Green Building The concept of a green building was developed in the 1970s in response to the energy crisis and people’s growing concerns about the environment. A Green Building, also known as a sustainable building, is a structure that is designed, built, renovated, operated, or re-used in an ecological and resource efficient manner. Sustainable development(…)
Building Tips
REPAIR OF POST CONCRETING DEFECTS IN STRUCTURES
The four essential features of a successful repair are: 1. Expediency: The longer the repair is left, the more work has to be done, and the less likely that the repair will blend in. 2. Cleanliness: when repairing concrete, care must be taken to remove any dirt or dust that will prevent the repair concrete(…)
COMPONENTS OF STAIRCASE
Following are the terms used for components of staircase: Step – The step is composed of the tread and riser. Tread – The part of the stairway that is stepped on. It is constructed to the same specifications (thickness) as any other flooring. The tread "depth" is measured from the outer edge of the step(…)
SETTING OUT A BUILDING PLAN ON GROUND
A building is set out in order to clearly define the outline of the excavation and the centre line of the walls, so that construction can be carried out exactly according to the plan. The centre line method of setting out is generally preferred and adopted. PROCEDURE Fig.1: Example plan to be set out on(…)
TYPES OF CRACK IN STRUCTURES
Types of cracks Structural cracks. Non Structural Cracks. Structural Cracks Structural cracks are those which result from incorrect design, faulty construction or overloading and these may endanger the safety of a building and their inmates. Non Structural Cracks. Non Structural cracks occur mostly due to internally induced stresses in building materials. These cracks normally do(…)
FIELD CONDITION SURVEY OF BUILDING
Field condition survey of a building is to research its present condition and performance. The plans, specifications and any other pertinent construction documents describes how a building was constructed, the strengths of materials used and the intended purpose of individual building components. This information combined with information on previous repairs and additions, can assist with(…)
ROBUSTNESS OF BUILDINGS
Robustness of Buildings is explained by an example of a building collapse. The whole building collapsed due a pressure cooker blast on 20th floor. Early one morning in 1967 a large part of the building (shown in fig.) in north London, collapsed, after an explosion on the 20th floor. The resulting enquiry led to a(…)
BUILDING SECURITY AND CONTROL SYSTEMS
Building security and control system have become necessary with increasing size and complexity of buildings. The building security and control system is designed to monitor and control mechanical and electrical installations, fire protection and escape, burglary, assault and emergency communication. In tall buildings and major complexes, the most important security requirement is fire-safety system. In(…)