Those of you who have had an opportunity to work in jurisdictions that have adopted the 2015 International Building Code (IBC) should have noticed a significant change related to mandatory tornado shelters in a significant portion of the Central U.S. For areas that use the 2015 IBC, this new requirement will impact the majority of new school and emergency facility construction spanning as far north as central Minnesota, as far south as southern Mississippi, and stretching to western Pennsylvania in the east and western Texas to the west. This area is shown in Figure 1 and is where tornadoes with wind speeds of at least 250 mph have a history of occurrence. …
Author Archives : Diane Throop, P.E.
Diane Throop, P.E., is Director of Engineering, International Masonry Institute, Annapolis, MD and was Chair of The Masonry Standards Joint Committee for the development of the 2011 and 2013 editions of the Building Code Requirements for Masonry Structures (TMS 402/ACI530/ASCE5) and Specification for Masonry Structures (TMS602/ACI530.1/ASCE6). She can be reached at dthroop@imiweb.org.
Bracing of masonry walls under construction using the wall’s inherent strength rather than external bracing elements is a newer approach to bracing, and is known as Internal Bracing. It has been successfully applied in numerous projects with short to very tall walls. Bracing, in general, provides life safety for workers and other occupants on the job site, essentially keeping the wall up during construction and long enough to provide time for evacuation during a wind event. …
Insight into the new Limit Design method for special reinforced masonry shear walls – what it offers, how it was developed, and a glimpse at possible future developments.
“Limit Design is a bold step for masonry engineering and it marks it as an even more significant structural material.” That may be my favorite comment from my tenure as the MSJC Chair. It came upon the successful balloting and adoption of the new Appendix C – Limit Design of Masonry. …