“PAF, GAF or Pass?” is a question that designers are often faced with when they need to attach wood or mechanical, electrical, or plumbing (MEP) fixtures to concrete, steel, or masonry structures, because there are several considerations to be made when deciding whether to utilize a direct-fastening solution or to “pass” and utilize a different attachment method. This is Part One of a two-part series discussing power–actuated fasteners and their applications. Before we get into the nitty-gritty, let’s define these acronyms and discuss how these types of fasteners work.
Tag: masonry
Anchor Anatomy 101: Strong-Bolt® 2 Wedge Anchor
We’re back today with our third Anchor Anatomy 101 blog post focusing on anchor systems. Each post is designed to clarify anchor components, installation processes, and common applications to help you make informed anchor selection decisions based on your project’s unique requirements. Our preceding post focused on adhesive anchor systems, while this post will look at wedge anchors.
Anchor Anatomy 101: SET-3G® Adhesive Anchoring System
Welcome to our second Anchor Anatomy 101 blog post focusing on anchor systems. Each post is designed to clarify anchor components, installation processes, and common applications to help you make informed anchor selection decisions based on your project’s unique requirements. Our first article focused on screw anchors; this blog looks at adhesive anchoring systems.
Anchor Anatomy 101: Titen HD® Concrete and Masonry Screw Anchors
Today’s blog post is the first in a series called “Anchor Anatomy 101.” Each post is designed to clarify anchor components, installation processes, and common applications to help you make informed anchor selection decisions based on your project’s unique requirements.
Concrete Results: The Titen Turbo™ Dust Channel Delivers Dependable Installations
Discover the innovation driving our Titen Turbo concrete screw anchors. In the following post, Ken Cho, Senior Product Engineer at Simpson Strong-Tie, explains how the patented dust channel design simplifies installations, eliminates frustrations and enhances overall efficiency. Revolutionize your concrete fastening projects with our latest offering — now also available in black!
Overview of the Strength-Based Cracked and Uncracked Masonry Design Standards for Adhesive Anchors
We’re entering the year 2024 — welcome to the world of cracked and uncracked masonry. The last time Simpson Strong-Tie wrote a blog post regarding design criteria for post-installed anchors in masonry was in 2019, and ICC-ES was considering the adoption of a revised version of AC58, the Acceptance Criteria for Adhesive Anchors in Cracked and Uncracked Masonry Elements. Acceptance Criteria, or ACs, outline the testing that a manufacturer must comply with in order to get an evaluation report. In some cases, the ACs contain calculations methods if they are otherwise unavailable. If you missed the previous blog post, here is a link so you can explore a bit of the history that has led us to where we are today.
Innovation Redefined: The Future of Structural Testing with Our Million Pound Rig
The future of full-scale structures testing and product development is here – and it is BIG. Our Tyrell Gilb Research Laboratory built a brand-new Million Pound Rig to help in the testing of our new Yield-Link® brace connection (YLBC), along with our many other products. Hear from Mike Wesson, Engineering Manager, Tyrell Gilb Research Laboratory, about this latest addition to the research lab.
Common Engineering Technical Inquiries — Part I: Anchors
Over the next few months, I will be doing a short three-part series going over common technical inquiries we receive in the engineering department. There is a wealth of information available on our website and in our literature, but so much content can sometimes be difficult to navigate. It is often said that knowledge is power, so my hope is to empower you with all the technical support you need so you can complete your job quickly and efficiently.
Mechanical Anchors: Screw vs. Expansion: — Which Is Right for Me?
Not all post-installed mechanical anchors are created equal. There are key differences between screw and expansion anchor types — differences that include how they gain their holding strength, installation requirements, and overall anchor performance. In the following post, field engineers Todd Hamilton, Chris Johnson and Derek Gilbert compare the two anchor types.
Masonry Reinforcement and Concrete Strengthening with Composites
This week’s post comes from Brad Erickson, who is the Engineering Manager for the Composite Strengthening Systems™ product line at our home office. Brad is a licensed civil and structural engineer in the State of California and has worked in the engineering field for more than 17 years. After graduating from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a B.S. in Architectural Engineering, he worked for Watry Design, Inc. as an Associate Principal before coming to Simpson Strong-Tie. Brad is the Engineering Manager for Composite Strengthening Systems and his experience includes FRP design, masonry and both post-tensioned and conventional concrete design. While not at work, Brad enjoys spending time carting his three kids around to their competitive soccer games and practices.
Have you ever had a concrete or masonry design project where rebar was left out of a pour? Chances are, the answer is yes. Did you wish you could solve this problem by putting rebar on the outside of that element? That’s exactly what Simpson Strong-Tie Composite Strengthening Systems™ (CSS) can do for you and your project. In effect, composites act like external rebar for your concrete or masonry element. Composites can be used in similar configurations to rebar but are applied on the exterior surface of the element being strengthened.
The initial offering in our CSS line is our fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) product group. An FRP composite is created by taking carbon or glass fabric and saturating it with a two-part epoxy which, when cured, creates the composite. Together, the weight of the fabric and the number of layers in the composite determine how much strength it will add to your concrete or masonry element.
Another form of FRP composite is a precured carbon laminate. The carbon fibers are saturated in the manufacturing facility and are attached to the structure using CSS-EP epoxy paste and filler, an epoxy with a peanut butter–like consistency. We also carry paste profilers (pictured below) that help contractors apply the proper amount of paste to a piece of precured laminate.
Of course, before any concrete or masonry reinforcement project can succeed, proper surface preparation is of the utmost importance. Without a good bond with the substrate, a composite will not be able to achieve the intended performance. Concrete voids must be repaired, cracks must be injected and sealed, and any deteriorated rebar must be cleaned and coated. Prior to composite placement, the surface of the substrate must be prepared to CSP-3 (concrete surface profile) in accordance with ICRI Guideline No. 310.2. Grinding and blasting are the most common surface-preparation techniques.
The following are just a few applications where composites can be used for concrete and/or masonry retrofits. The orange arrows show the direction of the fibers in the fabric – in other words, the direction in which the composite provides tension reinforcement.
This is a summary of the basics of composites and their installation on strengthening projects. As composites are not yet in the design codes in the United States, the American Concrete Institute has produced 440.2R-08: Guide for the Design and Construction of Externally Bonded FRP Systems for Strengthening Concrete Structures. This guide has numerous recommendations for using fiber-reinforced polymer systems to strengthen your concrete or masonry construction.
If you would like more information about FRP design, you can learn the best practices for fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strengthening design during a recorded webinar offered by Simpson Strong-Tie Professional Engineers. We look at FRP components, applications and installation. We also take you behind the scenes to share the evaluation process informing a flexural beam-strengthening design example and talk about the assistance and support Simpson Strong-Tie Engineering Services offers from initial project assessment to installation.
Learn more: Webinar – Introducing Fabric-Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM)
In this free webinar we dive into some very important considerations including the latest industry standards, material properties and key governing limits when designing with FRCM.
Continuing education credits will be offered for this webinar.
Participants can earn one professional development hour (PDH) or 0.1 continuing education unit (CEU).
For complete information regarding specific products suitable to your unique situation or condition, please visit strongtie.com/rps or call your local Simpson Strong-Tie RPS specialist.