GB2065192A

GB2065192A - Method of constructing a multi- storey building

Info

Publication number: GB2065192A
Application number: GB7942216A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1979-12-06
Filing date: 1979-12-06
Publication date: 1981-06-24
Also published as: GB2065192B

Abstract

A method of constructing a multi- storey building comprises the steps of laying a foundation ring beam 1 for the external walls of the building, erecting a plurality of ground floor columns 4a around the foundation ring beam, the ground floor columns being supported by the foundation ring beam and extending over substantially the height of the ground floor of the building, placing panels 5 between the adjacent pairs of ground floor columns to form the external walls of the ground floor storey of the building, and constructing the higher storeys of the building successively one upon another. Each of the higher storeys is constructed by erecting a plurality of columns 4b around the building, each of said columns being supported by a respective column 4a of the storey immediately below and extending over substantially the height of that storey; supporting a floor 8, 9, 10 on the upper edges of the wall panels 5 or 10 of the storey immediately below, and by placing panels 10 between the adjacent pairs of the columns 4b to form the external walls of that storey. The uppermost storey of the building is covered by a roof 12, 13, 14, 15 which is supported on the upper edges of the wall panels 10 of that storey. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Method of constructing a multi-storey building This invention reiates to a method of constructing a multi-storey building such as a block of flats, and is particularly concerned with the construction of blocks of flats having two, three, four or five storeys using pre-fabricated components.

One way of constructing such a block of flats is to erect the entire framework of the building structure, including columns and floor beams, and then to build the walls using either bricks or wall panels. Alternatively, the entire ground floor storey is built first, by erecting columns of the required height, followed by construction of the ground floor walls using bricks. The floor of the first storey is then built onto the top of the ground floor columns and walls, and the rest of the first floor storey is then built in the same way as the ground floor storey. Both these methods have disadvantages in that they are time-consuming and in that they require in situ casting of columns and/or wall panels.

The present invention provides a method of constructing a multi-storey building comprising the steps of laying a foundation for the external walls of the building, erecting a plurality of ground floor columns around the foundation, the ground floor columns being supported by the foundation and extending over substantially the height of the ground floor of the building, placing panels between the adjacent pairs of ground floor columns to form the external walls of the ground floor storey of the building, and constructing the higher storeys of the building successively one upon another, wherein each of the higher storeys is constructed by erecting a plurality of columns around the building, each of said columns being supported by a respective column of the storey immediately below and extending over substantially the height of that storey, by supporting a floor on the upper edges of the wall panels of the storey immediately below, and by placing panels between the adjacent pairs of said columns to form the external walls of that storey, the uppermost storey of the building being covered by a roof which is supported on the upper edges of the wall panels of that storey.

Advantageously, each column of each of the higher storeys is connected to the respective column of the storey immediately below by means of a tubular connector, the tubular connector being externally threaded and engaging with internally-threaded end portions of the two columns. Preferably, each tubular connector is screwed into the lower of its associated columns, an apertured joint plate is placed round the connector and overlying the upper edges of the two wall panels of the storey immediately below, and the upper of its associated columns is then screwed down onto the connector so as to force the joint plate down against said panel upper edges thereby clamping said panels firmly in position.

Preferably, the foundation is a foundation ring beam made by pouring concrete into a formwork positioned within a foundation excavation, the formwork containing reinforcement members, and the bases of the ground floor columns are housed in respective recesses in the foundation.

By arranging that the columns are equispaced and the storeys have the same height, all the panels can have the same basic shape. This gives obvious cost advantages.

Advantageously, the panels are prefabricated and are placed in position using a crane.

Preferably, each of the panels is made of concrete cast into an aluminium mould, the moulds being left in place after the concrete has been cured so forming integral parts of the panels. Not only does this form of structure result in easy handling, but it also results in finished internal and external wall surfaces that are resistant to corrosion and wear.

Moreover, these surfaces can be arranged to have an attractive finish so that decoration need not be required.

