Lightweight Solutions in Concrete

lightweight
biaxial strength
long span
time saving
no beams
sustainable
cost effective

flexible layouts

its in the air

its in the air

The company group Cobiax Technologies, with Headquarters in Zug, Switzerland and its European subsidiaries, formerly known as BubbleDeck, founded
in 1997 has become the specialist of lightweight biaxial flat slabs in reinforced concrete.
The latest development, the cobiax lightweight flat slab, (patent pending) with its modular and flexible features, improves application of the techno- logy
and also economy.
Add value to your building and your construction process by using cobiax lightweight flat slab instead of traditional concrete solid slab and other lightweight slabs. Introducing the technology early in the design process yields the most benefits.

The Idea:
How does a bird fly?

Cobiax flat slab

Between upper and lower reinforcement rebar cages
with hollow plastic spheres of recycled polyethylene
An essential feature to being able to fly is in the struc- displace concrete that has no structural benefit. The
ture of its bones. Birds bones have evolved to a high- result is a floor that weighs up to 35% less than an
ly efficient structure. A hard shell and struts formed equivalent solid floor. This can lead to substantial
by multiple cavities, appropriately located give the savings in weight and materials on the building as a
bone a stability equivalent to solid bones. The result whole. When integrated into the whole structural
is efficient structure that has less mass and requires frame solution Cobiax delivers many benefits and
fewer resources to lift. Its in the air. A bird flies.
saves money.

Design principles:
Remove the non working dead load, maintain biaxial
strength. In concrete, realise a hard shell with struts
through the use of appropriately located cavities formed by hollow spheres.

Value chain of Cobiax

Break into a new dimension of structural options. You can realise a multitude of improvements to building
concepts and sustainability.

Substantially improved
lifecycle costs and ecology

Yields

Added value

Benefits

Flexible layouts

Open plan,
wide spans without
beams

Economy

Up to 50% weight
reduction, savings
in materials and
transport, reduction
in CO2 emissions

Ecology

A biaxial design
assures
all benefits
of a solid slab

Time
saving

Increased
usage and easy
change of use

 performance

Biaxial

Longer Span no beams

Weight savings - fewer supports

high earthquake resistance

Your benefit - the optimum use of cobiax Big5

Retrofit, change of use

Big5

Reduction in
construction time

Actual benefit in % savings when compared to solid flat slab

Concrete in floors

32 %

Floor reinforcing steel

20 %

Concrete in foundation

20 %

Columns

40 %

Beams and Joists

Deck construction time

100 %
35 %
Passiro Meran, BD Italy

Larger grids, half the columns, no beams or joists

Frankfort Niederrad, BD Germany

Additional level of car park, 1,150 m2

Additional space

Cobiax

Designed with beams

Frankfort Niederrad, BD Germany

 performance

Change of use - Only possible through considerable weight reduction

ROOF
TERRACE

Red: Existing
Blue: New Build

Steigerwald Gerolzhofen, BD Germany

Cobiax Big5 optimises 34000 m2 slab surface

Mainova Frankfort, Germany

Sandbanks Poole/Dorset, BD UK

Bridging long spans without beams, carrying large load with slim
columns because of cobiax system.

Travel Europe Stans, BD Austria

 options

In modular, flexible production options

Cage Module
cobiax CBCM

Linked Cage Module

cobiax CBLM

Semi-Precast
cobiax CBSP

Precast Element
cobiax CBPE

The delivery options can suit the construction requirements.

The cage module and linked cage modul are suitable for in situ applications with traditional formwork as well as for delivery to industrial production facilities. The semi-precast and precast modules are for delivery to site where the benefits of speed of construction
and economy of equipment requiremensts can be realised.

Concrete quantity [m3/m2]

cobiax versus solid flat slab

Spans [m] with the same imposed load and concrete volume
0.5

d = deck thickness
dia.= sphere diameter

0.4

d 58.0 cm / dia. 45.0 cm

d 52.0 cm / dia. 40.5 cm
d 45.0 cm / dia. 36.0 cm

0.3

d 40.0 cm / dia. 31.5 cm

d 34.0 cm / dia. 27.0 cm

0.2

d 28.0 cm / dia. 22.5 cm

d 23.0 cm / dia. 18.0 cm

0.1

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

Spans [m] with the same slab thickness

d = deck thickness
dia. = sphere diameter

22

20

A d 23.0 cm / dia. 18.0 cm

Loads [kN/m2]

