Recent content by hemiv

Thanks, those are my thoughts. This is a residential project, and in my rural area these home contractors just don’t know what to do with a set of plans and specs.

I've got a contractor that may not have placed control joint strips in his forms for a cantilever retaining wall... I don't believe I've had this issue before. Can joints be cut in after forms are removed in 2-3 days? I'm only familiar with slabs, and they of course get cut very soon after pour.

I feel the same. I also use Protonmail for email for that reason, as well. End-to-end encryption is a basic requirement!

Dropbox has had some security issues, so I switched to Sync.com. One architect I know uses Google Drive. The rest seem to use One Drive. IMO - this is less about One Drive being good as it is about it being conveniently bundled with your Microsoft subscription (or hosting).

I don't see any problem. Trusses often have idealized pins at the web-chord nodes, anyway! Should be good as long as the forces can be transferred through your connections, which may need to be strengthened a bit beyond a typical clip or shear tab.

I've encountered it in the timber framing world - you may find some more information through the Timber Framers Guild.

I am working on an existing structure from the 80's which used steel tube columns and doubled light wood trusses designed for end moments. The columns have big flag plates welded to the top, and the top and bottom chords of the trusses are bolted to it. We have to modify this structure. We are...

Thanks all. The insight is helpful. Yes, for clarification this is a multi-disciplinary firm and I am the structural guy.

Is it possible for principals of a firm to be considered liable for errors or unethical activity of another principal? I’ve got a situation where I believe a principal is practicing outside of his expertise (and encroaching on mine). On the one hand, surely he is solely responsible since he is...

msl - Yes, that's what we have in hand. Although it's deficient - no mention of seismic loads. brent - That's great to know, thanks for sharing. The SE we have on the foundation is from Iowa, so probably the same firm. Musco did tell me today that they are looking to get a me "calculations," so...

msl - Your experience is similar to mine. I was expecting a few pages of shop drawings with details, design notes, reactions, and a stamp. My understanding of the UL is the same, more about broad conformance to electrical codes rather than specification conformance to site-specific design...

I've got a project at a sports field which includes some 70' - 80' light poles. The electrical engineer spec'd Musco poles, and I have received some submittals from the contractor. In my specs, I asked for stamped pole shop drawings showing that they meet the project design criteria (I assumed...

This is a follow up to a previous post I made about pre-engineered metal building modifications. This building is in SDC D. I am replacing existing rod bracing with a portal frame. The building was built in the 90s. Does the new frame need to meet current seismic detailing requirements? In...

@kootk - I agree, that's the frame that would see an increase, but only in a rigid diaphragm scenario. I'm just being too conservative about the 10% under a particular load case. Thanks for the insight, it's appreciated. Thanks also everyone else. I've just about got this thing whipped.

@bones - I modeled them the same. I'm running that model alongside another model of the portal frame and comparing the stiffness of each. H/60 may the be the spec'd minimum, but no way these X braces are allowing that kind of deflection. I'm proceeding with a 1/2" max. That keeps me a little...