The study is arranged by

Civil Engineer: ARAS JAMAL MAGID

DESIGN AND
DETAILING OF FLAT
SLAB

Introduction
Benefits
Design Cnsiderations
Analysis of Flat Slab
Detailing

Introduction:
A flat slab is a reinforced concrete slab supported directly by concrete columns without the
use of beams.

Uses of column heads:

increase shear strength of slab
reduce the moment in the slab by reducing the clear or effective span

Uses of drop panels :

increase shear strength of slab
increase negative moment capacity of slab
stiffen the slab and hence reduce deflection

BENEFITS:
Faster construction
The benefits of using flat slab construction are becoming increasingly recognised. Flat slabs without drops
(thickened areas of slab around the columns to resist punching shear) can be built faster because
formwork is simplified and minimised, and rapid turn-around can be achieved using a combination of
early striking2 and flying systems. The overall speed of construction will then be limited by the rate at
which vertical elements can be cast.
Reduced services and cladding costs
Flat slab construction places no restrictions on the positioning of horizontal services and partitions and can
minimize floor-to-floor heights when there is no requirement for a deep false ceiling. This can have
knock-on benefits in terms of lower building height, reduced cladding costs and prefabricated services.
Flexibility for the occupier
Flat slab construction offers considerable flexibility to the occupier who can easily alter internal layouts
to accommodate changes in the use of the structure. This flexibility results from the use of a square or
near-square grid and the absence of beams, down stands or drops that complicate the routing of services
and location of partitions.
Slab thickness
Having chosen a flat slab solution, the next key issue is to determine an appropriate slab thickness. In
general, thinner slabs not only save on direct material costs for the frame and the supporting foundations
but also provide knock-on benefits in terms of reduced height of the structure and lower cladding costs.
Further guidance is given in Reference 1. There is, of course, a lower limit to the slab thickness. As this is
approached, the savings identified above become outweighed by the extra reinforcement required to deal
with serviceability issues and the increased difficulty in designing and fixing it. There is also a case for
providing some margin, particularly at outline scheme stage, to accommodate late changes in architectural
requirements.
Flexibility in room layout:
Allows Architect to introduce partition walls any anywhere required, allows owner to change the size

of room layout, allows choice of omitting false ceiling and finish soffit of slab with skim
coating.
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Saving in building height:

Lower storey height will reduce building weight due to lower partitions and cladding to faade, approx.

saves 10% in vertical members, reduce foundation load.

Shorter construction time:

Flat plate design will facilitate the use of big table formwork to increase productivity

Single soffit level

Simplified the table formwork needed

Ease of installation of m&e services:

all M & E services can be mounted directly on the underside of the slab instead of bending them
to avoid the beams, avoids hacking through beams

PRE-FABRICATED WELDED MESH

Prefabricated in standard sizes
Minimized installation time
Better quality control

BUILDABLE SCORE
allows standardized structural members and prefabricated sections to be integrated into the
design for ease of construction.
this process will make the structure more buildable, reduce the number of site workers and
increase the productivity at site.
more tendency to achieve a higher Buildable score.

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
WALL AND COLUMN POSITION:
Locate position of wall tomaximisethe structural stiffness for
lateral loads
Facilitates the rigidity to be located to the centre of building

OPTIMISATION OF STRUCTURAL LAYOUT PLAN

the sizes of vertical and structural structural members can be optimised to keep the volume of
concrete for the entire superstructure inclusive of walls and lift cores to be in the region of 0.4 to
0.5 m3per square metre
this figure is considered to be economical and comparable to an optimum design in
conventional of beam and slab systems

DEFLECTION CHECK

necessary to include checking of the slab deflection for all load cases both for short and long term basis
In general, under full service load, < L/250 or 40 mm whichever is smaller
Limit set to prevent unsightly occurrence of cracks on non-structural walls and floor finishes

CRACK CONTROL
advisable to perform crack width calculations based on spacing of reinforcement as detailed and the
moment envelope obtained from structural analysis
good detailing of reinforcement will restrict the crack width to within acceptable tolerances as specified
in the codes and reduce future maintenance cost of the building

FLOOR OPENINGS

No opening should encroach upon a column head or drop

Sufficient reinforcement must be provided to take care of stress
concentration

PUNCHING SHEAR

always a critical consideration in flat plate design around the columns

instead of using thicker section, shear reinforcement in the form of shear heads, shear studs or stirrup
cages may be embedded in the slab to enhance shear capacity at the edges of walls and columns

