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Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances
2

Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

(OP)
I have a project and for some reason there is no 3100, 3200 or 3300 series in the spec. There appears to be an old generic simplistic single concrete spec. There is no reference to ACI-347 or ACI-117 which would be the placement tolerances for formwork and concrete. In the absence of a specific specification reference to industry standard tolerances what should be used? Is there any path through the building code referencing ACI-318 that will officially get me to the ACI-347/ACI-117 tolerances? How would you approach this situation?

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

Has your boss already signed the contract?
Are the designer, contractor, or owner?

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

(OP)
I'm the lowly site inspector (owner's rep)(slightly overqualified as a PE/SE). We have a situation where a concrete foundation was placed out of industry standard tolerance and the owner is looking for conclusive statement based in the contract documents that it is not acceptable. When the specification doesn't reference ACI-301 to reference ACI-117 and/or ACI-347 I'm running into a wall linking the industry standard tolerances to our specific contract. What would happen if there was no tolerance referenced? Is there another way I can use code compliance to get to industry standard tolerances. What would happen if this went to a court of law how would it be viewed?

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

assuming the project is in USA under some version of the IBC....my thought has always been that whether ACI 301 is explicitly specified or not, it is the ONLY "Structural Concrete" included in the Building Code. If that is so, The question becomes, if the contractor has not placed "Structural Concrete"... then what Material is the Contractor claiming to have placed?

I don't keep the code or ACI refs at home and may not be not entirely on target on this and encourage you to check how the IBC defines structural concrete.

Etippers......feel free to shoot me down if that was some BS!

it seems like the Structural Egr is absent in this scenario

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

Is there a reference to ACI301 in the old spec?

While the IBC specifically references ACI318, I do not believe ACI318 actually references ACI301(and then everything else that if referenced there) in the body of the Code. Chapter 7 has references to reinf placement tolerance, but I don't think the member tolerances are referenced in 318.

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

(OP)
No the spec has no reference to any ACI spec or report at all. That is why I was trying to go back through the building code. But as stated above I'm finding the same issue that the building code gets me to ACI 318. But 318 doesn't ofgicially refer to 301, 117 or 347. It only recommends the use of 301 not requiring it.

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

yep.... now that i'm at my computer....I see i had ACI 301 and ACI 318 mixed up. i have had to use that trick before for rebar placement and cover, but that was under 318, as you already know.

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

I think all you have to hang your hat on is standard practice. But as the lowly site inspector, why is this your issue? As the inspector you review work for compliance with the drawings. Your posts seem to imply that the work complies. The owner needs to talk to the EOR about it.

RE: Lack of Concrete Placement Tolerances

2
ACI 301 and ACI 117 are not cited in the body of the ACI 318-11 code, but do appear in the commentary and in the references.
ACI 301-10 uses the phrase:
"1.7.2 Dimensional tolerances
"1.7.2.1 Unless otherwise specified, construction tolerances
shall conform to ACI 117."

ACI 301 relies upon ACI 117 when ACI 318 is used. ACI Committee 117 does not create tolerances, but is a repository for tolerances previously appearing in 318 and 301 (and other documents.) It is generally understood by the code committees that following 117 with a 318 design and 301 construction with result in a building built to meet the code. I cannot find a solid code language reference to tie this all together, but the introduction to 318-11 does say:

"Generally, the contract documents should contain all of the
necessary requirements to ensure compliance with the Code.
In part, this can be accomplished by reference to specific
Code sections in the project specifications. Other ACI
publications, such as “Specifications for Structural Concrete
(ACI 301)” are written specifically for use as contract
documents for construction."

I will check with the 318 and 301 committees (I am on 301) and see if we need to change how 117 is referenced.

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