Advanced Building Techniques

LONG SPAN IN
CONCRETE

What exactly is Long Span ?

The minimum span required to classify any structure as a

long span has been a topic for debate. The encyclopedia
Britannica sets the minimum value to 30 metres whereas in
D.K Chings book its 18 metres, while many other sources
just define it as a large unobstructed space. So in this
presentation we are going to explain the common techniques
of constructing slabs in concrete and also explore their limits.

Types of Concrete
slab systems

Flat Plate
Flat Slab
Beam & Slab Structure
Ribbed (Waffle) Slab
Band Beam System
Slab and Joist System
Precast Concrete Slabs
Composite floor slab system
Shell Structures

Flat Plate

One-way or two-way system

usually supported directly on
columns or load bearing walls
One of the most common
forms of construction
Easy to construct
Great flexibility for locating
horizontal services above a
suspended ceiling.

Pros

Cons

Simple formwork and

suitable for direct fix or
sprayed ceiling.
No beamssimplifying
under-floor services.
Minimum structural depth
and reduced floor-to floor
height.

Medium spans.
Limited lateral load capacity as part of a moment
frame.
May need shear heads or shear reinforcement at
the columns or larger columns

for shear.
Long-term deflection may be controlling factor.
May not be suitable for supporting brittle
(masonry) partitions
May not be suitable for heavy loads.

Steps involved in design

Reinforced Flat Plate & Pre-stressed

Flat Plate

Thickness of
slab

450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0

Span

Reinforced Flat
Plate
Prestressed Flat
Plate

Reinforced Flat
Plate NonEconomical
Prestressed Flat
Plate NonEconomical

Flat Slab

Similar to Flat Plate but with drop

panels provided at the columns
Drop Panels increase the shear
capacity and the stiffness of the
floor system under vertical loads,
thus increasing the economical
span range
The plan dimensions of the drop
panels are a minimum of 1/3 of
the span in the direction under
consideration, usually rounded to
the nearest 100 mm.

Pros

Simple formwork
No
beams
simplifying
under-floor services outside
the drops
Minimum structural depth
Usually does not require

shear reinforcement at the

columns

Cons
Medium spans
Generally not suitable for supporting
brittle (masonry) partitions
Drop panels may interfere with larger
mechanical ducting
Vertical penetrations need to avoid
area around columns
For reinforced flat slabs, deflection at
the middle strip may be critical.

Thickness (mm)

Reinforced Flat Slab & Pre-stressed Flat

Slab
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0

Span

Reinforced Flat
Slab
Prestressed Flat
Slab

Reinforced Flat
Slab NonEconomical
Prestressed Flat
Slab NonEconomical

Beam and Slab

consists of beams framing into

columns and supporting slabs
spanning between the beams.
The relatively deep beams
provide a stiff floor capable of
long spans, and able to resist
lateral loads
One of the most commonly
used systems

Pros

Cons

Traditional effective
solution
Long spans.

Penetrations through beams for

large ducts difficult to handle
Depth of floor
Greater floor-to-floor height.

Types of commonly used beams

Simply Supported
Fixed
Cantilever
Continuous
Overhanging

Ribbed/Waffle
Slab
Ribbed floors consisting of equally
spaced ribs are usually supported
directly by columns.
They are either one-way spanning
systems known as ribbed slab or a twoway ribbed system known as a waffle
slab.
The formwork costs and the low fire
rating.
Ribbed slabs are suitable for medium
to heavy loads
Can span reasonable distances
Are very stiff and particularly suitable
where the soffit is exposed.

Pros
Savings on weight and
materials
Long spans
Attractive soffit appearance if
exposed
Economical when reusable
formwork pans used
Vertical penetrations between
ribs are easy.

Cons

Requires special or proprietary

formwork
Greater floor-to-floor height
Large vertical penetrations are more
difficult to handle.

Thickness (mm)

Reinforced Ribbed Slab

800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0

Span

Single Span
Single Span NonEconomical
Multi Span
Multi Span NonEconomical

Band beam and

slab
This system consists of a series of
parallel, wide, shallow beams (known as
band beams or thickened slab bands) with
the floor slab spanning transversely
between the bands.
The floor slab is designed as a continuous
slab, with the shallow band beams
carrying all loads from the slab.
Band beams or thickened slab bands are
a two-way slab system.

