MULTISTOREY

BUILDINGS

LECTURE NOTES
What are Multistorey Buildings ?
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Buildings having more than a specified number of floors
•
High rise buildings having slenderness ratio more than a specific
value – say 6
Need
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for Multistorey Buildings
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Limited land availability
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Availability of more FAR / FSI
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Multiplication of layout using limited resources
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Economic Considerations
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Providing near ideal living conditions
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Environmental Reasons
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Aesthetic reasons
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Ambition
Technical Definition of Multistory /
High Rise Buildings

Having height more than a point beyond which the effects of

lateral forces – i.e. Wind and Earthquake – become predominant
and / or servicing the building in cases of fire and for
maintenance becomes difficult without special and pre-planned
methods with the help of specific equipment and skilled personnel.

Structural Considerations
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Fundamental structural
requirements
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Stability
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Strength
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Serviceability
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Durability
Design Considerations in
High Rise Buildings

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Vertical Transportation
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Services Routing
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Fire escape routes
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Fire fighting facilities
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Wind velocity
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Façade / Window systems
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Water requirement and distribution
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Environmental concerns
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Public services consumption / usage on concentrated scale
Design Considerations in
High Rise Buildings

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Large Population housing
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Standby Services
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Captive Power
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Captive disposal systems
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Building Maintenance Systems
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Maintenance access at a later date
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Earthquake Escapes
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Psychology of residents
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Pre-occupation
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Post-occupation
 Construction Aspects
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Resource mobilization at heights
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Materials …. Cranes, hoists, pumps
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Labour ………. Lifts
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Skilled labour required
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Huge material shifting
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Accuracy
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Alignment
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Hazards at working at heights
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Special equipment
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Speed of construction
 Enhanced Elemental Action For Multi Storied Buildings

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Gravitational loads
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Wind Effects
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Earthquake Forces
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Weathering – Heat, Water, Air
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Fire

Structural Impact

P Large Vertical Loads

V Large Horizontal Shears

M Large Overturning
Moments
 Enhanced Elemental Action For Multi Storied Buildings

Gravity Loads

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Huge Gravitational loads due to stacking of floors on smaller
footprint
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Self weight becomes predominant
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Large column sizes at bottom
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Special attention to geotechnical conditions necessary
Wind Effects

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Forces vary in Geometrical Proportion with respect to
the height of the building
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Cyclic wind conditions produce reversible stresses in
materials
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Continuous dynamic effects produce large scale sway
or short term deflections
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Effects : Horizontal Shear
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 Enhanced Elemental Action For Multi Storied Buildings

Earthquake Forces
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Forces vary in Geometrical Proportion
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Forces dependent on mass distribution along the height
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Dynamic effects of ground shaking may resonate the structure
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Effects : Horizontal Shear
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Overturning
Weathering Vibrations

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Wind velocity increases as the height
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Effects of rain with high velocity wind are extremely penetrating
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Atmospheric pollution may rise to higher heights
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Problems are compounded due to access restrictions for
maintenance
Fire

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Quick escapes for persons trapped is difficult
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Spread of fire through vertically stacked floors is quicker
Additional Concerns

Large Deflections – Serviceability Criteria

Vibrations
Ductility
Elastic Shortening
Fatigue due to Cyclic Loading
Overturning
Twisting
Evolving a Structural System

As an architect – Plan for accommodating Structural Elements

essential for a multistory building to address all the concerns
listed earlier.
Large Columns Diaphragm action
Shear Walls Spandrel Frames
Shear Cores Bracings
Frame Action Infill Panels
Evolving a Structural System

Selecting a suitable form

Complete geometrical shape
No re-entrant corners
Aero-dynamic shape to reduce drag
Less soft story occurrence
Stable solid shape
Lesser mass placement at higher levels
Evolving a Structural System

Appropriate Building Systems

Slim flooring system
Light weight floor finishes
Light weight partitions
Light weight facade
Stacked services shafts
Unitized finishing systems to control damage
Evolving a Structural System

Various Building Support Systems

1. Column – Beam Framework
2. Shear Wall – Column Frames
3. Central Core + Peripheral Columns
4. Tubular Configuration
5. Concentric Tubes
6. Bundled Tubes
7. Tapered Forms
8. Spandrel Frames / Girders
Evolving a Structural System

Various flooring systems

1. Beam grid with conventional slabs
2. Ribbed slab
3. Waffle slab
4. Flat slab
5. Post Tensioned Slab
6. Steel beams with RCC slab
7. Steel beams with Deck Profile
8.
 FIVE TOWERS FOR GODREJ DEVELOPERS - LOWER PAREL, MUMBAI

