BASIC COMPONENTS OF A BUILDING A BUILDING HAS THREE BASIC PARTS : (i) (ii) (iii) Sub-structure or foundation, Plinth, and

Super-structure.

Sub-structure or Foundation is the lower portion of the building usually located below the ground level, which transmits the loads of super-structure to the supporting soil. Super-structure is that part of the structure which is above ground level, and which serves the purpose of its intended use. Plinth is therefore defined as the portion of the structure between the surface of the surrounding ground and surface of the floor, immediately above the ground. The level of the floor is usually known as the plinth level. The built-up covered area measured at the floor level is known as plinth area. A building has the following components : 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Foundations Plinth Masonry units : walls and columns Floor structures Doors, windows and other openings Sills, lintels, arches and weather shades. Vertical transportation structures, such as stars, lifts, ramps, etc. Roofs Building finishes

The basic functional requirements of these components will now be discussed in the following paragraph : 1. Foundations : The basic function of a foundation is to transmit the dead loads, live loads and other loads to the subsoil on which it rests in such a way that. (a) Settlements are within permissible limits, without causing cracks in the super-structure. (b) Soil does not fail in shear. 2. Plinth : The plinth height depends upon various factors such as need of architectural treatment to a building, highest flood level of area, adjoining

ground nature etc. As per the bye laws, the minimum height of the plinth should not be 45 cm. 3. Masonry units : Walls, columns etc. : Masonry unit may be defined as the construction of building units bonded together with mortar. The building units commonly known as masonry may be stones, bricks or precast blocks. walls are the most essential components of a building. The primary function of the wall is to enclose or dived space of the building to make it more functional and useful. Walls may be either load bearing or non-load bearing. Wall may be of several types, such as cavity walls partition walls dwarf walls, retaining walls. 4. Floor structures : The main function of a floor is to provide support for occupants, furniture and equipments of a building and the function of providing different floor is too divided the building in to different levels for the purpose of creating more accommodation within the limited space. The floor of a building immediately above the ground is known as ground floor. All other floors which are above the ground floor are is knows as the upper floors. Every floor has two components : (i) the sub floor, which is a structural components to impart strength and stability to support the super imposed loads and (ii) floor covering or flooring of suitable floor finish. 5. Doors, Windows, and Other Openings : A door is a movable barrier provide in the opening of a wall to provide access to various spaces of a building and their size and number should be properly determined as per the requirements. 6. Sills, Lintels and Weather Shades : window sills are provided between the bottom of window frame and wall below to protect the top of wall from wear and tear. The openings are provided in the wall of a building to accommodate doors and windows The actual frame of a door or window is not strong enough to support the weight of the wall above all openings and is similar in character to a beam. Weather shades on chhajjas are generally combined with lintels of windows to protect them from the weather elements such as sun, rain, frost etc. 7. Vertical Transportation Structures : These consist of stair, lamp, ladders, lifts and escalators etc. to afford access between various floor. Out of these, stairs are most common. A stair may be defined as series of steps suitably arranged for a purpose of connecting different floors of a building. Stairs may be constructed of different material such as timber, stone, reinforced concrete or steel.

8. Roof structures : A roof is the uppermost part of a building whose main function is to enclose the space and to protect the same from the effects of weather elements such as rain, sun, wind, heat, snow etc. A good roof is just as essential as a safe foundation. Just as a floor, a roof consist of two components, and at the same time they provide decorative effects. Finishes of several types such as pointing, plastering, painting distempering, varnishing and polishing, white washing etc. are applied on walls.

FOUNDATION As described before, the part of structure which is above ground level is called as superstructure and the part of structure which is below ground level ,is called as substructure. Foundation is the part of structure , which receives load of superstructure and transmits it to lower and firmer strata safely without causing excessive settlement or stresses or any damage to superstructure . It is very difficult and costly to costly to carry out any repairs to foundation after it is constructed. Also foundation failure is a safety hazard for many years. Hence, it is essential to understand basic principles of foundations. Definition and Purpose of Foundation : It is the part of structure below ground level, which is directly in contact with subsoil to receive load of superstructure and to transmit it to firm strata below safely. Foundation of a building is designed to perform following functions : 1. It should carry loads safely : The soil strata, on which foundation is to rest, should be strong enough to safely bear the loads imposed on it. 2. Settlement of structure should be uniform and within permissible limits : Due to loads imposed on foundation, structure is likely to settle. Foundation is designed so that, settlement is as uniform as possible throughout and is within permissible limits. 3. Differential settlement should be less : If a part of foundation settles more than the other part then, the difference between the two settlements is called as Differential settlement.

