Carbon Fiber Beam Strengthening

The use of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer, CFRP, in construction is on the rise. With the condition of the aging infrastructure around the country and the rising cost of building materials, it is typically more economical to repair or re-purpose structures rather than building new ones. CFRP can be used to make repairs to damaged structural components or to strengthen existing components. In addition to the cost benefits of these type of repairs, strengthening with CFRP can typically be accomplished in a fraction of the time when compared to traditional strengthening or repair methods.Straight Line Construction was awarded the contract to rehab an existing two-story commercial building which was initially constructed as a retail space in Pueblo, Colorado. The structure was being modified and converted into an assisted living complex which required additional HVAC equipment to be placed on the roof of the structure.

Due to the added loading from the HVAC equipment, the precast double T beams which supported the roof required flexural strengthening along with a minor increase in the provided shear strength.

Prior to reaching out to SRS, the CFRP strengthening for this application had already been designed with a 300 gsm Carbon Fiber. This represents the ariel weight of the fabric, 300 grams of carbon fiber per square meter of fabric. This is a common way of representing the weight of the fabric component in composites.

SRS worked with the Straight Line Construction and Printz Engineering Service to modify and verify the design using the SRS-600UNI. Due to the fact that the SRS product was roughly 2x stronger, the amount of material required on the project was able to be reduced. With 44 beams at 48’ in length, this decrease in material required resulted in considerable savings to the contractor on the surface preparation and installation cost of the CFRP.Due to the extensive inventory of carbon fiber carried by SRS and the immediate access to engineering support, the CFRP design was finalized and the material was shipped within two days of initial contact.

If you have a project where CFRP or conventional methods of strengthening have been specified, reach out to SRS for assistance in coming up with the best possible solution for you project. With a network of Structural Engineers across the US & internationally, SRS can provide PE stamped designs for virtually any application.

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Straight Line Construction

Straight Line Construction has changed a great deal over the last 30+ years in the industry, but one thing remains the same: our commitment to quality and to designing and installing permanent solutions to foundation settlement issues. Beginning with small residential jobs more than 30 years ago when the family-owned company was founded by Tim Davis, Sr., Straight Line Construction today repairs cracking residential and commercial foundations through its Ram Jack product toolkit and designs solutions for large infrastructure and industrial projects. We specialize in matching the right solution to each type of foundation repair issue.

Are you building a new home and want to ensure it has a solid foundation? Or is your house experiencing unwanted sagging or a cracking foundation? Are your walls cracked or your doors and windows sticking? As a bonded, licensed, and fully insured foundation repair company, we are proud to serve Colorado homeowners, builders, and commercial contractors. Our technical certifications enable us to offer the highest quality services and the best American-made, environmentally safe products available for foundation repair. Regardless of how your building is shifting or sinking, we can help you stop it. Our 30 years in the business and our designation as a Ram Jack certified dealer means you get the most technologically savvy solution to fix your foundation.

From the factory to the field, we strive to ensure the quality of our products and workmanship meet the highest industry standards. We work with other vetted professionals in the industry. All of our helical piers, push piers, and mounting brackets are manufactured by Ram Jack in Ada, OK, at an ISO-certified facility with American-made steel. Williams Form Engineering in Golden, CO, manufactures our reinforcing bar for ground anchor systems and shares our commitment to quality control and quality assurance.

About Ram Jack

Ram Jack is a family-owned business that began operations in 1968, in Ada, OK, where we currently source our piers and brackets. Back then, concrete piering was the original repair method used simply because it was the only technology available at the time. Over time, it became evident that concrete piers did not provide long-term stabilization of foundations and only provided a short-term warranty period. To guarantee the highest grade of customer satisfaction, a greater solution needed to be found.

The Ram Jack owners embarked on a research program to develop a foundation repair system to stand the test of time. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office first issued a patent to Ram Jack for its foundation repair system in 1985. Over the next few years, additional refinements and patents have followed, resulting in the strongest patented system in the industry. Ram Jack driven pilings are ICC-ES recognized (International Construction Code—Evaluation Services). Ram Jack is one of only two ICC-ES recognized foundation repair companies in the industry. Ram Jack’s products meet or exceed code requirements set down by ICC-ES for both commercial and residential properties.

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