ENGR.

KIMBERL Y PEDRIG A L
Identify various components of the
two major components of a structure:
the substructure and the super
structure.

Explain the importance of structural

analysis in designing a structure

Distinguish various concepts in

planning a building design and its
structural system

Generate structural plans based on

various building requirements and
actual building codes and standards
Through the years that various buildings and other structures have been constructed,
structural systems have continuously evolved as to how they have had, an will continue to
have, an impact on its architectural building designs.

Designing an architectural building structure therefore involves more than the proper sizing
of any single element or component, or even the design of any particular structural
assembly. It is not simply the task of balancing and resolving forces. Rather, it requires that
we consider the manner in which the overall configuration and scale of structural elements,
assemblies, and connections encapsulate an architectural idea, reinforce the architectural
form and spatial composition of a design proposal, and enable its constructability. This
then requires an awareness of structure as a system of interconnected and interrelated
parts, an understanding of the generic types of structural systems, as well as an
appreciation for the capabilities of certain types of structural elements and assemblies.
•Formal and spatial composition
•Definition, scale, and proportions of forms and spaces
•Qualities of shape, form, space, light, color, texture, and pattern
•Ordering of human activities by their scale and dimension
•Functional zoning of spaces according to purpose and use
•Access to and the horizontal and vertical paths of movement through a building
•Buildings as integral components within the natural and built environment
•Sensory and cultural characteristics of place
Exposing the Structure

Concealing the Structure

Celebrating the Structure

Exposing the Structure

Concealing the Structure

Celebrating the Structure

Historically, masonry-bearing wall systems
(or using stones) dominated building
designs until the advent of iron and steel
construction in the late-18th century.
These structural systems also functioned
as the primary system of enclosure and
therefore expressed the form of the
architecture, typically in an honest and
straightforward manner. Whatever formal
modifications were made were usually a
result of molding or carving the structural
material in such a way as to create additive
elements, subtractive voids, or reliefs
within the mass of the structure.
Nowadays, there are examples of buildings
that exposed their structural systems—
whether in timber, steel, or concrete—
using them effectively as the primary
building design form-givers.
In this strategy, the structural system is
concealed or obscured by the exterior cladding
and roofing of the building. Some reasons for
concealing the structure are practical, as when
the structural elements must be clad to make
them fire-resistant, or contextual, as when the
desired exterior form is at odds with interior
space requirements. In the latter case, the
structure may organize the interior spaces while
the form of the exterior shell responds to site
conditions or constraints. The designer may
simply want freedom of expression for the shell
without considering how the structural system
might aid or hinder formal decisions. Or the
structural system may be obscured through
neglect rather than
intent. In both of these cases, legitimate
questions arise as to whether the resulting
design is intentional or accidental, willful or,
dare we say, careless.
 Rather than being merely exposed, the structural
system can be exploited as a design feature,
celebrating the form and materiality of the
structure. The often exuberant nature of shell and
membrane structures makes them appropriate
candidates for this category. There are also those
structures that dominate by the sheer forcefulness
with which they express the way they resolve the
forces acting on them. These types of structures
often become iconic symbols due to their striking
imagery. Think Eiffel Tower or the Sydney Opera
House. When judging whether a building celebrates
its structure or not, we should be careful to
differentiate structural expression from expressive
forms which are not, in truth, structural but only
appear to be so.
The substructure is the lowest division of a building—its foundation—constructed partly or wholly
below the surface of the ground. Its primary function is to support and anchor the superstructure
above and transmit its loads safely into the earth. Because it serves as a critical link in the
distribution and resolution of building loads, the foundation system, while normally hidden from
view, must be designed to both accommodate the form and layout of the superstructure above
and respond to the varying conditions of soil, rock, and water below.