Band beam and

Slab

Banded-beam systems are

economically viable for span
lengths from 35 ft to 50 ft
and beyond .
The overall thickness of the
band-beam is typically 12
in. to 18 in.
The width can vary from 4 ft
to 10 ft.
Depending on the spans and
loads, the slab is usually 7
in. to 9 in. thick.
.

Band beam and

Slab

The primary purpose of thickening the slab is to provide an

increased drape for the tendons that are banded in this
region.
Increasing the drape allows larger upward prestressing
forces to counteract the load effects in the long direction.
Depending on the span lengths and/or the magnitude of
the loads, either non-prestressed or post-tensioned
reinforcement
is used in the slab in the direction perpendicular to the
bands.
Banded-beam systems are economically viable for span
lengths from 35 ft to 50 ft and beyond.

Pros
Relatively simple formwork
Shallow beams to allow
services to run under the
floor
Minimum structural depth

and reduced floor-to floor

height
Long spans
Good cost/time solution
Allows the use of flying
forms.

Cons

Long-term deflection may

be controlling factor and
post-tensioning may be
required
May need service
penetrations through
beams which are difficult to
handle.

Slab and Joist System

This system consists of a slab
spanning between beams (which
span between columns) and
usually an intermediate joist in one
direction.
Frequently, the slab thickness
between the joists is controlled by
requirements for fire-resistance.
For example, a 2-hour fire
resistance rating requires a 120mm slab thickness, which is
capable of spanning
approximately 4 m.

Wide-module
joist systems
may be
defined as
joist systems
with clear
spacings of
Ribs
exceeding 30
in.

Economy in construction is achieved through the use of

combinations of commonly available, reusable
standard joist forms. Standard forms dimensions for
modules of 4-0 , 5-0 and 6-0

Pros

Thin slab panels possible

Suits industrial structures
Long spans
Vertical penetrations
between beams easily
accommodated.

Cons
More formwork
Joists and beams intrude on
services
Depth of floor
Greater floor-to-floor height.

Potential savings in both materials and construction with the use of widemodule
Joist systems include:
Utilization of the top slab required for fire rating,
Elimination of 50% of the ribs,
Uniform height of the deck form with the wide beam,
Easy adjustments to fit the common range of modular column layouts,
Less field labor time for construction.

The five preceding items are direct potential savings.

Indirect benefits are:
Elimination of half the ribs reduces dead load and reinforcement,
The wider rib spacing creates a larger supprted area per rib,
thereby increasing the allowablelive load reductions and further
reducing reinforcement

Composite floor
structures

Composite slabs comprise

reinforced concrete cast on top
ofprofiled steel decking, which
acts as formwork during
construction and external
reinforcement

Advantages of using composite floor

slabs:
Composite joists have been used to make floor slabs exceeding a span of 100
feet.

Ability to route mechanical HVAC, plumbing and electrical lines through joist open webs.
Ease of moving HVAC during life of building
Better Plenum space utilization
Floor-to-floor height can be reduced by not having to run mechanical joints under the
joists
More efficient and stiffer composite design makes it possible to support a given load
with a shallower joist.
Weight svings from the joist reduces building costs.
Simplified erection, faster connections and minimal crane lifts. With fewer and simpler
connections, ironworkers dont have to align a large number of bolt holes.
Customised composite floor designs can be made for any given loading and
serviceabilty.

Precast Slab

These systems consist of precast floor

elements spanning one way onto either
insitu or precast beams or precast
beam shells or other suitable supports.
The precast floor elements are usually
simply supported before a topping
concrete is placed to complete the
system.
Pre-casting offers the advantages of offsite manufacture under factory
conditions and fast erection on site.
When combined with pre-stressing,
additional benefits of long span and
high load-capacity can be obtained.

Types of Precast Slabs

A number of different systems are available

including:
Hollow-core planks, either with or without
a topping.
Composite flooring using precast
permanent formwork panels.
Composite flooring using precast beam
and infill.
Solid slabs either reinforced or prestressed.
Single and double T-beams.
Manufacturers will usually deliver precast
concrete panels to the builders time
schedule, thus allowing panels to be lifted
from the transport and placed directly into
position.