Advantageously, each of the columns and each of the ground floor columns is made of tubular steel. In this case, the recesses in the foundation may be formed by drilling holes in the foundation after the concrete thereof has cured.

The method may further comprise the step of constructing a floor for the ground floor storey between the steps of forming the foundation and erecting the ground floor columns. Preferably, said floor is made by casting a concrete slab.

Advantageously, the floor of each higher storey is made by laying profiled floor sheets over the entire area of the building and by casting a slab of concrete over said floor sheets.

Similarly, the roof is made by laying profiled roof sheets over the entire area of the building and by casting a slab of concrete over said roof sheets.

Preferably, a layer of rigid polyurethane foam is fixed to the top surface of the roof slab, and a layer of waterproof cement is laid on the top surface of said layer of rigid polyurethane foam.

The invention will now be described in greater detail, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate schematically the various stages of building a two storey building, and in which: Fig. 1 a is a side elevation of the foundation of part of one wall of the building; Fig. 1 b is a plan view of the wall foundation shown in Fig. 1 a; Fig. 2 is a side elevation showing ground floor storey columns positioned in the wall foundation of Figs. lea and 1b; Fig. 3 is a side elevation showing ground floor storey wall panels positioned between the ground floor storey columns and the steps in positioning the first floor storey columns; Fig. 4 is a side elevation showing the floor of the first floor storey positioned on the ground floor storey wall panels;; Fig. 5 is a side elevation showing first floor storey wall panels positioned between the first floor storey columns and resting on the floor of the first floor storey; Fig. 6 is a side elevation showing the roof of the building positioned on the first floor storey wall panels; and Fig. 7 is a cross-section, on an enlarged scale, of a joint between a ground floor storey column and the corresponding first floor storey column.

Referring to the drawings, a two storey building is constructed using foundation ring beams, columns, wall panels and floor panels, the drawings showing the steps in the construction of part of one wall only of the building. It will be appreciated that the construction of the other walls of the building is carried out in a similar manner.

Prior to commencement of the construction of the building, the entire site is cleared by removing extraneous material. The site level is then reduced by approximately 1 50 millimetres, the removed material being carted away and dumped. The foundation excavation is then dug together with a drainage trench, the foundation excavation having a cross-section of approximately 750 millimetres by 750 millimetres, and the trench having a cross section of approximately 400 millimetres by 500 millimetres. Re-usabie formwork (not shown) is placed in the foundation excavation and the main foundation ring beam 1 (see Figs. 1 a and 1 b) is constructed by pouring concrete into the formwork. The usual metal reinforcement rods are positioned within the formwork prior to the pouring in of the concrete.The foundation ring beam 1 is cast about 50 millimetres below the finished floor level 2. After three days, the formwork is removed for re-use, and the main foundation ring beam 1 is left to cure for a further fourteen days. While the main foundation ring beam 1 is curing, all the drainage pipes for the building and the backfill can be laid. Preparations can also be made for casting the floor slab.

After the main foundation ring beam 1 has cured, holes 3 are drilled in the ring beam, and the floor slab (not shown) is cast using reinforced concrete approximately 150 millimetres thick, the floor slab being cast so as to lie approximately 50 millimetres below the finished floor level. A floor screed (not shown) 50 millimetres thick can be added subsequently.

Columns 4a (see Fig. 2) are then positioned within the holes 3, these columns extending the full height of the ground floor storey. The columns 4a are tubular steel columns, and are erected using a crane.

After the columns 4a have been erected, the crane is used to position panels 5 between adjacent pairs of columns 4a right round the building (see Fig. 3). These panels 5 extend the entire height of the ground floor and so constitute the external ground floor walls of the building. The panels 5 are made either on or off site, by the method described in the specification of my copending patent application No. 79 21241.The vertical side edges of the panels 5 are formed with concave, longitudinal grooves which mate with the tubular columns 4a.