The principal loads on a foundation are the combination of dead and live loads acting vertically on
the superstructure. In addition, a foundation system must anchor the superstructure against wind-
induced sliding, overturning, and uplift, withstand the sudden ground movements of an
earthquake, and resist the pressure imposed by the surrounding soil mass and groundwater on
basement walls. In some cases, a foundation system may also have to counter the thrust from
arched or tensile structures.
The type and pattern of required foundation elements impact, if not dictate, the layout of
supports for the superstructure. Vertical continuity in load transmission should be
maintained as much as possible for structural efficiency.

The integrity of a building structure depends ultimately on the stability and strength under
loading of the soil or rock underlying the foundation. The bearing capacity of the underlying
soil or rock may therefore limit the size of a building or require deep foundations.

The topographic character of a building site has both ecological and structural
implications and consequences, requiring that any site development be sensitive to
natural drainage patterns, conditions conducive to flooding, erosion, or slides, and
provisions for habitat protection.
Shallow or spread foundations are
employed when stable soil of
adequate bearing capacity occurs
relatively near to the ground
surface. They are placed directly
below the lowest part of a
substructure and transfer building
loads directly to the supporting soil
by vertical pressure.
Shallow foundations can take any of the following geometric forms:

• Point: Column footings

• Line: Foundation walls and footings
• Plane: Mat foundations—thick, heavily reinforced concrete slabs that serve as a single monolithic
footing for a number of columns or an entire building—are used when the allowable bearing
capacity of a foundation soil is low relative to building loads and interior column footings become so
large that it becomes more economical to merge them into a single slab. Mat foundations may be
stiffened by a grid of ribs, beams, or walls.
Deep foundations consist of caissons or piles
that extend down through unsuitable soil to
transfer building loads to a more appropriate
bearing stratum of rock or dense sands and
gravels well below the superstructure.
The superstructure, the vertical extension of
a building above the foundation, consists of
a shell and interior structure that defines the
form of a building and its spatial layout and
composition. In the construction process, the
superstructure rises from the substructure,
following the same paths along which the
superstructure transmits its loads down to the
substructure, as shown by the arrows in the
figure below.
The shell or envelope of a building, consisting of the roof, exterior walls, windows, and
doors, provides protection and shelter for the interior spaces of a building.
• The roof and exterior walls shelter interior spaces from inclement weather
and control moisture, heat, and air flow through the layering of construction
assemblies.
• Exterior walls and roofs also dampen noise and provide security and privacy
for the occupants of a building.
• Doors provide physical access.
• Windows provide access to light, air, and views.

A structural system is required to support the shell of a building as well as its interior
floors, walls, and partitions, and to transfer the applied loads to the substructure.
• Columns, beams, and load-bearing walls support floor and roof
structures.
• Floor structures are the flat, level base planes of interior space that
support our interior activities and furnishings.
• Interior structural walls and nonloadbearing partitions subdivide the
interior of a building into spatial units.
• Lateral-force-resisting elements are laid out to provide lateral stability.
The formal intention of a building design may
be offered, given, suggested, or mandated by
various factors such as its site location, its
purpose, its various building operations, and
its function. Concurrent with thinking about
formal and spatial options in the building
design, we should also begin to consider
our structural options—the palette of
materials, the types of support, spanning,
and lateral-force-resisting systems— and how
these choices might influence, support, and
reinforce the formal and spatial dimensions of
a building design idea.

At a later stage in the design process, it will

also be necessary to investigate the shaping
and sizing of members and detailing of
connections, through structural analysis, but
the aforementioned large-scale decisions
should take precedence because they
ultimately determine the direction of and set
the parameters for design and detail
development.
these structures redirect external
forces primarily through the bulk
and continuity of its material,
such as beams and columns

these structures redirect external forces

primarily though the composition of tension
and compression members, such as a truss
these structures redirect external
forces primarily along the
continuity of a surface, such as
a plate or shell structure

these structures redirect external forces primarily

through the form of its material, such as
an arch or cable system
The proportions of structural elements, such as bearing walls, floor and roof slabs,
vaults and domes, give us visual clues to their role in a structural system as well as the
nature of their material. A masonry wall, being strong in compression but relatively
weak in bending, will be thicker than a reinforced concrete wall doing the same work. A
steel column will be thinner than a wood post supporting the same load. A 4-inch
reinforced concrete slab will span farther than 4-inch wood decking.

