Bunker Building Partnership Success

摘要

RSG Structures Ltd operate as independent designers, suppliers and installers of a range of precast, pre-stressed concrete as well as traditional steel frame and membrane covers and canopies. One recent bunker project involved a client requirement for 6-7m high walls on an existing base slab of varying levels, together with a cover over the whole bunker structure. As the slab was in good condition, it made sense to utilize it, but the different levels meant that placing walls directly on to it would be an issue. To overcome this, a plinth of varying height (0.4m at its lowest and just over 1.2m at its highest) was used to cater for the different slab levels, thereby allowing a level surface for walls and roof to be formed. At the plinth's maximum height, very few wall options were available; L walls or horizontal panels were a possibility, but the foot on an L wall at this height would be around 2.6m, which would increase the footprint dramatically, whilst panels would have required either stub stanchions or a heavy-duty steel frame with correspondingly large foundations. Options for the division walls were also very limited at this height, with feet or steelwork in the way. It is in situations such as this where high-strength Legato blocks from Elite Precast come into their own. Each weighing 2,400kg, the standard blocks are cast from high- quality 50N/mm~2 concrete and measure 1.6m × 0.8m × 0.8m. The blocks are very simple to reconfigure into different heights and layouts, and when designed and installed correctly can form very large walls capable of taking large loads, including roof canopies. Moreover, the use of double-thickness walls at the base allows the structure to withstand both product loading and the impact loading of the operating machinery with ease, whilst the division walls feature a self-cleaning 'footblock', which creates a very neat detail.