AU654200B2 - Building systems - Google Patents

Description

~1 654200 oa C Ge C. C

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

C

*r I Name of Applicant JEFFREY MICHAEL TOOMEY Actual Inventor(s) JEFFREY MICHAEL TOOMEY Address for Service GRANT ADAMS COMPANY, Patent Trade Mark Attorneys Level 9, National Mutual Centre, 144 Edward Street, BRISBANE. QLD. 400

AUSTRALIA.

Invention Title "BUILDING SYSTEMS" Details of Associated Provisional Applications Numbers PK 8191 and 1268 The following statement is a full description of the invention including the best method of performing it known to me.

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i i f ri i t i j~ei: 1 i i i i ::1 2 THIS INVENTION relates to building systems and, in particular, to elements to be used in such systems. More particularly, the invention relates to a system by which plumbing to wet areas can be expeditiously installed especially in multi-storey buildings using a prefabricated element. The invention more particularly relates to a prefabricated core incorporating plumbing for use in systems such as the foregoing.

Many different building systems have been developed with a view to reducing erection times, labour inputs, material inputs, etc. The search for improvements is continuous in order to improve building structures, erection times, and to reduce costs.

S 15 Prefabrication of elements of a building is now a standard practice. For example, wall frames, trusses, etc., are produced in a factory environment, shipped to "a building site and put into place in a building planned to take advantage of the availability of such factory S 20 made components. Factory manufacture enables use of processes, jigs, automated techniques, etc., which could not be employed on a building site.

It is an object of the present invention to provide improvements in building systems and the elements employed in building to establish, for example, multi-floor structures wherein wet area plumbing is to be installed.

Various other objects and advantages of the present invention will hereinafter become more apparent.

The invention achieves its object in the provision of a prefabricated plumbing unit for use in erection of a building comprising: a planar support having in use, upper and lower surfaces; and plumbing attached to the lower surface t,

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C I( beneath the planar support or embedded therein; the upper surface of, the planar surface being located, in use, in a complementary hole in f ormwork established f or a concrete pour thereover, the upper surface of the planar support completing the formwork for the concrete pour or the formwork being established thereabout; the planar support being provided at predetermined points with plumbing projected therethrough to above the upper surface to suit the requirements of a wet area to be established thereover; the plumbing being directed to predetermined points of the planar support for connection, in use, to vertical service lines.

The planar support of the invention might be produced in a number of different ways. The planar support might be a block of foam within which is embedded the plumbing required for a particular building. Alternately, and preferably where costs are 20 appropriate, the core is formed with a plywood sheet or sheets establishing the planar support, with the plumbing attached at what, in use, will be the lower surface. In one preferred iform of the plywood sheet form of the invention, the lower surface may have fixed thereto, the timber or steel framework on which to mount a ceiling to the room below. The use of a timber or steel frame for a false ceiling below also provides a degree of rigidity to a core when it is in transit to a site. In another preferred form the plywood sheet form is supplied to builders without any framing and it is mounted in place and framing built under it.

The invention will now be described with, reference to preferred embodiments which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:- FIG. 1 is a plan view of a typical bathroom J. si~1 0

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4 which might be put in place using the invention; FIG. 2 is a section on AA in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a section on BB in FIG. 1; FIG. 4 is a more detailed section through a prefabricated plastic foam core and associated features seen in place during the establishment of a wet area produced by use of the invention; and FIGS. 5 to 8 illustrate further embodiments of a prefabricated plumbing unit in accordance with the invention.

