ACI 318 Building Code — The Time is Right for Reorganization
Publication: Structures Congress 2009: Don't Mess with Structural Engineers: Expanding Our Role
Abstract
The ACI Building Code, first issued in 1910, is the primary knowledge asset of the American Concrete Institute and the concrete construction industry in the U.S. For nearly a century, the Code, by its adoption into virtually all US model building codes, has been the leading document in many areas related to concrete, including education, design, materials, construction, and repair. It is arguably one of the most influential concrete codes in the world. The Code is a primary reason for ACI's reputation as the leading source of technical information on the use of concrete. The framework of the current ACI Building Code has remained essentially unchanged since 1963. In 1963 ultimate strength design was introduced, prestressed concrete was in its infancy, and there were no provisions for seismic design or connections to concrete. The Code served to inform, educate and provide guidance for the introduction of strength design methods. Knowledge expands with time through practice and research. In the case of structural engineering, knowledge is also gained through lessons learned from behavior of structures in catastrophic events such as earthquakes. The Code captures change through this insight into behavior, addition of new materials and construction techniques, and advancement of technology. It is the addition of new knowledge that underlies the growth of ACI 318 Code and Commentary from 60 pages in 1956 to 471 pages in 2008. The Code has grown from 750 provisions and 250 primary cross-references in 1971 to over 2500 provisions and 1500 primary cross-references in 2008.
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© 2009 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Apr 26, 2012
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Building codes
- Building design
- Concrete
- Concrete construction
- Construction (by type)
- Construction engineering
- Construction management
- Construction materials
- Design (by type)
- Earthquake engineering
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Geotechnical engineering
- Materials engineering
- Seismic design
- Standards and codes
- Structural behavior
- Structural engineering
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