The HDPE Pocket Isolator by NJM Group is easy to use, environmentally friendly and more cost effective than other types of form guards. Here are some of the most significant benefits of the pocket isolator.
It provides leave-in-the-slab solution
The pocket isolator doesn't bond to concrete, so it doesn't need to be removed. This solves a lot of common flaws such as time being wasted, damage and cave-ins.
One of the benefits of the NJM Group pocket isolator™ is that it does not bond to concrete. Therefore it does not have to be removed after the concrete has been poured. This eliminates unsupported or chipped slab edges as well as debris-filled pockets that could prevent proper placement of the column base grout bed. The form guards sit as a finished floor elevation and become an integral part of a building structure.
Wood, Styrofoam and other materials currently used to create block-outs all have a common flaw. They must be pulled out after the slab is in place. This results in cave-ins and wasted concrete when the form guards are removed. Stripping these form guards is a waste of time. It’s also hard to remove them without any damage to the slab edges.
It is environmentally sustainable
Pocket Isolator by NJM group is made from recycled plastic. They become part of the construction, unlike temporary timber form guards.
It allows for easy conduit routing and cabling
Routing and cabling is very easy with our pocket isolator, because you can use conventional hand tools.
The construction of the form guard using HDPE allows for conduit routing and cabling. Form guards can easily be penetrated with conventional hand tools to accept conduit or PVC doglegs so frequently seen in modern retail and commercial structures. Previously, with the use of wooden forms, this process of wiring cables and electrical conduit was a difficult task. It is also much safer to incorporate cables into the HDPE form guards as there is no need for saws which will produce harmful dust and fumes.
Form guards are manufactured to be identical
We provide a proven method of form guard construction, manufactured with excellent quality control.
Our pocket isolator provides a cost effective solution
Initial cost and installation labour are the only expenses. Our form requires less labour and lower material costs than temporary forms.
Using form guards as a method of separating inner and outer concrete pours is a timely and cost effective solution. The exact quantity of required form guards are purchased, therefore minimises wasted money, resources and labour as they are easily assembled on site. Initial cost and installation labour are the only expenses – temporary forms cause high labour and wasted material costs. There is also an increased potential costs due to safety hazards and repairs to chipped slab edges.
Slab edges no longer require thickening, and saw cut joints are made quick and easy with our form guards, it creates the optimum separation and expansion joint between the inner and outer concrete pours.
Another function of pocket isolators is to provide a terminus for slab construction of control joints. Many engineers also utilise the weight advantage of a concrete filled form guard as an additional source of dead load to resist the wind uplift forces, because concrete weighs considerably more than soil or gravel.
Contractors generally work to a tight schedule and the sequence of construction can heavily impact on time frames to complete a project. An advantage of a pocket isolator is that it can allow for simultaneous casting of concrete, as well as the option of interior first or exterior first. With wooden form guards or other materials, a contractor had to determine the sequence of pouring concrete, the HDPE allows for flexibility of casting sequence in a timely manner. Additionally, they sometimes help a contractor when sequencing the various stages of a project in order that column fabrication does not delay the slab-on-grade placement.
Many architects and engineers feel that form guards are imperative in the long life of a building structure. It is the solution to a very old problem in construction and was designed with that specific application in mind.