Features
Speed of erection
Precast slabs can typically be erected in one or two
days.
Pricing
Precast flooring is more economical than cast in situ
concrete, due to the lower mass and better span to
depth ratios possible.
Thermal properties
Hollow core slabs and beam and block systems
incorporating hollow blocks provide superior insulation,
although it is recommended that an insulating screed
is applied on top of the precast units when they are
used as roofs.

Building Types

Housing
Educational
Offices & Commercial
Industrial
Warehouses
Hospitals
Roofs
Car parks
Suspended ground slabs
(heaving clays)
Hotels

Shell structures

A shell structure is a thin

curved membrane or slab
usually of reinforced concrete
that functions both as a
structure and covering.

Single or double curvature

shells
Single curvature shells : are curved on one linear
axis and are part of a cylinder or cone in the form of
barrel vaults and conoid shells.
Double curvature shells : they are either part of a
sphere or a hyperboloid of revolution.

TYPES OF SHELL STRUCTURES

Folded Plate Structures

Principle components:

The inclined plates

Edge plates which must be used to stiffen the wide plates
Stiffners to carry the loads to the supports and to hold the plates in line.
Columns to support the structure in air.

Advantage :

a folded plate structure may be formed in the same cost

as a horizontal plate structure and use less much lesser concrete and
steel for the same span.

Cylindrical barrel vaults

Barrel vaults are perhaps the most useful shell structure because
they can span upto 150 feet with minimum material.
They are very efficient structures because the arched shape
reduces the stresses ad thickness in the transverse direction.

Domes of revolution

A dome is structure covering more or less suare or a circular plan

area.
It is a double curvature structure and stiffer than any structure
with a single curvature.

Pros
Very light form of
construction. To span
30m a shell thickness
of only 60mm is
required.
Dead load can be
reduced economizing
the construction of
foundations and
supporting systems.
Arched shapes can
span even longer.
Flat shapes can be
obtained too by using
certain arched shapes.

Cons
Shuttering can be a problem.
Greater accuracy in formwork
is required.
Skilled labour and supervision
is required.
The rise in the height in roof
maybe a problem.

Why Concrete ?

For the construction of shells concrete is the most suitable material

because its a highly plastic material that can take up any shape on
centering or inside formwork.
Small sections of reinforcement bars can be bent to follow the
curvature of the shell.
Once the concrete hardens into the shape of the shell it becomes a
rigid member that acts both as the structure and the covering to the
building.

Centering of shells

Centering is the necessary temporary support that is required for

on which the rcc concrete shell structure is to be cast.
The centering of a barrel vault is less complex than that of a
dome or a conoid as it has the same curvature along its length.

Literature Study

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

The Sydney opera house spans upto 164 feet.

The arches are supported by over
350km of tensioned steel cable.
The shell thickness goes from 3 to 4 inches.
All shells weigh about 15tonne.

The shells were perceived as a series of parabolas supported by

precast ribs, the formwork for using in-situ concrete would have been
prohibitively expensive but because there was no repetition in any of
the roof forms, the construction of precast concrete for each of the
individual section would possibly have been more expensive.
The design team went through at least 12 iterations of the form of
the shells trying to find an economically acceptable form (including
schemes with parabolas, circular ribs and ellipsoids) before a
workable solution was completed. In the mid 1961, the design team
found a solution to the problem.
The shells all being created as sections from a sphere, this solution
allows arches of varying length to be cast in a common mould, and a
number of arch segments of common length to be placed adjacent to
one another to form a spherical section.

Case Study

JAIPUR INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION

AND EXHIBITION CENTRE

Long span roofing slab of 30 m x 40m span.

One Way Beam and Column structure
5 beams and 10 columns
Network of primary, secondary and tertiary beams.
Primary Beam size : 1.3 m wide and 2.5m deep.
Concrete used in slab is M40.
Clear height achieved for the hall = 9m.
Load on the slab = 20 tonnes per sq m.
The HVAC and lighting services have been done between the slab
and the false ceiling (plywood false ceiling.)
Tertiary beams have been provided to handle load of the services
on the slab.
Problems faced in this design is that there has been no provision
on catwalk. This is because of the beam depth. The false ceiling is
3m deep from the slab.

COMPARATIVE STUDY

Span in metres

20
15
10
5
0

Source: Guide to Long Span Concrete Floors, CCAA

Prakhar Virendra (048)

Nitesh Verma (016)

Meenakshi Baruah (075)

Devika (072)
Avinash Chauhan (034)

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