Questions tagged [building-design]
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Seismic Design Changes between ASCE and UBC Code?
what is the difference between the seismic design between ASCE and UBC code?
from load combinations to loads applied to the history between the sudden shift or change in the code. and which one of the ...
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What is the Difference between ASCE and IBC Code?
What is the fundamental difference between the ASCE Code and IBC Code and what is the objective of each one?
Thank you in Advance.
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Slab Stiffness Modifiers applied in Vertical Elements design but not in Slab design?
Why in the design of vertical elements (columns and walls) for a structure against lateral loads (such as seismic and wind) we use a slab (or shell) with a stiffness modifiers (such as 0.25 according ...
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Drop Panel Design Above Columns?
How to design a drop panel at a column in case the column above is rotated or not aligned to the below column (see image below), the code that i am using is the ACI Code if any reference for the ...
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At what level is the Grade Beam most effective at pile cap level or at Slab-on-grade level?
The primary two functions of a Grade/Tie Beam in spread footing and/or pile caps foundation system is to support the Slab-On-Grade (S.O.G) and/or to take the moment from eccentric footing (or moment ...
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Do concealed door closers exacerbate wear on a door's hinges?
Not being of an engineering background, I was first inclined to think that a door closer would reduce horizontal load on all hinges and not contribute any support in the vertical dimension.
However, ...
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Can a crisscrossed metallic skeleton resist earthquakes for buildings?
To follow up with my previous question on the seismic design of buildings, I would like to ask if it makes sense to support buildings with strong thick 'crisscrossed' metallic frames.
I have the ...
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Can a horizontal foundation safeguard against earthquakes?
I have not taken any course in civil engineering. What I was taught was that a broad base would prevent something from toppling. So it makes me wondering instead of nailing the foundation of a ...
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Is it OK for a 2 story house not have a column or pillar
sorry for my english. I was looking to buy a house. I saw some in my hometown, which is very affordable.
but on a picture of the house they are selling I found on the net troubled me.
no pillar/column,...
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Adhesion of Super Glue (containing ethyl cyanoacrylate) and PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) film
Would it be considered safe to use super glue, which contains ethyl cyanoacrylate, to attach a PVDF film to a metal alloy?
It says super glue is not recommended for polyethylene or polypropylene. ...
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Software for automatic building floorplan calculation / drawing (packing problem)
An apartment yield analysis is a set of draft drawings in which the optimum residential apartment layout and resultant yield is calculated for a given building site, taking into account development ...
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Could pre-stressed graphene be used to reinforce granite block construction?
I am curious whether this will become an option, especially for longer lasting structures. Could pre-stressed graphene or another high tensile strength material by used to reinforce granite block ...
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Possible improved approaches to 6mx3m moment-resisting frame with eccentricity+torsion, in advance of detailed engineer discussion
I'm putting a steel frame in, to "open plan" the rear of a brick cavity-wall terrace house in the UK, which will then have a single storey extension added behind it.
I have already retained a ...
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159
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Activating lights using a motion sensor?
I was wondering how I would configure some sort of setup to get lights like this turn on a timer once activated by a motion sensor. I want them to turn on for about 15 seconds and then turn off once ...
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277
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Optimal plumbing layout for 3 storey building?
I'm trying to design a plumbing system for a school project, and I want to verify that my initial piping layout from water source to outlets is logical before I start making calculations and programs ...
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Heat storage mass vs. AIR in an ICF house
If we would want to build a family house (ICF) regarding operational costs, should we leave the insulation on the inside, or should we remove it from the inside?
If we would remove it, the walls ...
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What's the concrete core for in a building?
I'm watching the progress of a new office building being built over the road (essentially a manual timelapse).
The way the building progressed was by the pouring of a concrete core in the centre of ...
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Why were pneumatic thermostats commonly installed in buildings?
According to Wikipedia, pneumatic thermostats were invented after electric thermostats.
Yet this article claims that "at least 25 percent of U.S. commercial buildings are served by pneumatic controls,...
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What's the difference/advantages/disadvantages to a tower with a moving jib, vs a flat jib
Apologies if I've got the terminology wrong, I'm in now way involved in engineering, but I work in a high rise in a city with a lot of construction going on. I see a lot of different types of cranes, ...
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Searching for a High Speed Actuator for a simulator
I am currently planing to build a consrtuction for a simulator.
My simulator seat should be able to fall like 30cm and afterwards move to the starting position .
The falling should be as natural as ...
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Disguising tall exhaust stacks
While architectural features are oftentimes more aesthetic than they are technically complex, this still seemed like a suitable question for here.
I am working on a project for an industrial type ...
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What are some advantages of masonry over prefab for homebuilding, or, why are prefab homes so rare in the United Kingdom?
The United Kingdom has a housing crisis (see Financial Times, Shelter, The Independent, The Telegraph) and a housing quality crisis (killing 3000–15000 per year), due to poor insulation.
Cash-strapped ...
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How buildings 3D model is created [closed]
Suppose I have a rough 3d model of a building created it some CAD software. Now I want to change some portion of the model based on the following factors
Lighting
Energy consumption
Structural Load
...
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Effectiveness of positive pressure in highrise buildings?
The common knowledge these days seems to be that positive air pressure pumped into the common hallways of highrise buildings will allow smokers and non-smokers to live in the same highrise. Good ...
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What are the limits on building very high buildings using certain materials and architectural style?
I played some video games with beautiful environments filled with buildings which can't be found in the real world. And so I'm wondering, would such buildings be even realistically possible to exist ...
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Common points to consider when building a window seat
I am trying to construct a window seat like this one:
I live in Canada.
