General Aspects The hand sketch illustrates the Civil Engineering Research Laboratories building, which is part of the

Civil Engineering Division at University of Dundee. It has an approximate structural height of about 20 m. The plan dimensions are around 45m X 15m, with the ground floor level having a typical height of about 12 m, and the basement a height of 7-8 m. The building is intended to serve the research activities performed either by the university staff or the students working on their final year projects. The circulation inside the building is done through a lateral stair; while for lighting purposes, windows are provided at each side of the building and at the roof level (double curved encased windows). Structural System As it can be visible from the sketch, the load bearing structure of the building is made by a steel frame. The main columns, the exterior ones, have a concrete coating, while the interior columns are of regular UB section. The main exterior columns support the main beams onto which secondary steel beams are placed. The main beams are made out of two inclined members, which are welded at the middle. The interior and the exterior columns at the right side of the building, support two crane girders spanning along the entire length of the building, onto which two cranes are located so that the heavy technical equipment and material located at the ground floor can be moved. The exterior walls are brickwork walls, while the roof is made from concrete precast plates. The weight of the precast roof plates is taken by the secondary, longitudinal beams, which in return, transmit to the main, transversal beams. The weights of the precast slabs, secondary and main beams are transmitted through the columns to the foundation. An additional load comes in the form of the weight of the crane girders, as well as the load given by the cranes and the equipment that they transmit. The crane girders are simply supported by means of hangers to the interior beams, which at the top are bolted to the main beams. This bolted connection provides support against shear failure, as the interior columns have the tendency to be pushed by the weight of the crane loading (the interior columns are not designed to support the main beams). The inclination of the roof means that the rain water can easily be evacuated from the roof. The slabs are designed to withstand large industrial live loads, caused by the heavy equipment and material being operated in the building.