The Case of a Broken Plank
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 15, Issue 2
Abstract
A construction worker was seriously injured after falling from a roof to a concrete floor. He was working on a plank while placing insulation material when the accident occurred. The plank broke into three pieces. Visual observation of the plank indicated a relatively new plank. Further investigation of the plank revealed a grade of structural plank no. 2. A common practice is for a construction worker to use scaffold grade plank, which has twice the capacity of a structural grade plank. This represents the most probable procedural cause of the plank's failure. The most probable enabling cause (internal cause) of the failure is a local split at the midspan, whereas the most probable triggering cause (external cause) is the impact loads produced by the weight of the worker and the insulation material he carried while walking on the plank. The study also concluded a failure mechanism that was initiated by a longitudinal split at the midspan of the plank. The split weakened the plank and led to a transverse break at the midspan.
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References
1.
Hadipriono, F. C. ( 1991). “Fault tree expert system for labor safety.” Rep. AM.SU.H.B.111. Center for Labor Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
2.
Hadipriono, F. C. (1992). “Expert system for construction safety. I: Fault-Tree models.”J. Perf. Constr. Fac., ASCE, 6(14), 246–260.
3.
Western Wood Product Association (WWPA). ( 1988). “Western lumber grading rules 88.” Portland, Ore.
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Received: Sep 26, 2000
Published online: May 1, 2001
Published in print: May 2001
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