Special Formwork for Salzburg’s Flagship Hydropower Projects

Founded in 1996, Mitterfelner Schalungsbau GmbH is regarded as a thoroughgoing expert when it comes to the construction of special shuttering formwork for hydropower and architectural applications. As for hydropower, the Lower German specialists have already implemented well over 200 projects for a variety of facilities around the globe. The formwork constructions are not just spectacular to look at but also technically challenging to build. Made from the environmentally friendly resource of wood, they are used for a variety of applications, such as draft tubes, bulb and open flume turbines, wooden cone formwork or spiral chambers. Recent reference projects include formwork for the new run-of-river power station Stegenwald on the Salzach, and pumped-storage power station Limberg 3 in Salzburg, Austria.

Complex Concrete Structures Require Bespoke Formwork

Shaping the concrete for the elbows, draft tubes and spiral lead-ins is one of the most challenging tasks of the construction process. This is because it usually involves rounded, bent and winding shapes with different radii, none of which can be prefabricated as standard parts. There are not many providers like Mitterfelner Schalungsbau GmbH that have the necessary capabilities to meet the varied requirements involved in special formwork for modern hydropower facilities. The constructions provided by the Lower Bavarian woodwork specialists are the result of 30 years’ experience in applying dedicated craftsmanship and engineering skills to create impressive wooden formwork designs.

Hydropower Projects in Salzburg Showcase Engineering Expertise

In 2025 two new hydropower stations went into operation in the Austrian province of Salzburg, with Mitterfelner as a major contributor in both cases. For underground pumped-storage power station Limberg 3 in Kaprun, in the Austrian province of Salzburg, Mitterfelner provided the sheathing, joint and junction formwork in various dimensions. A major challenge for the woodwork engineers was the need to come up with a formwork design that would allow the individual parts to be brought into the cavern for assembly. The other project, hy­dropower station Stegenwald on the Salzach, allowed the engineers a lot more space to work in. Twelve transporter runs were required to deliver the 48 parts of the formwork structure for the two draft tubes to the construction site. Manufactured to the millimetre, the formwork bodies had an elliptic curvature design, requiring about 90 cubic metres of cut timber for a total formwork surface of 620 square metres.
The Salzburg projects are only two on the long list of references that underscore Mitterfelner Schalungsbau’s engineering skills. Wherever standard systems have reached their limits, these specialists will go further to provide the perfect solution.