.

With extensive experience in high-rise projects, Doka is used worldwide for climbing systems, such as the Xclimb 60 solution that was engineered, deployed and monitored for the more than 100-meter-high Justus residential tower in Amsterdam's Sluisbuurt district. "This climbing system operates with fully customized scaffolding platforms, in this case for the assembly of the facade elements," explains Doka's site inspector Denick van Gemert. "We use fixed modular elements such as climbing beams, a hydraulic unit plus a fully customized scaffolding design including loading platforms. That concept is then engineered and structurally calculated by us, operated by the facade builder and monitored by us."

High wind load

The self-climbing scaffold Xclimb 60 is a hydraulic climbing system, which also allows rapid crane climbing. The permanent guidance on the structure allows the system to climb even at high wind speeds, "basically as high as desired," Van Gemert said. "And the wind load was quite a factor here."

Doka is part of the Austrian Umdasch Group. "At the Austrian parent company is a large test center where these systems are extensively tested. The expertise comes from involvement in high-rise projects around the world. If necessary, different climbing systems are used in high-rise projects, as in the case of POST on Rotterdam's Coolsingel, with a new 44-story tower."

'Maximum security'

For Justus, facade builder De Groot en Visser has worked out a high-quality facade in collaboration with the architect and contractor. Approximately 4,600 m² of custom made element facades will be mounted to the tower. The parapet in the tower consists of screen-printed glass panels. In the case of Justus, the Doka climbing system made it possible, among other things, to complete one floor a week, an important part of the overall construction planning. Van Gemert: "We monitor the climbing process throughout the entire construction period. This is how we achieve maximum safety while working and when accessing the integrated work floors, via stair towers and ladders." The facade work in Amsterdam has now been completed and the climbing system dismantled. Final completion of Justus will follow during 2024.