I was wondering what are the common construction code points to consider on this one?
Materials - does it matter if this is ...
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Is it safe to slightly cut the edge of RCC beam for passage of AC Vent and wiring? [closed]
My electrician made a cut in the wall and the beam as in the image in my absence. The cutting is done with hammer and chisel and it is around 1.5inch deep..I'm really worried that it might impact the ...
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Why is it more common to use ceiling fans instead of air pumps?
As the title suggests, why not use high-powered air pumps instead of ceiling fans to inject hot air from the ceiling down to the cold, bottom floor?
I understand it may seem silly (especially since ...
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Clarification of cover definition in Eqn 7.11 of EC2 for calculating crack width
In EC2 clause 7.3.4(3), cover c is defined as the cover to longitudinal reinforcement. Say for a beam with cnom of 40mm and outer links of 16mm, the cover to longitudinal reinforcement will be 56mm. ...
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What is the definition of Ecm in equation 7.10 of EC2?
In the old British standard we use a time dependent modulus of elasticity of concrete to calculate crack width, which is usually about half of the 28-day Ec for long term modulus. In Eurocode EN 1992-...
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What is the effective depth of a beam with two layers of tension reinforcement?
In EC2 for calculating crack width and deflection, does the effective depth d refers to the depth from compression face to centroid of the tension reinforcement or is that calculated to the centroid ...
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How to predict shadows of a house (3D modeling + sunlight)?
Imagine a house/building, seen from outside, at sunrise. As the the sun moves in the horizon, a) the shadow of the house is displaced/deformed, and b) some faces of the house have more/less sunlight ...
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Is there any way I can be sure a wall is NOT load bearing?
I've Googled the hell out of this and it doesn't seem to be, i.e.
It's structured like a standard stud (not reinforced top)
It doesn't run along a floor joist
The uprights are pretty badly cut and ...
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Which is the branch of engineering that deals with making gadgets?
Background
I am currently preparing for Entrance Examination for Engineering college , somehow I noticed that I don't even know which branch I want to take and what is the kind of Education I am ...
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How to support height extender on a rail?
I've got an 1/8" thick steel rail with 1.5" diameter and 15' in length sitting on two 5/32" thick steel rails with 2.5" diameter and 100" in length 14' apart:
I want to add a diagonal support for a ...
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Place a greenhouse: how to orient it for the best effect?
I'm looking for the best orientation (North-East-South-West) of a greenhouse (simplifiable as a rectangular solid).
My question is more specifically about the sun position effects (over the times of ...
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Does attic insulation help cool a building?
Given that hot air rises, it's easy to understand how attic insulation can help keep a building warm; say, in the winter, for example. But when winter changes to summer, does the attic insulation help ...
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Humidity in home is much higher than outside
We have a two year-old, two-story town house with:
fiberglass insulation in the walls;
a Tyvek vapor barrier under foam board on the exterior walls;
blown cellulose insulation in the attic;
stucco ...
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I am looking for some basic mechanical parts to build structures(prototypes)?
I am looking for something like this to make my robot ideas as prototype. But I don't know it's name! Also if there are better options I will happy to know.
(source: instructables.com)
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Why aren't Steel Prefab Buildings common for residential use? [closed]
Steel prefabricated buildings cost less, require less time and provide a reasonable quality compared to concrete buildings.
They are common for warehouses, offices and other types of buildings. Also, ...
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How are IFC file material relationships maintained across platforms
IFC files have an IFCMATERIAL property which names a material and is referenced by other components in the model.
The IFC file doesn't point to a materials library, doesn't indicate a system variable ...
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General formula for calculating torsional and warping constants of built-up section
In order to calculate the elastic critical moment of a laced double I-section, I need the torsional and warping constants. Is there a general formula to obtain this? BS 5950 only has formulas for ...
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How does infill material affects the capacity of a tubular section with H-section inside?
How does one consider the moment capacity of a combined pipe plus H-section if the infill material is:
Sand, friction angle 30 degree
Grout, C20
Concrete, C45
Eurocode has a section on composite ...
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Translating the name of a type of beam from Russian to English
I am trying to translate the name of a special kind of beam from a set of Russian-language drawings.
The dictionary translates the name as simply supported beam, but it's not that simple. There is a ...
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Why not skip inverters and use solar power directly as dc?
To maximize efficiency and reduce cost I am contemplating using the power from solar cells directly as dc without conversion to ac. I plan to wire and connect the solar panels in series and parallel ...
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What is the minimum diameter for vertical bars in a column according to ACI?
What is the minimum for vertical bars in a column according to ACI and I am looking for a particular condition where diameter must be greater than 0.625 in.
(when using S-concrete for column design it ...
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Do we need to use cracked section in Fundamental period calculation for a building?
When using modal analysis to determine the building period do we need to use the stiffness modifiers (or in another word use the cracked section) to calculate the building period ?
Can Anyone refer to ...
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Aluminium Beam - is it fit for purpose? Can it easily support this load? [closed]
I want to mount two patio heaters on my terrace in front of a window wall. I cannot attach anything directly to the window wall so I am going to run an aluminium box beam between two brick columns. ...
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Design of transverse reinforcement in a wide beam
Besides satisfying nominal bar provision in the code, is there any special requirement in the provision of transverse reinforcement to ensure that the longitudinal reinforcement is fully effective in ...
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How can one reliably prevent pedestrian access to a parking garage, but allow vehicular access? [closed]
Consider a typical private parking garage for a condominium or apartment building.
There is currently a typical garage gate that opens and closes (slowly) to allow vehicles to pass safely through the ...
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