Temporary works propping in Cork

Propping in construction is temporary support placed under or through a structure to carry its load while it is altered, repaired or cut. Euro Concrete Services installs adjustable steel props and needles to hold walls, slabs and beams until the permanent lintel, beam or support is in and carrying the load.

A prop is a steel tube with a screw thread that is wound out until it bears tight between a sole plate on the floor and a timber or steel head under the load. A needle is a short beam passed through a hole in a wall, with a prop at each end, so the wall above rests on the needle while the wall below is cut away. The engineer's temporary works design sets how many props there are, where they stand, what they bear on, and the order they go in and come out. The props stay until the engineer confirms the permanent work has taken over, then come out in the agreed sequence.

The main types of propping are adjustable steel props, needles through walls, back propping through the floors of a building, and heavy-duty proprietary systems for bigger loads. Euro Concrete installs props and needles for openings, slabs and beams, and the engineer's design sets which type goes where and how much of it is needed.

Adjustable props are the everyday type: a steel tube and screw collar, set on a sole plate, carrying load straight down from a slab, beam or lintel. Needles are short beams pushed through a wall above an opening, each end resting on a prop, which keeps the wall above supported as the opening is formed below. Back propping runs down through several storeys, so a slab being cut or loaded shares its weight with the floors beneath. Proprietary systems, such as modular towers and high-capacity props, carry loads beyond a single prop. Every type needs a firm base, such as a ground-bearing slab or a sole plate spreading the load.

Propping and shoring are temporary supports that keep a structure or an excavation stable while work is done. Propping is the vertical support under slabs, beams and needles; shoring is the wider term, and it also covers bracing a wall from the side and holding up the sides of a trench. Euro Concrete installs propping for openings and alterations.

In the building trade, shores come in several forms. A dead shore stands vertically under a needle to carry a wall, the same job a prop does. A raking shore is set at an angle against the outside of a wall to stop it bulging or leaning. A flying shore spans horizontally between two buildings when the one between them is taken down. Trench shoring holds back the soil on the sides of an excavation so it cannot collapse on people working in it. The terms overlap in everyday use; on site, the engineer's temporary works drawings name each element and the load it carries.

Yes. A load-bearing wall carries floors, a roof or other walls, so removing it or cutting an opening in it needs a beam or lintel sized for that load, and temporary support while the change is made. Any structural alteration needs an engineer's input. Euro Concrete installs the propping and cuts the wall to the engineer's design.

The engineer checks what the wall is carrying and specifies the steel beam or lintel, the padstones or posts it bears on at each end, and the propping needed while the work is done. The engineer can also confirm whether a wall is load-bearing at all, which is not always obvious from inside a room. Without a design, nobody on site can say how many props are needed or where they must stand. If no engineer is appointed yet, ring Sean for advice. He can arrange an engineer, or set out the questions to put to one before any work starts.

Euro Concrete prices temporary propping from the engineer's design: the number of props and needles it calls for, the load they carry, how long they stay in, and how easily the steel can be brought in and set. Send the drawings or ring Sean on 086 881 9848, and we will price it with any cutting.

The design drives most of the price, because it fixes the amount of steel and the work to install it. Duration counts too, since the props stay on your site until the permanent support has taken over and the engineer releases them. Where we cut the opening as well as prop it, both are done in one programme, which saves a second visit. Access affects the time to set the props: a clear ground-floor room is quick, a stairwell or upper floor takes longer, and an occupied building needs the area protected first. Without an engineer's design there is nothing to price against, so mention it when you ring.

Yes. Euro Concrete Services installs temporary propping in every part of County Cork, from Skibbereen and our Cork city base, and alongside our own wall sawing, floor sawing or coring where the job includes them. Ring Sean on 086 881 9848 with the location, the engineer's details and what is being cut or removed.

Coverage includes Cork city and suburbs such as Blarney and Glanmire, the harbour towns, East Cork, North Cork from Charleville to Fermoy, and West Cork out to Schull. Propping stays in until the engineer releases it, so the date for taking it out is agreed at the start, whatever the distance from our bases. While the props are in, they have to stay undisturbed and clear of site traffic, so agree with the other trades where they will stand. Send the engineer's drawing and a photo of the area, and the propping can be priced before the visit.