Guest editorial

Stability problems with steel-concrete composite construction

BY RAMON J. COOK CHIEF ENGINEER, CUSTOM FORMS THE BURKE COMPANY CONVERSE, TEXAS not shored, but work was stopped, cold-jointed, and finished with greatest care some days later. Both buildings have locally buckled floor beams. A third job, a small trapezoidal-section steel and concrete girder was shored with towers and braced internally until it would stand alone. Two other buildings were shored before forming and concreted without damageexcept to the contractors budget because he never guessed there would be any need to shore the steel when he bid the work. know the beams or columns cannot safely stand without being braced is the same as loading and cocking a gun, then handing it to someone who doesnt know what it is. I may well be starting the old argument again over what constitutes a brace. But after more than 30 years in the construction business, I feel more strongly than ever that any engineer who cannot tell a workman in simple and straightforward language what to brace, where to do it, and what to do it with, isnt much of an engineer. Especially when he depends on a jobsite concrete super to figure it out for him instead.

ecent changes in the steel construction and design codes allow much lighter steel frames BEFORE CONCRETE than previously considered practical. This is done by using thinner, narrower steel sections and by allowing higher stresses in them. I believe we are seeing more of these composite frames in bridges and buildings because designers are under increasing pressure to create more economical structures; because their staffs are encouraged, in schools and elsewhere, to use the natural advantages of composite action; and because contractors continue to bid by the pound and yard instead of by the work required.

Bracing and shoring needed for construction load

In each case the steel was loaded five to seven times its unbraced and unconcreted load rating. In no case did the designer say so. In no case did the designer tell the contractor to brace, to shore, or even to have someone check out the frame before construction for the construction loads that would be applied. Apparently each designer took refuge in the AISC (American Institute of Steel Construction) brace it if you have to general note (Section 7.9.1 of the Code of Standard Practice), and hoped the other considerations paragraph would take care of him (page 2-96 of the Manual of Steel Construction). Neither of these AISC provisions was sufficient to meet the problems on these five jobs. Concrete people, watch out! Steel people, check with your lawyers. Telling contractors not to shore this work is the same as telling them not to brace it. To them it means the same. Also, releasing steel design drawings without extensive notes to the builders regarding necessary bracing-when you

Other construction found safe

In addition to the five near-disasters reported, we have worked on buildings with deep, stiff, weldeddown corrugated steel decking which was installed on light steel beams before concreting, and found these eminently safe at all stages.
References for more information 1. Code of Standard Practice for Steel Buildings and Bridges, American Institute of Steel Construction, 400 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60611; 1976, 32 pages. 2. Manual of Steel Construction, American Institute of Steel Construction, Chicago, eighth edition, 1980. 3. Recommended Practice for Concrete Formwork, ACI 347-78, American Concrete Institute, P.O. Box 19150, Detroit, Michigan 48219. 4. Standard Specification for Highway Bridges, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, DC, eleventh edition, 1973. 5. Handbook of Composite Construction Engineering, edited by Gajanan M. Sabnis, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 1979, 380 pages.

Buildings and bridge in trouble

In a recent 18-month period, I worked with contractors in the Baltimore area on four buildings and one bridge where serious instability of unbraced steel was found during erection and concreting. All were, in my opinion, seriously life-threatening. In each case, no contractor personnel on the job or in the office had the slightest idea there was a problem. All jobs had been bid and were being built the same old way we always did it. In two cases the s t ru c t u re was actually coming down, albeit slowly, but coming down just the sameduring concreting. One was saved by a superintendent halting work, getting a truckload of screw-jack post shores, and raising the falling frame back to approximate grade. Another was

UNDERSTANDING COMPOSITE CONSTRUCTION

Composite construction is produced by combining different materials or structural members in such a way that the combined parts act together as a single member. Composite construction can be a layered wood system, a combination of cast-in-place with precast concrete, or wood and concrete beams. But the most common combination in buildings and bridges is the steel-concrete composite in which a steel beam and a reinforced concrete slab (either cast in place or precast) are joined with shear connectors so that they act together as a unit. The steel beam may be fully encased in concrete, partially encased, or placed below the slab. Sometimes the beam has a concrete haunch above it. The shear connectors may be studs, steel bars, or rolled shapes welded to the top of the steel beam and embedded in the concrete slab. Composite construction became generally accepted by engineers for bridges during the 1950s and for buildings during the 1960s. During the past decade, research on continuous composite beams and connections has led to greater economy through the use of composite design in continuous structures to increase strength and stiffness.

