Detailing for Increased Breakout Capacity of Steel Anchor Rods in Concrete Podium Slabs
Scott Fischer, P.E.
Multi-story light-frame structures are often built atop concrete podiums, and in areas of high seismicity the overturning restraint system used to secure shear walls in these buildings can produce very high tension demands on the concrete anchorage components of these systems. While the loads can be high, podium slabs tend to be fairly shallow (14” or less), and the design resistance calculated according to code provisions often isn’t enough. While anchor reinforcement detailing is address in ACI318, the form it would need to take in slab situations is not addressed. Recognizing this, a small group of practicing engineers, funded by a SEAONC Special Projects Initiative and supported by Simpson Strong-Tie, began an ambitions investigation into how to provide detailing (anchor reinforcing) that increases the breakout resistance of concrete anchors in podium slabs.
Speaker Bio
Scott is a licensed professional engineer in the state of California and has worked with Simpson Strong-Tie since 2006 where he is a Senior R&D Engineer. Currently he is the lead engineer for the Strong-Rod Systems product line where he designs, develops and manages products for the Anchor Tiedown System (ATS) and the Uplift Restraint System (URS). He has also worked on the concrete cast-in-place connectors and anchors product line and helped develop the current acceptance criteria as well as performed the testing and code report requirements needed for those products. Prior to joining Simpson Strong-Tie, Scott worked for nine years as a consulting engineer where he specialized in the design and analysis of concrete structures, including post-tensioned slab design, concrete lateral systems and foundation design. Scott received his bachelor’s degree in Architectural Engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Scott is a licensed professional engineer in the state of California and has worked with Simpson Strong-Tie since 2006 where he is a Senior R&D Engineer. Currently he is the lead engineer for the Strong-Rod Systems product line where he designs, develops and manages products for the Anchor Tiedown System (ATS) and the Uplift Restraint System (URS). He has also worked on the concrete cast-in-place connectors and anchors product line and helped develop the current acceptance criteria as well as performed the testing and code report requirements needed for those products. Prior to joining Simpson Strong-Tie, Scott worked for nine years as a consulting engineer where he specialized in the design and analysis of concrete structures, including post-tensioned slab design, concrete lateral systems and foundation design. Scott received his bachelor’s degree in Architectural Engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.