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Two killed, one badly hurt in New York crane collapseMay 31, 2008 - 11:43AM
A crane crashed onto a building in New York City, killing two construction workers and seriously injuring another, officials said, in the second such fatal accident here in less than three months.Mayor Michael Bloomberg called the incident was "intolerable," but said there was "no reason to think there's any real connection" between the two crane crashes.All three victims were working on the site in the Upper East Side of Manhattan Friday when the crane fell on the 32-story building being built and a 23-story building across the street, the mayor told reporters, adding that a pedestrian was also lightly injured.Police said the crane operator died at the scene, while a second worker died later in hospital. A third worker was in serious condition with a chest wound."I think what has happened is unacceptable and intolerable," Bloomberg said."Having said that, we do not at the moment know exactly what happened or why... whether or not had we had other regulations, we could have prevented this at this point, we just don't know."Officials insisted the crane had been properly inspected."We have no reason to believe that there was anything we could have done to prevent this. Clearly, the crane fell. Three people were very badly hurt, one fatally, so we have to take a look at our procedures again," Bloomberg said.New York Governor David Paterson said the accident was a "terrible tragedy," adding: "There's no need to speculate now on how this happened. That will all be investigated, but certainly these types of accidents are all too frequent."A similar tragedy took place in Manhattan in March when a construction crane fell on top of a small building, killing seven people.New regulations were introduced following the March accident, and first deputy buildings commissioner Robert LiMandri said the crane involved in Friday's collapse had been inspected under this new protocol.Firefighters picked through piles of rubble at the site, while crowds gathered trying to get a look at the twisted metal of the crane and part of the building that appeared sheared off.In March, seven people were killed, six of them construction workers, when a 60-meter (200-foot) crane collapsed and crushed an entire residential building and damaged several other properties.Bloomberg said at the time that the accident was "one of the worst the city has had."A New York city employee later was charged with lying about an inspection he supposedly made of that construction crane.That building under construction, a 43-story residential block, had been cited for 13 safety violations, five of which were still outstanding, according to local authorities.

Research

This my element that i chose, 2 beams being connected together to make the apex and a mullion below that connection to withstand and work with the building against wind loads.
This is a crane on site helping erected the steel members, the crane would stay onsite from the very first erection of steel to the very last.
This is another view of all the steel members, and another look at my element for my major project.
And this is my delivery truck that i used on my poster! I had engneers designs of my construction as well as steel fabricators drawings which i added to my poster but for some reason i cannot upload them.

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H. TROON

More images of bondek and the pillars that are spaced to support the above flooring.
This building is going to be a 5 star rating buliding so they have installed a tank which will then supply the bulding with their own water.
This is the undercover parking, here is the 'bondeck' type material that supports the flooring above. A concrete pillar supporting the florring above as well.
A box gutter, drainage system, which is supported by a steel connection which is bolted into the pre-cast concrete panels


Close up of the connection of the pre-cast concrete panels, they are bolted together and then a mastic type material also is in place to allow some movement.
This picture shows the services, eg air conditioning, electrical in the roof and after all these services have been installed plasterboard will cover the ceiling and the services
Here is a pipe that is being held up by a type of string to the 'C' purlins in the roof. Also a beam with bracing coming off it.

This is a close up of the connection between the pre-cast concrete panels, this is a mastic type material that alllows some movement.
A close up of the connection of steel to the concrete, this is supporting the 'C' purlins in the roof.
Here you can see the beam cast into the pre-cast wall with the addition of a bolted connection. There is also secondary beams spanning from the primary beam. There is also very heavy bracing to support the primary beam. Also visible is the services.
Here is a pre-cast concrete wall, with steel bolted and welded connection, there is also a beam bolter in to the wall. This wasll is load bearing, which is giving support for the roofing and the long spanning of the roof with the beams.
Tilt your head to the LEFT this is pre-cast concrete, the supporting beams have been taken out and you can see that it has been patched up. There is no structual load on these walls, they are their for asthetics only.
H. TROON is the construction company that have been contracted to build this office block for the Department of Health in Ballarat, Armstrong St North.
Here are the lovely subcontractors just finishing rendering the supporting posts for the enterance of the building. The concrete that you can see is all prefacbricated and brought to site.
Another enterance to the buliding, their are two office spaces on for the department of health and the other will be put up for lease. The concrete doesnt take the load it is just their for asthetics.
Below is a conection between two steel beams, stiffing and a column to support, along woth bracing. Bolted connection between all the steel components

