BUILDING TECHNIQUE 3 - MIDTERMS
1. Foundation Systems
• Purpose: Foundation systems transfer lateral loads from the superstructure to the ground.
Types:
● Shallow Foundations: Employed when stable soil with adequate bearing capacity is near
the surface.
○ Individual or Isolated Footings: Supports free-standing columns and piers.
Types: Block or square footings, stepped footings, slope or pyramidal footings.
Strip Footings: Continuous spread footings of foundation walls; may change levels (stepped
footings) to follow a sloping grade.
Combined Footings: Support two or more columns when it's not possible to center the footing
below a column.
Cantilever Footings: Footings of exterior and interior columns connected by tie-beams, designed
to align load centers.
Continuous Footings: Can support a line of columns; types include inverted slab or inverted tee
continuous footings.
Mat or Raft Foundations: Used on low-bearing soil to prevent unequal settlement, tied together
to act as one.
Deep Foundations: Used when soil under a shallow foundation is unstable; transfers loads to a
suitable bearing stratum.
Pile Foundations: System of end-bearing or friction piles; types include:
End-Bearing Piles: Depend on the soil or rock beneath the pile's feet for support.
Friction Piles: Depend on frictional resistance of surrounding earth mass for support.
Caisson Foundations: Cast-in-place, filled with concrete, drilled to stable bearing strata.
2. Types of Plies
• Wood Piles: Made from tree trunks; used on compressible, water-saturated soils.
• Driven with drop-hammers or steam hammers; treated with creosote or coal-tar to resist decay.
• Concrete Piles:
• Pre-Cast Piles: Molded and cured for four weeks before installation; protected with a cast-iron
point.
• Cast-In-Place Piles:
• Cased Plles: Steel tube driven into soil, filled with concrete after core removal.
• Uncased Piles: Driven steel tube gradually withdrawn as concrete is poured.
Steel Piles: Concrete-filled steel pipes for hard-bearing strata.
• Composite Piles: Combination of timber and concrete or steel; often timber piles coated with
concrete.
3. Reinforced Concrete Columns
• Types:
Tied Columns: Have longitudinal bars with lateral ties; 1-8% vertical reinforcement ratio.
Spiral Columns: Vertical bars encircled by continuous spirals, held by three vertical spacer bars.
Composite Columns: Structural steel embedded in concrete core.
• Combined Columns: Steel encased in concrete with wire mesh reinforcement.
Lally Columns: Steel pipes with flat steel plates, filled with grout or concrete to prevent
corrosion.
• Dowel Bars: Transfer stress at column bottoms to footings; equal in cross-sectional area to
column reinforcement.
4. Reinforced Concrete Floor Systems
• Types of Slabs:
One-Way Solid Slab: Supported by beams; reinforced in one direction.
Two-Way Slab: Reinforced in both directions; load transferred to four sides.
One-Way Jolet (Ribbed) Sieb: Consists of small adjacent T-beams; fillers like day tile, gypsum.
Waffle Slab: Reinforced by ribs in two directions for long spans.
Flat Plate: Uniform thickness, reinforced in two directions, no beams or girders.
Flat Slab: Flat plate thickened with drop panels at columns to improve shear resistance.
5. Reinforced Concrete Beams
• Types:
Simple Beams: Single span supported at both ends.
Cantilever Beams: Fixed at one end and extending outward.
Continuous Beams: Spans more than two supports.
T-Beams: Slab assists upper beam part in compression.
Compression Reinforced Beams: Reinforcement in both tension and compression zones.
Hollow Box Girders: Double-reinforced, hollow for reduced dead load,
• Reinforcement Detalls:
Tensile Reinforcement: Located in tension zones.
• Stirrups: U-shaped bars prevent diagonal tension,
6. Roof Decks
• Description: Cast in place, reinforced concrete; finished with membrane roofing for insulation
and waterproofing.
7. Walls and Structural Walls
• Types:
Bearing Walls: Support floors and roof.
• Curtain Walls: Non-load-bearing, encloses building exterior.
Foundation Walls: Supports superstructure, encloses basements.
• Retaining Walls: Resists lateral soil pressure.
• Spandrel Walls: Between arch and beam; non-load-bearing in skeleton construction.
• Curtain Walls:
• Panel Types:
• Panel Wall: Non-load-bearing; may form building exterior.
• Window Panel: Glass and frame incorporated.
• Skin Panel: Single material.
Sandwich Panel: Assembly of multiple materials for insulation.
• Wall Units: Preassembled, spanning multiple stories.
Assembly:
• Stick Type: Mullions and rails installed first, followed by panels.
• Unit and Mullion: Vertical mullions dominant.
• Grid Type: Equal vertical and horizontal emphasis.
• Panel Type: Non-linear, no trim, limited panel size.
• Spandrel Type: Horizontal lines dominate.
7. Walls and Structural Walls
• Types:
Bearing Walls: Support floors and roof.
Curtain Walls: Non-load-bearing, encloses building exterior.
Foundation Walls: Supports superstructure, encloses basements.
• Retaining Walls: Resists lateral soil pressure.
• Spandrel Walls: Between arch and beam; non-load-bearing in skeleton construct
• Curtain Walls:
° Panel Types:
• Panel Wall: Non-load-bearing; may form building exterior.
• Window Panel: Glass and frame incorporated.
• Skin Panel: Single material.
• Sandwich Panel: Assembly of multiple materials for insulation.
• Wall Units: Preassembled, spanning multiple stories.
• Assembly:
• Stick Type: Mullions and rails installed first, followed by panels.
• Unit and Mullion: Vertical mullions dominant.
• Grid Type: Equal vertical and horizontal emphasis.
• Panel Type: Non-linear, no trim, limited panel size.
• Spandrel Type: Horizontal lines dominate.