enough strength to become part of the structure instead of just another load. This shoring keeps the steel beam in a no-load condition until the concrete has set. Then the supports are removed and the entire composite section acts to support both the dead and live loads. Shoring may be required by the s t ru c t u ral design, even when the s t ru c t u ral steel frame is able to support the weight of forms and freshly placed concrete. Shoring is frequently installed to control deflection. This can be important for both appearance and long-term serviceability of the structure.

AISC standard provisions

Recommendations of the American Institute of Steel Construction are directed primarily to designers and steel erectors, but they can have an important bearing on concrete work, as the editorial points out. Section 7.9.1 of the AISC Code of Standard Practice says: Temporary supports, such as temporary guys, braces, falsework, cribbing or other elements required for the erection operation will be determined and furnished and installed by the erector. These temporary supports will secure the steel framing, or any partly assembled steel framing against loads comparable in intensity to those for which the structure was designed, resulting from wind, seismic forces and erection operations, but not the loads resulting from the p e rf o rmance of work by or the acts of others... Section 7.9.3 applies to steel frames which require interaction with other elements not classified as structural steel in order to have necessary stability. For this kind of frame, the AISC Code says: Such frames shall be clear-

Shored or unshored?
Composite construction may be either shored or unshored. Normally where steel beams are set in position and forms for the concrete deck are supported on them, the beams carry the dead load without any composite action. Composite action starts when the live load is applied. In order to make the system composite for both dead load and live load, it is necessary to support the steel beam until the concrete has

ly identified in the contract documents. The contract documents specify the sequence and schedule of placement of such elements. The erector determines the need and furnishes and installs the temporary supports in accordance with this information. The owner is responsible for the installation and timely completion of all elements not classified as St ru ctural Steel that are re q u i re d for stability of the frame. The other considerations mentioned in the editorial are from the AISC Manual of Steel Construction. They include the following: Adequate lateral support for the compression flange of the steel section will be provided by the concrete slab after hardening. During construction, howe ve r, lateral support must be provided, or working stresses must be reduced...Steel deck with adequate attachment to the compression flange, or properly constructed concrete f o rm s, will usually provide the necessary lateral support for the type of construction shown...[in the accompanying design tables]. For construction using fully encased beams, particular attention should be given to lateral support during construction. Thus the AISC documents provide some warnings about the need for supports, but may sometimes give a false sense of security with the statement that formwork usually provides the necessary support.

Related ACI formwork requirements

ACI 347-78, Recommended Practice for Fo rm w o rk , states in Section 5.3.5 that any temporary shores required for composite

construction should be shown in the contract drawings or specifications. The warning is repeated in Section 5.4.1requirements for shoring or other deflection control should be clearly presented by the engineer-architect in the specifications. Since the need for shoring and bracing is determined by the design, the ACI guideline seems reasonable. The amount and kind of shoring and lateral bracing to stabilize or support the steel frame are best understood by the designer. Requirements for cambering the construction to compensate for future deflections should also be made clear. Ot h e rw i s e, the contractor may feel justified in supporting the formwork and its applied loads on the already placed steel frame. Howe ve r, as the editorial points out, when shoring and bracing needs for this type of construction are overlooked or misunderstood, objectionable deflection or hazardous conditions result. An alert con-

tractor under present conditions can either allow for shoring in his bid, or obtain positive assurance from the structural designer that it is not needed.

AASHTO specifications recognize need for lateral support

Some bridges on a superelevation have had all their main beams roll over downhill under a load of wet concrete. These beams, whether they be steel or precast c o n c re t e, must be laterally supported until the concrete has hardened and become a part of the structural system. Reflecting a number of disastrous experiences, the bridge specifications of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials warn the designer to make certain that the steel beams will be stable during the time when the concrete deck is being placed and until the time when the concrete has reached its strength and can provide anticipated lateral diaphragm support.

PUBLICATION #C840815
Copyright 1984, The Aberdeen Group All rights reserved