SUPERSTRUCTURE The methods used for the construction of superstructures depend on various factors such as loading patterns, purpose, area covered, economy or cost criteria, stability, expected life span of the structure, sub-soil conditions, availability of materials etc. There are mainly three types of superstructure: (A) Load bearing wall construction. (B) Framed structures. (C) Composite structures. [A] Load bearing wall construction: In load bearing wall construction, the entire load of the superstructures is transmitted through wall to the firm soil below the

ground. Thus, the walls are supported on continuous foundations that are resting on hard strata (soil). Usually, this type of construction is adopted at places where a hard stratum is available at shallow depths. This type of construction can be adopted maximum up to four storeyes but usually two storeyes are constructed. If the number of storeyes is increased, the dead load and thickness and size of foundation increase. All these factors not only reduce the carpet area but also increase the cost. This type of construction cannot be used for multistoried construction is it poses many practical difficulties in construction. In this type of construction, the structural element such as beams, trusses, etc. rest directly on the walls. The floors rest on the walls. A typical load bearing structure is shown in Fig.2.19

(B) Framed structures: Framed structures comprises of a frame made up of beams and columns. Beams are the horizontal members of the frame. All the loads on a floor as well as those of walls as columns. Columns rest on the footing or foundation on hard soil below the ground. Thus, the loads of the structures are transmitted through the columns to the foundation. Beams are provided at floor levels. The columns may be erected on separate foundation or on the combined or raft foundation. In general, the partition walls or the external walls room rest on beams. The cost of structure frame is about 30% of the total cost of construction. Fig 2.20 shows details of frame structures.

The different materials that are used for construction of a frame are timber, steel, reinforced cement concrete (R.C.C). (C) Composite structures: When the superstructure is composed of load bearing as well as framed construction, it is known as composite structure. In this type and the intermediate support are in the forms of columns. Thus, the floors and the roofs are supported by load bearing walls as well as the inner columns. Composite structures are preferred for buildings, which are not multistoried and have larger spans such as workshop, warehouses. Composite structures, thus, has of framed and load bearing structure. Fig.2.21 shows all essential details of this type of construction. COMPARISON OF LOAD BEARING AND FRAMED STRUCTURES The load bearing and framed structures can be compared considering the various aspects in building planning and construction such as, sub-soil conditions, floor space, time required for construction, height of structures, economy, flexibility in planning, etc. (i) Sub-soil conditions : The load bearing structures can be constructed where the hard soil is available at shallow depths; otherwise the cost of construction increases on account of deep foundations. Thus, on black cotton soil or reclaimed soil, load bearing structures prove to be uneconomical . However, on the same soil, the framed structure proves to be economical and the safe, too.

(ii) Floor space : The external as well as internal wall load bearing structure are thicker as compared to be thickness of wall of framed structures. Therefore, less floor area is available for use in load bearing structure. (iii) Height : The load bearing structures can be built at the most upto four storeyes, but the framed structures are suitable for any number of floors. (iv) Time of construction : For the same number of storeyes, the load bearing construction require more time. In case of framed structure, different construction activities can be carried out simultaneously and hence there is reduction in the time require for the completion of framed construction as compared to load bearing structure. Further, if prefabricated building element such as floor panels, beams, etc. are used in the framed structure then the time for construction reduces. (v) Economy : In general, load bearing structure works out to be cheaper upto 2 storeyes, whereas framed structure becomes necessary and economical for multi storeyed construction. (vi) Flexibility in planning : In case of framed structure, the panel wall can be shifted and new work place can be created, which is not possible for the load bearing structures. (vii) Resistance to vibrations : The load bearing structures are susceptible to vibrations due to machines and earthquakes; whereas the framed structure can be designed to withstand these vibrations effectively.