3 Podiums + 42 stories
residential towers

Very slender building

Building height 150 m

Use of M60 concrete in lower

floors helped in deflection
control
The Burj-Dubai

Bundled Tubes
The Burj-Dubai:
Construction
The Eiffel Tower-Paris

Tapered Form
Oberoi Commercial-
Mumbai

Central Core
Peripheral Columns
Post Tensioned Slabs
OBEROI COMMERCIAL, MUMBAI
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Use of M60, M50 and M40
concrete in columns to
control column sizes
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Largest column diamter
800 mm at Ground Floor
Level
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33 Floors
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Column spacing of 9 m at
periphery, 13 m away from
central core
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Post Tensioned Banded
Ribbed Slab with M40
concrete
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Construction cycle 10 days
OBEROI SPRINGS, MUMBAI
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33 Residential floors over 4 parking
levels
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Use of M60, M50 and M40 concrete in
columns to control column sizes
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Predominantly shear wall supports

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Construction cycle 10 days
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Use of Mivan Shuttering dictated that
the grade of columns, walls and the
floor slab, beams and even the
elevation features be the same, even if
not required.
•

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However, it helped in overall economy.
The steel consumption in the total
project is only 4.85 kg/sq.ft
•

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FOUR SEASONS HOTEL, WORLI
2 Basements + Ground + 34 Story Hotel
Central but eccentrically placed shear
core and peripheral columns
Single span Flat slab in M40 spanning 8 m
between core and the peripheral columns
Columns were in M60, M50 and M40

Maximum column size at Ground Floor

1000 dia
Use of high grade concrete at a stage
when HPC was beginning to appear in the
market
Concrete in the junctions of columns and
floors was the same as the column
concrete

Contractor had to use two pumps to pour

concrete in the floors
Awareness about the permissible
Royal Palms
SEZ

Drawing Available
ITC Grand Central, Parel-
Mumbai

Central Core
Strong Peripheral Columns -
Shear walls
Frame action
Tapered form
The Stock Exchange-
Mumbai

22 storied
Composite Columns

Bundled Segmental
concentric tubes with a
strong shear core
 Materials of Construction

• Concrete
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High grade
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High Performance
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Pumping
• Reinforcement
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High grade
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Ductile
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Corrosion resistant
• Structural Steel
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High Grade
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Can also be used in composite construction
 Structural Steel Buildings

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Faster construction
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Dry construction
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Structural Steel usage needs different discipline of
planning
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Bracings / ties may have to be accommodated in the
aesthetics of the building
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Headroom Considerations
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Skilled labour and resources
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Present day economics
PLAN
 Procedure of Structural Analysis and Design

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An architect must know the procedure of analysis and
design of the structure of a multistory building.
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Steps
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Preliminary framing – placement of columns, shear walls
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Beam framing – preliminary sizing
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Computer model
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Load calculations
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Dead Loads
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Live Loads
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Wind Loads
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Earthquake loads
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 Procedure of Structural Analysis and Design

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An architect must know the procedure of analysis and
design of the structure of a multistory building.
•

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Steps (Continued from last page)
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Analysis runs – Multiple
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Adjustment of structural member sizes
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Check stability, adequacy of members, deflections
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Finalize member sizes
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Inform architect about the change in member sizes if needed
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Architect to incorporate the structural sizes in the
architectural drawings and to co-ordinate with services
consultants
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Final co-ordinated drawings of all agencies
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Structural design begins – reinforcement calculations + drawings
 Procedure of Structural Analysis and Design

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Computer Software Most Popular for analysis and design
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E-tabs - uses finite element method
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Staad Pro - Element Stiffness Matrix method
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SAFE - Foundation and slab analysis
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ADAPT - Post tensioned and flat slab analysis
 Present Indian Standards Relevant to
Structural Design of Multistory Buildings

IS 456 Concrete specifications and design

IS 800 Steel specifications and design

IS 1786 Reinforcement specifications and design

IS 4326 Defining building geometry, forms, general

guidelines on planning an earthquake

resistant building

IS 1893 Estimation of loads and forces arising out

of earthquake action

IS 13920 Ductile detailing norms

 Modern Methods of Assessing Forces and
Controlling Behaviour
Wind Tunnel Test
– Simulating Wind pattern in the region and observing the likely actual
wind pressures on the building and its projections

Glazing Test
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Prototype test on glazing simulating wind pressure conditions to failure
limits
- Prototype test on glazing by simulating rains along with wind pressure
to failure limits

Earthquake Simulation Test

– Useful for glazing and flooring systems

Using Dampers
- Limiting damage to non structural elements in building and