Project Profile: Special Moment Frame Dropped-Beam Solution Saves Day(light) by Preserving Window Openings

Simpson Strong-Tie recently had the opportunity to work with MAK Construction to come up with a rather unique solution for a residential project in Phoenix, Arizona. Our Strong Frame® Moment Frame Selector software was used by the engineer on record, L.R. Nelson Consulting Engineers, LLC, to design this truly “special” special moment frame (SMF). The challenge for this particular moment frame design was figuring out how to work around a large garage door opening on the bottom floor without obstructing the window openings on the next floor, because the standard SMF design would cause the beam to cross right through the middle of the windows as they were situated. The solution required dropping the beam below the top of the columns, something seldom seen in moment frame designs. However, our engineering services, in collaboration with L.R. Nelson Consulting Engineers, were able to determine that dropping the beam to the needed level would be quite feasible in this case, and within 24 hours a new design was sent to the EOR and to the contractor for final approvals, which were granted.

CJ Dal Pra, Simpson Strong-Tie Territory Manager for the Arizona market, was able to take some great photos capturing this ingenious modification of our Strong Frame special moment frame. It’s always nice to see our solutions before they disappear behind walls, but knowing that we’re helping create safer, stronger, longer-lasting structures for our customers is what gives us the greatest satisfaction. We’ve also shared our verification drawing of this project, so be sure to take a look.

At Simpson Strong-Tie, we’re always thrilled to investigate new solutions for engineering challenges on the jobsite. It’s what keeps our job exciting.

Special Moment Frame featuring a dropped-beam solutionspecial moment frame with dropped-beam solution from an angleDropped-beam verification request

Dropped beam solution verified by Simpson Strong-Tie

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