The drawings are schematics to represent the relative dispositions of the parts employed in production of wet areas. Relative proportions are S8. exaggerated where necessary to serve the purpose of S 15 illustration with no attempt at indicating actual scales. It will be clear to a man skilled in the art that the drawings will be scaled and proportioned to Eproduce working drawings for any particular building project.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a bathroom 10 with water outlets such as shower outlet 11; floor waste 12; bath outlet 13; W.C. outlet 14; and basin outlet 17, communicated to plumbing indicated generally at 15 in r r duct 16 which serves a number of floors as is usual in multi-storey buildings. The bathroom floor extends in this example between walls of structural brickwork 18 and 19, and it is contiguous with a floor 20 which may be established in the standard way with a concrete pour over formwork. The floor of the bathroom comprises a 30 concrete pour over an inset core 21 which is prefabricated in accordance with the invention as will be described below, which core may be laid over or incorporate a ceiling structure for the floor below, the core being able to be supported over removable centres 22 to 25 (indicated by dotted lines). The removable h centres are elongate removable supports extended in this example between courses of brickwork to temporarily hold the core whilst concrete is poured and cured. Clearly, where necessary, the removable centres might be propped up by other means. The ceiling below may be established with panelling applied over a network of battens such as at 26.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are sections through FIG. 1 with the same items numbered the same way. In FIG. 3, the adjoining floors may be formed in the usual way with SOA formwork comprised of vertical supports 27, 30, cross pieces 28, 31 over which form boards 29, 32 can be laid *000 to support reinforcements (not shown) and a concrete 0 0o pour to follow. Clearly any standard formwork may be 15 applied at this point with the surrounding formwork established after the core is in place. However, it is possible to put the surrounding formwork in place first e" "as a deck for workers when lowering the core in place.

The core may be lifted to its position by means of a crane.. In the area of a bathroom, the timber framing 26 for a ceiling of the floor below and its wall timbers |4 433, 34 may be put in place with removable centres such as 22 to 25 as additional supports until the concrete €st ,pour above cures. Over the ceiling timbers 26 is laid a core 21 in accordance with the invention with its upper surface in the same plane as the form boards 29, 32. At their join 35, the core may be recessed to enable the form board 32 to overlap the core so that concrete poured over the upper floor is properly retained.

30 Alternately, the overlap might be formed with the core overlapping the surrounding formwork or other means of i sealing the gap could be used. The same geometry may be applied at the opposite edge as is seen in the drawing.

When the floor has cured, the removable centres 22 to and the formwork will be removed.

*L 6 FIG. 4 shows a section through a core with the features of the core shown in greater detail. Core 21 is fitted with plumbing generally indicated at 37 to 39 embedded therein whereby it is possible to link plumbing 15 in duct 16 with the various outlets 11 to 14 and 17 of FIG. 1. The core is preformed with all its plumbing appropriately set at points therein so as to connect when installed with its various bathroom fixtures after the floor is cured sufficiently to allow tradespersons access thereto. On top of the core there may be fire collars 40 about each upstanding pipe. The core may be a foam plastic with the core formed by first Slaying up its plumbing and then moulding the form "o thereabout.

#0 15 The above described core and its plumbing replaces the conventional formwork in wet areas of multi-level constructions. The core is readily S" prefabricated with the plumbing set at the requisite #0 "0 r positions to enable sanitary fixtures to be placed and 20 quickly connected. Work may start on doing this as soon as the concrete is sufficiently hard to permit workers to walk on it. The core which may be an epoxy foaMi or a 2 5plywood provides the base for the concrete pour in the wet area. With adjustable centres of the usual kind to support the foam core in place, the core may be laid thereover and its plumbing can then be joined to that of the floor below as required. Reinforcing steel, as required, can be laid on the deck created by the core 'and its adjoining formwork. Standard reinforcing can be 30 used extended over the core and formwork. By use of the present system, plumbing is able to be installed earlier than is the case with previous methods. There is no j formwork to be stripped in the wet areas so that finishing trades can be given earlier access. When concrete is poured around the plumbing outlets, it seals j. 7 a, a, a, o a, .4 04S S 040*04 4 4 90 0 *0 4 40 *0 0 o 4q a, 44 Oh. S #4*~a 0 a~ 0*0* 0* .4 4 0 t (tor a, a,, off any water from entering a floor below from, the f loors above and water may then be piped to the f loor above f or use at the higher level. With tb't and cold plumbing encased in a foam core, water hammer problems ought to be reduced. Where a timber frame for ceilings is put in place as part of the core those could be cast into the core to further reduce construction time.