As a structure depends less on the weight and stiffness of a material and more on its
geometry for stability, as in the case of membrane structures and space frames, its
elements will get thinner and thinner until they lose their ability to give a space scale
and dimension.
Structural analysis is the process of Structural design refers to the process of
determining the ability of a structure arranging, interconnecting, sizing, and
or any of its constituent members, proportioning the members of a structural
either existing or assumed, to safely system in order to safely carry a given set of
carry a given set of loads without loads without exceeding the allowable
material distress or excessive stresses of the materials employed.
deformation, given the arrangement, Structural design, similar to other design
shape, and dimensions of the activities, must operate in an environment of
members, the types of connections uncertainty, ambiguity, and approximation.
and supports utilized, and the
allowable stresses of the materials
employed.
In other words, structural analysis can
occur only if given a specific structure
and certain load conditions.
It is a search for a structural system that can meet not only the load requirements but also
address the architectural, urban design, and programmatic issues at hand. The first step in the
structural design process may be stimulated by the nature of the building design, its site and
context, or the availability of certain materials.

• The building design idea may elicit a specific type of configuration or pattern.
• The site and context may suggest a certain type of structural response.
• Structural materials may be dictated by building code requirements, supply, availability of
labor, or costs.

Once the type of structural system, its configuration or pattern, and the palette of structural
materials are projected, then the design process can proceed to the sizing and proportioning
of assemblies and individual members and the detailing of connections.
 The manner in which forces are transferred from one structural element to the next and
how a structural system performs as a whole depend to a great extent on the types of
joints and connections used. Structural elements can be joined to each other in three
ways.

allow one of the elements to be

continuous and usually require a third
allow all of the connected
mediating element to make the
elements to bypass each other
connection
and be continuous across the
joint

The joining elements can also

be molded or shaped to form a
structural connection
Pin or hinge joints allow rotation but resist translation in any direction.
Roller joints or supports allow rotation but resist translation in a direction perpendicular
into or away from its face.
Rigid or fixed joints maintain the angular relationship between the joined elements,
restrain rotation and translation in any direction, and provide both force and moment
resistance.
Cable supports or anchorages allow rotation but resist translation only in the direction of
the cable.
 In the design process, we tend to think first of the larger holistic pattern before we
consider the elemental structural units that make up the larger whole. So as we strategize
to develop a structural plan for a building, we should consider both the essential qualities
of the architectural composition and the nature and configuration of the structural
elements. This leads to a series of fundamental questions:

• Is there an overarching form required or does the

architectural composition consist of articulated parts?
If so, are these parts to be hierarchically ordered
• Are the principal architectural elements planar or linear
in nature?
• How might the mechanical and other building systems be integrated with the
structural system?

• What are the building code requirements for the intended use, occupancy, and
scale of building?
• What is the type of construction and what are the structural materials required?

• How might material availability, fabrication processes, transportation

requirements, labor and equipment requirements, and erection time influence the
choice of a structural system?
• Is there a need to allow for expansion and growth either horizontally or
vertically?
There exists a regulated
relationship between the
size (height and area) of a
building and its intended
use, occupancy load, and
type of construction.
Understanding the
projected scale of a
building is important
because a building’s size
is related to the type of
structural system required
and the materials that
may be employed for its
structure and
construction.
There exists a regulated
relationship between the
size (height and area) of a
building and its intended
use, occupancy load, and
type of construction.
Understanding the
projected scale of a
building is important
because a building’s size
is related to the type of
structural system required
and the materials that
may be employed for its
structure and
construction.
In addition to zoning ordinances that may limit the use and the overall floor area, height, and bulk of a
building, building codes, such as the International Building Code® (IBC), limit the maximum height and
area per floor of a building according to construction type and occupancy group, expressing the intrinsic
relationship between degree of fire resistance, size of a building, and nature of an occupancy. The larger
a building, the greater the number of occupants, and the more hazardous the occupancy, the more fire-
resistant the structure should be. The intent is to protect a building from fire and to contain a fire for the
time required to safely evacuate occupants and for a firefighting response to occur. The limitation on
size may be exceeded if the building is equipped with an automatic fire sprinkler system, or if it is
divided by fire walls into areas not exceeding the size limitation.
In IBC Table 503, the allowable height and area of a building are determined by the intersection of
occupancy group and construction type. As occupancy is usually determined before heights and areas,
the table will typically be entered by reading down the list of occupancy groups to find the occupancy
that fits the building design. Reading across leads to the allowable heights and building areas based on
types of construction.