Fig. 3 also shows the steps for fixing the panels 5 firmly in position. Thus, as can be seen at the extreme left-hand side column 4a of Fig. 3, each of the panels 5 is formed with an indent at its top corner, these indents forming a recess 5a. An externally-threaded, tubular connector 6 (see the next column 4a to the right) is screwed into the top of each column 4a, the columns having complementary internal screw threads. A respective steel joint plate 7 is then slotted over each tubular connector 6 and positioned within the corresponding recess 5a (see the next column 4a to the right). Finally, columns 4b, which extend the full height of the first floor storey, are screwed down onto the tubular connectors 6, the columns 4b having internal screw threads matching those of the connectors (see the extreme right-hand side column 4a of Fig. 3).The screwing-down of the columns 4b forces the steel joint plates 7 downwards to clamp the panels 5 firmly in position. Fig. 7 shows, in greater detail, the connection between one pair of aligned columns 4a and 4b. The lower end of each of the columns 4b is bell-shaped so as to increase the area of contact with the corresponding plate 7.

After the external ground wall panels 5 have been clamped firmly into position, the internal ground floor walls (not shown) are constructed using, for example, concrete blocks.

When all the internal walls of the ground floor have been completed, deep trough-profiled floor sheets 8 (see the left-hand side of Fig. 4) are placed across the entire area of the building.

These sheets 8 are pre-cut to size and are provided with cut-outs to accommodate the tubular inserts 6. The floor sheets 8 are secured by bolting to sockets (not shown) in the panels 5. The side edges of the first floor slab are covered by column-to-column side plates 9 (see the righthand side of Fig. 4). These side plates 9 not only form the side edge of the floor slab, but also constitute a water trap, and house drains, electric conduits and reinforcing. A 100 millimetre thick layer of concrete is then poured over the floor sheets 8 and left to cure for three days. The concrete floor slab 10 so formed is subsequently covered with 50 millimetres of floor screeding 1 Oa (see Fig. 7).

After the first floor slab 10 has cured, the crane is used to position further panels 11 Isee Fig. 5) between adjacent pairs of columns 4b right round the building. The panels 11 extend the entire height of the first floor and so constitute the external first floor storey walls of the building. The panels 11 are fixed firmly in position by a method similar to that used for fixing the panels 5 of the ground floor storey. Thus, each column 4b is provided with an externally-threaded tubular connector (not shown but similar to the connectors 6) and with steel joint plate (not shown but similar to the joint plates 7). Once in position, fixing is accomplished by screwing down internally-threaded spigots (not shown) onto the tubular connectors. This forces the joint plates down to clamp the panels firmly against the completed ground floor.As with the panels 5, the panels 11 have indents (not shown) at their top corners which define recesses for accommodating the joint plates. The panels 11 are identical to the panels 5 and are made, either on or off site, by the same method. The first floor storey internal walls are then constructed using, for example, concrete blocks. The recesses 5a, the connectors 6 and the joint plates 7 for connecting the columns 4a and 4b have not been shown in Figs. 4 to 6 for the purpose of clarity.

When all the first floor storey internal walls have been put up, the roof of the building is constructed. As with the first floor, the roof is made up from deep trough-profiled sheets 12 (see the left-hand side of Fig. 6) and a 100 millimetre thick slab 1 3 of concrete. The sheets 12 extend across the entire area of the building and are secured, by bolting, to sockets in the panels 11.

Edging angles 14 (see the right-hand side of Fig. 6) are placed and fixed in position along the top edge of the panels 1 These edging angles 14 form the edges of the roof, and also house electric conduits and reinforcing. The concrete is then poured over the sheets 1 2 and left to cure for three days. The top of the roof slab 1 3 is arranged to lie 90 millimetres below the top of the edging angles 14. After the concrete has cured, a layer 1 5 of rigid polyurethane foam 40 millimetres thick is adhered to the top surface of the slab 1 3, and this layer is covered with a 50 millimetres thick waterproof cement topping 1 6 (see the left-hand side of Fig. 6).