The adjustable centres or adjustable formwork centres may be supported between structural brick walls 10 with tongues entered into the mortar joints between courses. In some cases, timber wall partitions may be used and prefabricated wall framing may be placed before the concrete pour. The timber of timber walls to a wet area below may additionally help support the core, 15 however, it is preferred to maintain a separation between such framing and the floor above with load bearing otherwise provided for.

The plumbing of the core may be joined to that of the floor below by standard techniques such as glued 20 joints and by expansion couplings as is usually done in establishing plumbing. Conventional fire collars may be placed over the pipes that go through the concrete floor above the core prior to the pour. Hot and cold piping can be located above the ceiling battens beneath the floor above, with their T-pieces being accessible from the ceiling below if there is any leakage. This avoids present problems where leaking joints are encased in concrete.

A sound rated ceiling may be incorporated in the core. This may be by use of two layers of 13 mm Gyproc screwed to intervening battens at the lowcr surface of the prefabricated core. A single layer of mm Gyproc could be used.

The above described building system and prefabricated core will be adapted to suit different 8 building requirements with different geometries and dimensions to suit the building being erected. The exact nature of the plumbing, the number of elements, the type of materials used and the geometry of the connections is clearly variable to suit architectural specifications. Clearly many variations will be made within the scope of the invention by those skilled in the building trade in making use of prefabricated cores suited to their particular needs.

The foregoing prefabricated core of the FIGS.

1 to 4 is a foam material moulded to shape. The embodiments as set out in FIGS. 5 to 8 replace the foam o core with a timber construction. The timber o 4o construction has some cost advantages over the foam a* 15 core, It also provides for a simple factory floor assembly process.

The module of FIGS. 5 to 8 can be constructed using a panel of 12 mm ply F14 grade to which can be added a 35 x 70 pine F8 grade timber framing for a false ceiling as in FIGS. 5 and 6. This method of °4 construction has been tested to 22 times working load for a 200 mm slab and it has proved to be satisfactory.

Plumbing can be completed and tested in the factory and it may be simply clipped to the underside of the ply panel which is initially laid upside down to receive the pipe work. Pipe ends which are to pass to the floor above are fed through holes formed in the plywood panel.

Then the struts and timber framing can be nailed or otherwise fixed to the ply. The timber struts can be stapled to the joists with three staples either side and they can be nailed to the ply with 2" framing nails.

FIG. 7 is a detail of the timber framing and non-load bearing walls around the outside of bathroom. Any internal bathroom walls preferably finish 10 mm below the false ceiling framing. The internal walls are i: 99 0 0 96 9 0 9,4 9 I9t 9 preferably put in place in the f loor below along with the perimeter wall frames and 10 mm is allowed to account f or any imprecision in the dimensions of the various elements. FIG. 8 is a typical load bearing wall.

In FIG. 5 ply sheets 41 and 43 lie edge-toedge at 42 and they are supported over a frame with joists such as 44 connected to the ply by struts 45 to 47. The plumbing 48, 49 is passed through holes in the ply to suit and it is fitted to the ply sheets by clips, brackets, etc. as are suited thereto, to be secured by bolts, nails, etc. The frame made of joists 44 and struts 45 to 47 may be stapled, plate nailed, etc. to secure it in place. Struts such 'as 46 will be located at each end of joins such as 42 between sheets 48, 49.

The ply joints, such as 42, are preferably fibreglassed by 75 mm strip therealong.

In FIG. 6 is seen in plan view a prefabricated core comprising four ply sheets 41, 43, 50, 51 laid edge-to-edge supported over five joists 44, and 52 to 55, or struts such as 45 to 47 in FIG. 6. The ply sheeting may be provided with fibreglass at the point of contact with the struts.