CONSTRUCTION LOADS

critical for fast track project where removal of forms at early strength is required
possible to achieve 70% of specified concrete cube strength within a day or two by using high strength
concrete
alternatively use 2 sets of forms

LATERAL STABILITY
buildings with flat plate design is generally less rigid
lateral stiffness depends largely on the configuration of lift core position, layout of walls and columns
frame action is normally insufficient to resist lateral loads in high rise buildings, it needs to act in tendam
with walls and lift cores to achieve the required stiffness

MULTIPLE FUNCTION PERIMETER BEAMS

adds lateral rigidity
reduce slab deflection

ANALYSIS OF FLAT SLAB

COLUMN HEAD
Effective dimension of a head ,
where lho = actual dimension, lh max= lc+ 2(dh-40)

For circular column or column head, effective diameter

,

DIVISION OF PANELS
The panels are divided into column strips and middle strips in both direction.

Slab without drops

Slab with drops

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MOMENT DIVISION

Note : For slab with drops where the width of the middle strip exceeds L/2, the distribution of moment in
the middle strip should be increased in proportion to its increased width and the momentresisted by the
column strip should be adjusted accordingly.

MOMENT DIVISION EXAMPLE

A floor slab in a building where stability is provided by shear walls in one direction (N-S). The slab is
without drops and is supported internally and on the external long sides by square columns . The imposed
loading on the floor is 5 KN/m2and an allowance of 2.5KN/m2for finishes, etc. fcu = 40 KN/m2, fy =
460KN/m2

MOMENT DIVISION EXAMPLE

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Division of panels into strips in x and y direction

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DESIGN FOR BENDING

INTERNAL PANELS
columns and middle strips should be designed to withstand design moments from analysis

EDGE PANELS
apportionment of moment exactly the same as internal columns max. design moment
transferable between slab and edge column by a column strip of breadth beis

Otherwise structural arrangements shall be changed.

PUNCHING SHEAR

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DEFLECTION
(i) use normal span/effective depth ratio if drop width >1/3 span each way;
otherwise(ii) to apply 0.9modification factor for flat slab, or where drop panel width
< L/31.0otherwiseSpan

OPENINGS
Holes in areas bounded by the column strips may be formed providing :
greatest dimension < 0.4 span length and
total positive and negative moments are redistributed between the remaining
structure to meet the changed conditions OPENINGS Analysis

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Holes in areas common to two column strips may be formed providing :

that their aggregate their length or width does not exceed one-tenth of the width of
the column strip;
that the reduced sections are capable of resisting with the moments;
that the perimeter for calculating the design shear stress is reduced if appropriate

For all other cases of openings, it should be framed on

all sides with beams to carry the loads to the columns.

DETAILING OF FLAT SLAB

TYPE OF REINFORCEMENT

F-mesh-A mesh formed by main wire with cross wire at a fixed spacing of 800 mm
#Main wire-hard drawn ribbed wire with diameter and spacing as per design
#Cross wire-hard drawn smooth wire as holding wire
H8-800mm c/c for main wire diameter > 10mm
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H7-800mm c/c for main wire diameter of 10mm and below

Typical main lap details

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REINFORCEMENT FOR INTERNAL PANELS

Reinforcement are arranged in 2 directions parallel to each span; and

2/3 of the reinforcement required to resist negative moment in the column strip must be
placed in the centre half of the strip
for slab with drops, the top reinforcement should be placed evenly across the column strip

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STANDARD LAPPING OF MESH (FOR FLAT SLAB)

TYPICAL DETAIL SHOWING RECESS AT SLAB SOFFIT FOR

SERVICES

TYPICAL SECTION AT STAIRCASE

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DETAILS OF INSPECTION CHAMBER AT APRON

DETAILS OF INSPECTION CHAMBER AT APRON

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DETAILS OF INSPECTION CHAMBER AT APRON

DETAILS OF INSPECTION CHAMBER AT APRON

DETAILS OF INSPECTION CHAMBER AT PLAY AREA

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1ST STOREY (DWELLING UNIT) SLAB DETAILS OF HOUSEHOLD

SHELTER

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TYPICAL DETAILS OF 125X250 RC CHANNEL FOR GAS PIPE

ENTRY

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