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Palmer Brothers Eng. Details

This detail show the site plan; where the portal frame construction is situated on the site.
This is the roofing detail. Bracing, 'C' purlins, beams.
This the the floor plan, you can see the columns and their spacing, to give the open span. Also the entrances and exits are visible.
This is just the site elevations of the portal frame construction of Palmer Brothers. This is a detail of the elevations from the front entrance an the rear.
This is a detail drawing of a portal frame construction. What you can see is the column and beam connection, footing details, the wall and roofing materials used.

Article 2.

Construction 'to reach $82b in 2008-09'

November 22, 2007 - 10:49AM

Engineering and commercial construction activity by the private sector is expected to reach a record high of $82 billion in 2008-09, a new report shows.

But many of the country's leading construction companies say they are experiencing continued pressure from scarce resources and tight profit margins.

Construction companies are forecasting a 7.4 per cent increase in the total value of construction work which would build on a hefty 10.8 per cent increase expected for 2007-08 and 12.1 per cent growth in 2006-07, the Australian Industry Group (Ai Group)-Australian Constructors Association (ACA) construction outlook says.

"The survey confirms that engineering and commercial construction remains strong," ACA president Wal King said.

"It is also clear, however, that supply constraints and rises in construction costs pose a risk to growth prospects, with many firms continuing to face intense pressure from both scarce resources and tight profit margins."

Reflecting a sizeable backlog of work and further infrastructure investment plans, the report says engineering construction is forecast to be the major driver of growth, with total turnover predicted to rise by 14.2 per cent in 2007-08 and 9.7 per cent in 2008-09.

Non-residential building, or commercial construction, is forecast to expand further to generate $30 billion of work in 2008-09, although the pace of growth is expected to moderate to 7.1 per cent in 2007-08 and 3.5 per cent in 2008-09.

Apartment building sector work is expected to decline by 12.8 per cent in 2007-08, before regaining some ground in 2008-09 with a rise of 2.1 per cent.

Ai Group chief executive Heather Ridout says the continued growth of the engineering construction industry is positive news with the sector making a great contribution to the national economy.

"The construction industry continues to demonstrate its capacity to respond to the demands of the market but it will take much greater collaboration between clients and contractors if we are to maximise the benefits of the current surge in activity.

"We can no longer burden industry with the costs of tendering that are diverting valuable industry resources.

"We need new, collaborative procurement models that improve coordination between public sector agencies, both state and federal.

"Ideally, the industry needs three- to five-year visible project horizons to allow resource planning and better coordination."

Growth in engineering construction is expected to be broadly based, although key contributors to the strong two-year outlook include transport infrastructure, mining construction and heavy industry.

Solid rises are also expected in telecommunications infrastructure, water supply projects, power generation, and other civil projects such as the construction and upgrading of freight and port facilities to ease export bottlenecks.

This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2007/11/22/1195321911968.html

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Additional Palmer Brother Photos

TILT YOUR HEAD TO THE LEFT. This picture shows the joint between a 'UB' column and'UB' beam, as you can see they a joint by bolts. There is bracing from the 'UB' beam and column for reinforcement, and to allow some moment of the buliding. There is also a 'C' purlin in the top corner.
This is a picture of the roof, you can see the 'UB' rafters meet at the apex of the bulding. These rafters hold an 'I' beam which is for the use of the overhead crane. Evident also is he services that are visabl, lights copper steam rods. Also to note that there is no insulation or saftey mesh in this buliding.

Article 1.

