PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No.

3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD

DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

From: Mr. Lovemore Mukondomi – Sir Alphy (Pty) Ltd - Project Structural Engineers
To: Mr. W Van den Berg/Mr. Johan Van den Berg - Heildelberg Steel/MJ Consulting Engineers - (Pty) Ltd (Fabricators/Steel Superstructure
Designers)
Mr. T.L Kililo – Cloud Scape (Pty) Ltd – Project Architect

Date: 16 September 2019

RE: Design Coordination – Comments on Superstructure Steel Design and Drawings

Superstructure Steel Information Received to Date:

Two Drawings
• Truss layout drawing
• Truss and Column Details
Calculations – Prokon design output
• 32m truss design output
• 20m truss design output

Comments on Received Drawings and Calculations:

We appreciate the milestone achieved towards detailed design and production of construction drawings for the proposed mall. However,
superstructure steelwork details (design calculations and drawings) received to date are insufficient for us to review drawings and calculations and be
accountable for the design as per building regulations in Botswana. All designs are to be reviewed by a Professional Engineer registered with the
Engineers Registration Board of Botswana (ERB).
Kindly review all comments below and urgently advice your timelines for resolving and submitting details required:

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
1 Layout Drawing Heildelberg
Steel/MJ
Consulting
1a Only trusses are indicated on layout drawing. You are requested to indicate the
following:
i. Purlin sizes & position for supporting roof sheets, including sag bars (if

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
required according to your design output).
ii. Show truss top chord and bottom chord bracing for the braced bays.
1b Your layout seems to indicate your gridline (GL):E-G/4-8 as uncovered area yet
this is a covered entrance lobby area. Refer to architectural drawings and provide
structural framing steelwork accordingly.
1c Indicate structural member sizes for the following:
i. Structural elements along GL:1/A-I; GL:2/I-L; GL:3/L-M and A/4-5 i.e.
members along building perimeter being perpendicular to trusses
ii. Structural elements along GL:4/A-E.
1d Provide ground floor layout indicating steel columns for easy references.

2 Drawing for Trusses and Columns Details Heildelberg

Steel/MJ
Consulting
2a Provide detailed dimensions to include the following:
i. Radius of curvature for the curved trusses
ii. Depth of trusses
iii. Spacing of vertical web members
2b Columns for Trusses T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 and T6 i.e. 2/177x6x25.3 Round tube
i. We can’t figure-out configuration of the two columns in all your drawings.
Column plan view details drawn to suitable scale like 1:20 could be helpful
ii. Can you consider Universal Beams (I), H, Rectangular or Square sections
for easier coordination with brick wall cladding
2c Connections
Indicate connection details for all critical connections including the following:
i. Column base plate details including Holding Down (H.D) bolts diameter
and lengths. As it stands, we can’t even determine size of concrete stub
columns without H.D bolt details.
ii. Truss to column details to indicate bolt sizes, quantity and spacing
iii. Typical connection of truss node details (Top & Bottom Chords connection

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
to web members)
iv. Details of truss site joints and positions marked on trusses for long-span
trusses like 20m and 30m which will be transported in shorter length and
joined onsite.
2d Column Bracing
Indicate configuration of column bracing, member sizes and include elevations to
show column bracings

3 General Comments on Drawings

3a All drawings are to be identified by drawing numbers
3b Provide structural steelwork notes to include the following:
i. Grade of structural steelwork
ii. Grade of bolts
iii. Size of welds
iv. Method and specifications for corrosion protection of steelwork

4 Analysis and Design Heildelberg

Steel/MJ
Consulting
4a The 271 pages Prokon output booklet provided will be of little technical
importance to other design team members without basic information (input,
assumptions & constrains, summarised analysis and design outputs) in the form
of a brief Design Report outlining the following:
4a(1) Framing of the building
• Method of achieving robust and stable structure e.g. column and truss
bracing
• Position of lateral restrain on columns
• Lateral restrain of truss bottom chords

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
• Assumed column fixity at the bottom of columns (pinned, partially fixed,
fixed?)
4a(2) Design Codes for Wind Loading, Imposed Load, Dead Load and Structural Design
4a(3) Grades of materials such as:
• Grade of Structural Steelwork
• Size of welds
4a(4) Characteristic Loading
(i) Dead Load
Include the following in your loading:
• Roof sheets
• Roof insulation
• Ceiling
• Service load (Fittings such as electrical and mechanical suspended
from the roof structure)
(ii) Imposed Load
(iii) Wind Loading Parameters
• Return Period
• Terrain Category
• Regional Wind Speed
• Class of Structure
• Altitude
Wind load Calculations – your assertion that wind loading is not critical is
incorrect for such light structures which are quite sensitive to wind uplift.
4a(5) Load Combinations
(i) Dead Load + Imposed Load
1.2 DL + 1.6 I.L
(ii) Dead Load + Wind Load
0.9DL + 1.3 WL
This is a very critical load combination for light structures.