Obviously, the method described above could be applied to buildings having more than two floors. Indeed, the method is particularly useful for constituting blocks of flats having three, four or five storeys. In this case, the additional storeys are built in the same manner as the ground and first floor storeys, using panels identical to the panels 5 and 11 and sheets identical to the sheets 8 and 12. Obviously, where there are more than two storeys, tne panels of all the storeys except the top storey are clamped in position by screwing down the columns of the storey immediately above.

Although not shown, it will be apparent that some of the panels 25 and 11 will be provided with doors and windows, the apertures for these being formed during the formation of the panels themselves.

Claims

1. A method of constructing a multi-storey building comprising the steps of laying a foundation for the external walls of the building, erecting a plurality of ground floor columns around the foundation, the ground floor columns being supported by the foundation and extending over substantially the height of the ground floor of the building, placing panels between the adjacent pairs of ground floor columns to form the external walls of the ground floor storey of the building, and constructing the higher storeys of the building successively one upon another, wherein each of the higher storeys is constructed by erecting a plurality of columns around the building, each of said columns being supported by a respective column of the storey immediately below and extending over substantially the height of that storey, by supporting a floor on the upper edges of the wall panels of the storey immediately below, and by placing panels between the adjacent pairs of said columns to form the external walls of that storey, the uppermost storey of the building being covered by a roof which is supported on the upper edges of the wall panels of that storey.

2. A method as claimed in Claim 1, wherein each column of each of the higher storeys is connected to the respective column of the storey immediately below by means of a tubular connector, the tubular connector being externally threaded and engaging with internaliy-threaded end portions of the two columns.

3. A method as claimed in Claim 2, wherein each tubular connector is screwed into the lower of its associated columns, an apertured joint plate is placed round the connector and overlying the upper edges of the two wall panels of the storey immediately below, and the upper of its associated columns is then screwed down onto the connector so as to force the joint plate down against said panel upper edges thereby clamping said panels firmly in position.

4. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein the ground floor columns are equispaced around the foundation.

5. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the foundation is a foundation ring beam made by pouring concrete into a formwork positioned within a foundation excavation, the formwork containing reinforcement members.

6. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the bases of the ground floor columns are housed in respective recesses in the foundation.

7. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 6, wherein all the wall panels have the same basic shape.

8. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 7, wherein the panels are prefabricated and are placed in position using a crane.

9. A method as claimed in Claim 8, wherein each of the panels is made of concrete cast into aluminium moulds, and wherein the moulds are left in place after the concrete has been cured so forming integral parts of the panels.

10. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 9, wherein each of the columns and each of the ground floor columns is made of tubular steel.

11. A method as claimed in Claim 10 when appendant to Claim 4, wherein the recesses in the foundation are formed by drilling holes in the foundation after the concrete thereof has cured.

12. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 1 1, further comprising the step of constructing a floor for the ground floor storey between the steps of forming the foundation and erecting the ground floor columns.

13. A method as claimed in Claim 12, wherein said floor is made by casting a concrete slab.

14. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 13, wherein the floor of each higher storey is made by laying profiled floor sheets over the entire area of the building and by casting a slab of concrete over said floor sheets.

15. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 14, wherein the roof is made by laying profiled roof sheets over the entire area of the building and by casting a slab of concrete over said roof sheets.

16. A method as claimed in Claim 15, wherein a layer of rigid polyurethane foam is fixed to the top surface of the roof slab, and a layer of waterproof cement is laid on the top surface of said layer of rigid polyurethane foam.

17. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 1 6, further comprising the steps of constructing Internal walls within each storey of the building.

18. A method as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 1 7, wherein the building has two, three, four or five storeys.

1 9. A method of constructing a multi-storey building substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

20. A multi-storey building whenever constructed by the method of any one of Claims 1 to 19.