The article is about a New Zealand school finally being able to get their own hall, to have assembles and school functions in. The school has had fundraiser to get the money to build the portal frame building. Volunteers like Futurebuild which is a construction company, that was involved from the early stages of design as well as the New Zealand army who has helped put the frame up. Since the Army boys have been scattered around the globe the project has been on hold and the school has started fundraising again.

CHH Futurebuild's Hyspan frame ideal for the country

Whakarongo was a small country school in search of a new school hall. For a long time, the students of this New Zealand school just outside of Palmerston North had to walk along a busy main road to get to the community hall some distance away. The school board saw the need for a brand new hall closer to the school itself that would fit in with the beautiful leafy setting but that was affordable and well adapted to the school's needs. A prefabricated Hyspan portal frame construction with a timber ground floor was the ideal solution.
Once fund raising for the new school hall began, Mr Brian Goldfinch, chair of the schools building committee, had his eye out for suitable and cost-effective options. Working as a contractor at Linton Military Camp, a New Zealand Army base, Mr Goldfinch saw the army trainees erect a trades workshop and a new generator shed using Futurebuild Hyspan LVL.

The ease and speed of construction prompted him to contact Futurebuild to assess the suitability of this Pre-Fabricated Hyspan portal frame for the upcoming Whakarongo project.
From beginning to end, Futurebuild was involved closely with the project. Assisting with design and pricing in the early stages is part of the service provided by Futurebuild New Zealand, ensuring that clients understand the LVL materials and can make fully informed decisions on materials and design. The project assistance was provided by Futurebuild's commercial market manager Alan Ross and two staff designers. 'The geometry of this structure, 20 metre clear span with a 4 metre wall height, fitted within our range of Standard Portal Frame Designs. This allowed for a budget estimate to be passed to Brian within 24 hours which in turn allowed a comparison of our LVL design with alternative solutions' says Ross.

Client and supplier then worked closely together to come up with final drawings and material take off before the project was taken through to construction of the portal frame.
Construction was also a team effort involving the 2nd Engineer regiment of the New Zealand army and army trainees. The engineers brought the project to its closing stages, while for the trainees the combination of timber sub-floor and Hyspan portals provided a great opportunity for training.

The sub floor was built using treated timber piles bedded into a concrete pad foundation, with timber bearers and joists.
The project utilised the kind of carpentry not ordinarily seen in the big steel portal sections of many New Zealand commercial buildings and this gave the opportunity for the army trainees to enhance these skills using a range of LVL products.
Ultimately, using Hyspan was cost effective for Goldfinch and the school because of the ease of construction. The result is a large school hall with a woody feel at a good price.

The committee and the students are happy with the hall which sits beautifully in the tree filled playground and features lovely high windows and a colour scheme that suits the surrounds.
However, the building of the school hall is not quite a closed chapter. Though the exterior is complete, the hall cannot be used until the interior is finished too. With the New Zealand army boys away, scattered to all corners of the globe on service, the project is on hold, and fund raising has begun again in earnest. Naturally, all donations are welcome.

For further information contact:CHH Futurebuildphone: +61 3 9258 7600fax: +61 3 9258 7629web: www.chhfuturebuild.com

Palmer Brothers

Palmer Brothers is an industrail laundry owned by Jim Bell. He kindly let me take photos of his Portal Framed Factory, which is located LOT 25, Martin Drive, Delacome, Ballarat.

The Industrial building was built by an owner builder, Mr Pitts, who was the previous owner and an engineer who worked for Basic Engineering. Jim bell informed me that the building was over engineered. It was used to design steel constuction and joinery for the steel.



















Here is a distant view of the apex. There is the two 'UB' rafters, that join to make the apex, this is an additional element of the building with an 'I' beam connected to the rafters. This is designed to take the weight of the overhead crane, which was there to move steel by the previous owner. Jim Bell uses it now to install machinary and move wet laundray.
Also 'C' purlins and 'C' girts are also visable, alond with bracing. There is not safty mesh or insulation in this building.
Tilt you head to the side, and you can see a distant view of a 'UB' Column (Stanchion) and a 'UB' Beam (Rafter).


















There is also bracing which is coming off from the beams and colums, onto the wall.