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
(iii) Dead Load + Imposed Load + Wind Load
1.2 DL + 1.2 IL + 1.2 WL

Note: The above load factors may vary slightly depending on versions of
code of practice you are adopting.
4a(6) Load Calculations
i. Include calculations for nodal point loads or U.D.L loads on trusses and
columns for DL, LL and WL
ii. Diagrammatic view of truss/column loads
Handy calculations and sketches for the above are quite informative. Simply scan
and attach your calculations.

4a(7) Analysis and Design Output Summary

i. Summary of analysis output for each truss/column frame type indicating
truss member axial load and column forces (axial, shear and bending
moments) in both diagrammatic and tabular form.
ii. Summary of design output for critical elements and critical load
combinations.
iii. Comparison of actual truss deflections to allowable deflections for the
various truss types.
iv. Summary of column reactions to facilitate foundations design review.

4b Discrepancies between design information and drawings

i. Column size for 32m Truss (T1) is stated as 2No. 177x6 C.H.S on drawing
whereas your design indicate 356x6.0 C.H.S for the same. Change
columns T1, T2, T3, T4, T5 and T6 to Universal Beams ( I sections), H
sections, Rectangular or Square Sections which can be easily coordinated
with the brick wall cladding.
ii. In your analysis you assumed existence of side rails yet there are no such

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
elements on proposed structure. Actually brick cladding will be adopted.
Refer to architectural drawings. Kindly review impact on column in-plane
and out-of plane buckling length and hence column sizing.

4c Other Design Matters

4c(1) Provide roof purlin details, size and spacing as well as design calculation taking
into consideration appropriate dead load, wind load and imposed load estimates.
4c(2) Truss design philosophy
• Take into account out-of plane stability of truss bottom chord in your
design. Indicate position and details of out-of plain restraining elements of
your choice such as longitudinal ties or stay bracing. NB truss top chord
out-of plane restrains is provided by roof purlins.
• Truss deflection – tabulate maximum truss deflections for each truss type
and compare with allowable deflections to prove trusses are of adequate
stiffness.
4c(3) Connection Designs
Designs are incomplete without connections as these can be points of structural
failure. Provide connection details and calculations for the following:
i. Column to truss connection
ii. Critical truss members connections (connection of web members to top
and bottom chords)
iii. Truss site joints for long-span trusses like 20m and 30m which will be
transported in shorter length and joined onsite.
iv. Column base plate and Holding Down (H.D0 bots for all column sizes
adopted.
v. Purlin to truss connection details.

4d Professional design responsibility

i. All design documentation (drawings and calculations) provided by

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PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
Heildelberg Steel/MJ Consulting Engineers are to be signed and
approved by professionals registered with ECSA.
ii. Botswana building regulations requires a professional engineer registered
with Engineers Registration Board (ERB) of Botswana to review, approve
and take responsibility for designs. We therefore require detailed drawings
and supporting calculations to be convinced on the structural integrity of
proposed steel superstructure prior to taking responsibility as per building
regulations requirements.
iii. Structural design documentation and information is not an industrial
secrete to project design team. Kindly share prokon files as this can
expedite our design review process.

5 Structural Steel Shop Drawings/Fabrication Drawings Heildelberg

Steel
Once the design and design review process is completed including associated
structural drawings, shop drawings will have to be prepared accordingly.

6 Architectural Matters Cloud Scape

(Pty) Ltd
i. Columns are spaced at 6m centres on drawings from Heildelberg Steel.
Refer to their drawings and adjust architectural drawings accordingly.
ii. Propose cladding around building as well as review of internal partitioning
to suit drawings from fabricator.
iii. Fabricator only provides steel columns and the roof structure. Their
loading does not cater for brick walls to transfer load to steel
structure. You are to propose brick wall cladding independent of the
steel structure in terms of load transfer to the ground.
iv. You may email a set of latest architectural drawings to the fabricator since
they are reviewing and re-aligning some of the architectural and structural

ISSUED: 16 SEPTEMBER 2019 Page 7 of 8

PROJECT: PROPOSED COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON PLOT No. 3237 SHAKAWE/SAOSHOKO – BOTSWANA FOR BRACKLING (PTY) LTD
DOCUMENT TITLE: DESIGN COORDINATION 01 – COMMENTS ON COLUMNS & ROOF STRUCTURAL DESIGNS AND DRAWINGS
PREPARED BY: SIR ALPHY (PTY) LTD

Timelines
Item Description Action Duration Start Completion
(Days) Date Date
details.
v. Check and comment on any architectural matters on fabricator’s drawing
to ensure they are in line with your proposal especially on truss and
member profiles. This is critical as late changes can be costly.

Should you require any further clarifications please do not hesitate to notify our office. We are available to review, discuss and agree at every design
stage rather than waiting for a complete document.
We are open to use of social platforms for communication to exchange design information including setting up of design group to expedite the
process.

Regards,

L. Mukondomi
For Sir Alphy Pty (Ltd) – Structural Engineers

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