Note that the distinction between A and B categories of construction types is one of level of fire
resistance. Because category A is of higher fire resistance, Type A buildings of any construction type
have higher allowable heights and areas than Type B buildings. Using the principle of classifying
occupancies by degree of hazard and building types by fire-resistance, the higher the level of fire and
life safety, the larger and taller a building can be.

Heights are expressed in two ways. The first is height in feet above the grade plane and is generally
independent of occupancy, but tied to fire-resistance; the second is height in stories and is tied to
occupancy. Both sets of criteria apply to each analysis. This is to avoid having high floor-to-floor heights
between stories that could generate a building exceeding the height limit in feet above grade plane if
heights were not also tabulated. The illustrations on the facing page show the relationship of occupancy
and construction type to allowable heights and building areas. The examples highlight the differences as
one proceeds from Type I fire-protected construction to Type V unrated construction.
In IBC Table 503, the allowable height and area of a building are determined by the intersection of
occupancy group and construction type. As occupancy is usually determined before heights and areas,
the table will typically be entered by reading down the list of occupancy groups to find the occupancy
that fits the building design. Reading across leads to the allowable heights and building areas based on
types of construction.

Note that the distinction between A and B categories of construction types is one of level of fire
resistance. Because category A is of higher fire resistance, Type A buildings of any construction type
have higher allowable heights and areas than Type B buildings. Using the principle of classifying
occupancies by degree of hazard and building types by fire-resistance, the higher the level of fire and
life safety, the larger and taller a building can be.

Heights are expressed in two ways. The first is height in feet above the grade plane and is generally
independent of occupancy, but tied to fire-resistance; the second is height in stories and is tied to
occupancy. Both sets of criteria apply to each analysis. This is to avoid having high floor-to-floor heights
between stories that could generate a building exceeding the height limit in feet above grade plane if
heights were not also tabulated. The illustrations on the facing page show the relationship of occupancy
and construction type to allowable heights and building areas. The examples highlight the differences as
one proceeds from Type I fire-protected construction to Type V unrated construction.
Type I buildings have their major building elements constructed of noncombustible materials, such as
concrete, masonry, or steel. Some combustible materials are allowed if they are ancillary to the primary
structure of the building.
Type II buildings are similar to Type I buildings except for a reduction in the required fire-resistance
ratings of the major building elements.
Type III buildings have noncombustible exterior walls and major interior elements of any material
permitted by the code.
Type IV buildings (Heavy Timber, HT) have noncombustible exterior walls and major interior elements
of solid or laminated wood of specified minimum sizes and without concealed spaces.
Type V buildings have structural elements, exterior walls, and interior walls of any material permitted by
the code.
Fire-resistance ratings are based on the performance of various materials and construction assemblies
under fire-test conditions as defined by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM).
However, the building code allows designers to use several alternate methods to demonstrate
compliance with fire-resistive criteria.

One method allows the use of ratings determined by such recognized agencies as Underwriters
Laboratory or Factory Mutual. The International Building Code itself contains a listing of prescriptive
assemblies, which describe the protective measures that can be applied to structural members, to floor
and roof construction, and to walls to achieve the necessary ratings.