18
16

B d 40.0 cm / dia. 31.5 cm

14

12

C d 58.0 cm / dia. 45.0 cm

10
8

6
4
2
4

Post tensioning

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

Installation guide
Cobiax can be adapted to any layout. The
arrangement of the spheres and the size and
shape of the panel are determined by the
project requirements. Cobiax can be used
with other building techniques such as post
tensioning and composite structures.
Concrete grade and bulk density can be specified to suit the project requirements.
Interfaces and installation details are similar
to traditional concrete details.

economic and sustainable

The overall evaluation of buildings with cobiax flat slabs leads to decisive yield for the owner.

Energy saving

Reduction of transport

CO2 reduction by saving on concrete

Spheres in recycled HDPE

Thermal mass

Earthquake resistance

Faade surface

Fire safety

Shoring props

Columns

Beams

Installation

Removal

Environmental aspects

Alternative use

Flexibility of layout

Usage

Construction time

Load-bearing walls

Concrete and Steel

Foundation

Economic savings potential

Tamping

Type of building

Detached house
Apartment Building
Multi-storey car park
Retail / Industrial
Administration / School / Museum
Hospital / Hotel
Office and high-rise building
Tunnel building

The resource effectiveness leads to R.I.O. Innovation Award 2003

Cobiax reduces cost but at the same time makes a major contribution to the environment in concrete where
its most important. Cement manufacture is the largest single producer of CO2 emissions worldwide. Cement
manufacture is responsible for around 7% of CO2 emission.
Current goals for sustainable development and reduction of CO2 can be effectively met by using cobiax.
Cobiax is ideally suited for initial use but also offers flexibility for reuse
Long span flat deck layouts provide design flexibility for initial use as well as flexibility for change to suit future use. By comparison solid deck is restricted by too much deflection. Till now longer spans could only be achieved with post tensioning or the use of beams. This has been associated with high design and construction costs.
The cobiax lightweight flat slab is a less expensive alternative to achieve deflection criteria in long span applications. Cobiax also permits more flexibility for the use of the building both in the horizontal as well as the
vertical.
Space is an
irreplaceable
resource!

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flat slab technology

Performance of the Cobiax Group:
Frame Contractors for cobiax lightweight concrete slabs
- Added value consulting for owners, architects, engineers and construction companies
- Design and detailing of the deck structure
- Just-in-time delivery of cobiax modules
Technology consulting and sales of cobiax range
International marketing services and licensing business
Quality management System cobiax QLL 06/2004
Lightweight flat slab technology development

Most benefit is realised when the cobiax technology is incorporated in the

design at an early stage. Cobiax assists
designers to achieve greatest return on
the use of the product.
With this assistance engineers can independently calculate the floor stress analysis incorporating the advantages of
using cobiax technology. Cobiax is a
solutions driven product. Cobiax can
assist the client throughout the project
process to achieve superior buildings
using the most up to date construction
techniques.
Cobiax Your partner

cobiax your partner

HEADQUARTERS:
Switzerland & Cobiax Technologies AG
International Postfach 140
Oberallmendstrasse 20A
CH-6301 Zug
Phone +41 41 767 00 00
Fax +41 41 767 00 09
info@cobiax.com
www.cobiax.com

United Kingdom Cobiax Technologies Ltd

Studio 4
The Cooperage
91 Brick Lane
GB-London E1 6QL
Phone +44 20 7877 8575
Fax +44 20 7375 2759
info.uk@cobiax.com
www.cobiax.com
Germany Cobiax Technologies GmbH
Heidelberger Strasse 6-8
D-64283 Darmstadt
Phone +49 6151 918 16 00
Fax +49 6151 918 16 22
info.germany@cobiax.com
www.cobiax.com
Austria Cobiax Technologies GmbH
Rotenturmstrasse 27/5
A-1010 Wien

CB 11/04 Cobiax Trade Mark is registered and patent pending. All rights reserved.

Phone +43 1 533 75 82

Fax +43 1 533 26 03

flexible layouts

info.austria@cobiax.com
www.cobiax.com
Italy Cobiax Technologies s.r.l.
Via Julius Durst 6/B
I-39042 Bressanone
Phone +39 0472 83 04 04
Fax +39 0472 20 74 26
info.italy@cobiax.com
www.cobiax.com

its in the air