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FACTORS forward over the past fifteen years, but consensus does not exist.
This article summarises various proposals for safety factors for the
design of thin stone cladding. Most of these published
for design of thin recommendations are based on traditional safety factors for use in
allowable stress design, but there are several authors who have
granite cladding attempted to move towards the use of limit state design principles.
Unfortunately, there is as yet no published guidance on the type and
magnitude of load and resistance factors to use.
A REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL PRACTICE
The most widely accessible reference publication on safety factors for
the design of thin stone cladding is the current version of ASTM
INTRODUCTION C1242 Guide for Design, Selection, and Installation of Exterior
Dimension Stone Anchors and Anchoring[Q]. The section of text
This article is the first part of an occasional series on the engineering relating to safety factors is currently under revision, and is likely to
design of stone cladding. It is a review of published safety factors result in the recommendation of straight safety factors based on
for the design of thin stone cladding panels, particularly with regard material type, which do not take into account any variability in
to the effect of wind, or lateral, loads. strength data. These safety factors are likely to be highly
conservative.
Traditionally, safety factors have been applied by comparing the ratio b) safety factor based on variability of strength data
of the design strength to the design stress (load) with standard or
accepted values for the material and/or situation which is being c) probability-based material factor in quasi limit state approach
designed (equations 1 and 2). This is often referred to as allowable
or permissible stress design. A review of the literature and project specifications has identified at
least eight different approaches. These are outlined below, and
Safety factor < Design strength / Design stress (1) compared in Figure 1.
Design stress < Design strength / Safety factor (2)
Over the past three decades, there has been a gradual move towards ‘STRAIGHT’ SAFETY FACTORS
limit state or load/resistance factor design. This approach applies
factors to each component of the design assumptions to Those safety factors intended to be applied irrespective of any
accommodate unknowns. These factors can be applied to portions variability in strength data are summarised in Table 1.
of the design assumptions. For example, each type of loading
situation may have a different load
factor, and the design case might be Table 1 — ‘Straight’ safety factors Safety Factor
to allow for a combination of certain Stone Safety Factor (connections or
(but not all) loads to act Type (bending) concentrated loads)
simultaneously. Alternatively, there
may be a material factor to allow for National Building Granite granite 3 4
variability in strength of the Quarriers Association [A]
material, and another factor to allow
for loss of strength over time. Limit Marble Institute of America [B] granite (<50mm thick) 3 4
state design does not seek to granite (>50mm thick) 3 3
identify the overall safety factor
marble 5 5
acting on each design case, but it is
often calculated by engineers for slate 5 5
ease of comparison to traditional limestone 8 8
allowable stress design, particularly
sandstone 8 8
in areas where limit state design is
relatively new or not widely Indiana Limestone Institute [C] limestone 8 8
accepted. G.H.Smith [P] granite 4 na
44 www.discoveringstone.com issue #5
issue #5 www.discoveringstone.com
45
Bortz & Wonneberger assumed a loss in strength due to weathering It should also be noted that the majority of the literature about safety
of 30%, and for two different sample sets, obtained safety factors of factors for the design of thin stone cladding deals with the design of
1.79 and 2.81. the stone panels themselves. Very little guidance on appropriate
safety factors has been published for the design of the anchor
Despite the presentation of this approach, Bortz & Wonneberger connection points in stone panels.
recommended that designers should stay with the industry standard
safety factors at the present time and that probabilistic design
approaches should only be used if there is a clear understanding of ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
the variability of the stone that is being worked with.
The research for this paper was presented in a seminar format at the
Lewis [J] stated that present practice for design of stone cladding ASTM C18 Symposium on the Design, Construction, Evaluation and
systems utilised the ‘allowable stress’ approach based on standard Repair of Stone Cladding held in St Louis in October 1999. Input at
safety factors. He suggested however that instead of assuming that that symposium, particularly from Sy Bortz, led to further refinement
these safety factors covered all conditions, adoption of rational safety of the content.
factors based on consideration of the actual variability of the stone,
conditions of use and exposure of the stone would be more
appropriate. He stated that whilst designers assumed that the FUTURE PARTS
current safety factors covered all uncertainties, it was not possible
to identify the contribution of specific uncertainties to these safety Future parts of this paper may explore comparisons between the
factors. Consequently, that despite the fact that designers were various safety factors outlined above, or provide some guidance on
increasingly aware of the variable nature of these uncertainties in appropriate safety factors for the design of anchorages in the stone
differing situations, it was not possible to modify the safety factors panels.
to accommodate such variability.
In the next edition we hope to look closely at the amazing structure
Lewis discussed the philosophy of load-resistance factor design specified by architect Peter Davidson, at Federation Square
(LRFD) which allows for each influencing factor contributing either to Melbourne, which supports tons of Dimension Stone.
46 www.discoveringstone.com issue #5
TAKE NOTE [D] McCabe, J.T., Jr. “Understanding stone strength testing”,
Dimensional Stone Magazine, Sept. 1992, pp. 42-46,96.
[E] Clift, C.D. and Bayer, J.A. “Stone safety factors: much ado about
AustralAsian Granites are exporting world class nothing?”, Dimensional Stone, Jan/Feb. 1989, pp. 39-40.
granite to Italy, the United States, Taiwan, Thailand,
Indonesia & other international markets. [F] Bayer, J.A. and Clift, C.D. “Design of granite cladding”,
Dimensional Stone, June 1989, pp.24-26.