FIG. 7 shows the use of a prefabricated timber core which is used much as is seen in FIG. 3. In this figure the prefabricated core is provided above a nonload bearing timber partition 67 at the extremities of the bathroom. A 10 mm to.Lerance is allowed for out of square walls by the gap 56 between the core and the wall. The core top 57 and the ply 58 are supported over props such as 59 and 60 to provide formwork for a concrete pour as described previously for the foam core.

A packing piece 65. may be provided between the wall and core. An internal wall 62 may be nailed at 63 to fix it in place.

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In putting up a building in accordance with the invention, various plumbing features may be installed in the walls of the lower wet a-.ea, partitions as required may then be put in place and finally the module may be laid in place.

In FIG. 8, the prefabricated core 64 adjoins a structural brick partition 65. The core 64 is supported temporarily over props 66 as before.

In manufacture of prefabricated cores using the above techniques, the core is preferably provided with removable connectors to which can be coupled lifting cables to engage over the lifting hook of a crane to provide a means whereby a prefabricated core o. can be lifted into place. Whilst the floor plans 15 indicated in the drawings connect the wet area plumbing to peripherally placed vertical services, those vertical surfaces can be placed anywhere in relation to the core if appropriate passages are formed in the core through which the vertical services can be passed. The location of the vertical services are the focus to which S preformed plumbing extends for connection on site.

q It will be clear to those skilled in the art that many variations and/or modifications might be made it t to suit particular applications which remain within the scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed. A foam core, or sheet form (such as plywood) prefabricated unit can be made, which, in use, may be hoisted into place inside a hole in already laid up formwork, or the unit might be put in place and the formwork could be built around it.

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Claims (8)

1. A prefabricated plumbing unit for use in erection of a building comprising: a planar support having in use, upper and lower surfaces; and plumbing attached to the lower surface beneath the planar support or embedded therein; the upper surface of the planar surface being located, in use, in a complementary hole in formwork established for a concrete pour thereover, the a.9 upper surface of the planar support completing the formwork for the concrete pour or the formwork being established thereabout; the planar support being provided at S 15 predetermined points with plumbing projected therethrough to above the upper surface to suit the requirements of a wet area to be established thereover; the plumbing being directed to predetermined points of the planar support for S 20 connection, in use, to vertical service lines. 'i

2. A prefabricated plumbing unit as claimed in ~Claim 1 wherein: the planar support is a foam slab with plumbing embedded therein, the plumbing connections to wet area fixtures being projected at the upper surface at least the thickness of a concrete floor to be poured, in use, thereover.

3. A prefabricated plumbing unit as claimed in Claim 1 wherein: the planar support is sheet form, the plumbing is attached at the lower surface and the plumbing connections to wet area fixtures are projected through holes in the planar support to project from the upper surface, at least the thickness of a concrete i floor to be poured thereover. 12

4. A prefabricated plumbing unit as claimed in Claim 3 wherein: the planar support is plywood and the plumbing is f ixed thereto with clips nailed or screwed into the plywood.

A prefabricated core as claimed in either one of Claims 3 or 4 wherein: the projecting plumbing connections are fitted with fire collars.

6. A prefabricated core as claimed in any one of *Claims 3 to 5 wherein: the planar support i s provided with the framing for a f alse ceiling thereunder attached to the lower surface. 15

7. A prefabricated plumbing unit as claimed in Claim 6 wherein: the framing comprises joists stood off the lower surface by struts defining a space wherein is contained the plumbing.

8. A prefabricated plumbing unit as claimed in any one of Claims 3 to 7 wherein: the projecting plumbing is provided with a temporary caps or seals. A prefabricated plumbing uinit as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 8 wherein: the planar support is provided with holes therethrough whereby vertical servi'-es may be installed therethrough when the prefabricated core is in use. A prefabricated plumbing unit for use in erection of a building substantially as hereinbef ore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. DATED this fourth day of September 1992.[ JEFFREY MICHAEL TOOMEY, by his Patent Attorneys, GRANT AD&MS COMPANY. 1