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Making Sure Beams Will Fail

Making beams easier to fail.

Look for this in commercial and residential structures. The way that this beam is pocketed will allow it to fail much faster than normal.

As we all know, these beams support much of the center of the building with floor joists resting on them.

Steel will deform and twist and this beam will meet little, if any, resistance during a fire. I understand that a pocket of concrete will not keep this beam from dislodging, but it there is a reason for properly pocketing these beams.

Not to mention a small tremor or bump from equipment or remodeling can compromise the stability of the beam.

Just one more thing to keep an eye on when doing inspections, especially during construction.

Stay safe and be careful.

http://firefightersenemy.com

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Permalink Reply by Jeff Schwering on February 21, 2010 at 9:21pm

This is another example of our job getting more interesting by the day. Our 2AM medical call are a perfect place to notice this type of "construction". Brothers, if you have no imediate patient contact, look at your surroundings, you might be surprised what you find. Firefighter/Medics on an medic look around on your way to a patient, if time permits, note your surroundings as well. Situational awareness will save our lives!

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