Space Shuttle
In modifying the decade-old Apollo man-to-the-moon launch facilities at Cape Kennedy, FL, for the forthcoming Space Shuttle mission NASA and contractors made two major innovations: To...
Steel Plate Shear Walls Resist Lateral Load, Cut Costs
Two new buildings have a seldom-used stiffening system�� steel plate shear walls. Reasons for using them, rather than reinforced concrete shear walls or steel or concrete rigid frames,...
Space: A Place to Work
An overview of the nation's space program as space shuttle capability nears reality. The cargo truck aspects of the shuttle will transform our efforts in space. In the near...
Building Skyscrapers in Orbit
NASA plans to build a host of large structures (communications antennas, remote-sensing radiometers, solar power satellites, etc.) in space. Three ways to build them are: (1)Fabricate...
Facelifting City Streets
Augusta, Georgia rebuilt a four-block, 10-acre section of the main street (Broad Street) to improve traffic flow, beautify the street, provide safe, efficient and convenient parking and...
Intermediate Service Levels in Water Distribution
This paper is concerned with design standards for secondary water distribution networks. Based on field studies in the Middle East and Africa, mathematical equations were developed for...
Chevrolet Raises the Roof
Chevrolet's Gear and Axle plants in Detroit needed more space so a decision to renovate the 60-yr old structures rather than relocate the operation was made. New roof structures...
Drexel Students Build Space Frame as Senior Project
Drexel University's geodesic tri-span is an open-air monumental structure conceived, designed, fabricated and constructed by a group of senior civil engineering students to...
Germany, Belgium and Los Angeles have Mandatory Design Review for Major Structures
The report of the engineering investigation into the causes of the collapse of the Hartford Coliseum space truss cited design deficiencies as the cause of failure. That report also says...
Gophers Go Underground
A major facility, Williamson Hall, was constructed to be almost entirely below grade on the East Bank Campus of the University of Minnesota. Heating and cooling energy requirements will...
Modern Concrete Structures Survive Romanian Earthquake
On March 4, 1977, 35 buildings collapsed during a severe earthquake (7.2 on the Richter scale) in Bucharest, Romania. Thirty-two of the 35 were older structures, erected before World War...
Exxon's Offshore Platform Nearly Doubles Water-Depth Record
In 1976, Exxon erected near Santa Barbara (Los Angeles metropolitan area) the Hondo platform, in 850 ft of water. This is nearly twice the previous record depth established in the North...
Computer Slashes Time and Cost of Structural Design
An existing computer program for designing floor framing was modified to simplify usage. A preprocessor program was written to reduce the amount and complexity of the input data. A description...
Sewering the City of New York
The establishment of a centralized sewerage agency in 1963 has enabled the development of a program to upgrade and augment New York City's sewer system to meet the vital life...
Kansas City Bank Tower Features Water-Filled Columns, Exposed Spandrels
In this first article in a series on recent innovations in structural steel design, the spotlight is on the 20-story Mercantile Bank Tower in Kansas City. This structure features several...
Steel Frame, Precast Floors Meet Impossible Time Constraints
Only 13 months were allotted for expansion of the Captain Cook Hotel in Anchorage, Alaska, which meant that construction would have to continue through the winter months with little down...
La Guardia Airport Parking and Terminal Frontage Structure
One of the world's largest parking structures, at New York City's La Guardia Airport, is of special interest because the structural steel has no fireproofing....
Empire State: Greatest of All Skyscrapers
The Empire State Building! That major name instantly brings to mind Manhattan's intoxicating skyline, a skyline this greatest of all skyscrapers has dominated for 45 years....
Washington Metro Access Facilities
The 98 mi (158 km) Metro system will have 82 stations. There will be an off-street bus terminal at 54 of the stations with an average of six modified saw-tooth off-street bus bays at each...
Engineering the First Mass Transit Tramway
Aerial tramways are not normally considered for a cross-town mass transit system. They are no longer limited to the ski resorts since construction of the link between Manhattan Island...
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