Strength Design of Masonry

Strength design was added to TMS 402 Building Code Requirements for Masonry Structures in 2002. However, most masonry is still designed by the Allowable Stress Design method. Strength design generally results in more efficient designs than with Allowable Stress Design. This lesson reviews the design assumptions for strength design, and look at the design of beams, bearing walls, and shear walls using strength design. Practical design methods and tips are provided for each member type and examples will illustrate the design process. The results of each design are compared to allowable stress design. This lesson provides the engineer with the tools necessary to begin using strength design for masonry and realizing the benefits it can offer.

Presenter: Richard Bennett, PhD., PE, University of Tennessee
Date Presented: October 12, 2017
Credit: 1 PDH / 0.10 CEU