STRUCTURAL

CONCRETE
MASONRY

A DESIGN GUIDE

FS CROFTS
JW LANE
Structural Concrete Masonry

A Design Guide

FS Crofts

JW Lane
© Copyright, 1999 by the Authors.

This publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written
permission of the Authors.

The information contained in this publication is intended as a guide only. The Concrete
Manufacturers Association cannot be held responsible for its interpretation and use.

First Edition, Reprinted 2011

ISBN 0-9584106-6-6
Concrete Manufacturers Association
Midrand, South Africa
Preface

The second edition of this designers guide ideally should have been updated and reference
should have been made to the latest revised South African Standards, i.e. for loading and
masonry design standards, but this has not been the case.

During a structural Eurocode summit that was hosted by the Joint Structural Division of
the South African Institution of Civil Engineering in February 2008, it was identified that
there is a need for the industry to start working towards the adoption of Eurocodes and
to commence with the alignment of material standards to these codes; this also applies
to masonry. South Africa stands to reap immense benefits by adopting Eurocodes such
as access to international software and guidance manuals and increased opportunities for
carrying out designs for other countries which have adopted the Eurocodes.

At this time, a South African national standard based on EN1990 (Basis of Design) and
EN1991 (Actions on Structures) has been under development. The revised standard
(SANS 10160) has superseded SABS 0160 and cover basis of design, self-weight and
imposed loads, wind actions, seismic actions, geotechnical actions, thermal actions,
actions induced by cranes and machinery, and actions during execution.

The masonry material standards (SABS 0164 Parts 1 and 2) when purchased from the
South African Bureau of Standards have updated SANS references, i.e. SANS 10164
which have not been updated for over twenty years and do require drastic changes, in
particular Part 1 that includes partial load factors based on UK practice. The second
edition of this designers guide still refers to the existing or old standards. The South
African national standards for the manufacture of masonry units (concrete, SABS 1215;
fired clay, 227 and calcium silicate, SABS 285) are also due for revision.

Eurocode 6: Design of masonry structures (EC6) consists of:

• Part 1-1: Common rules for reinforced and unreinforced masonry structure
• Part 1-2: Structural fire design
• Part 2: Design, selection of materials and execution of masonry, and
• Part 3: Simplified calculation methods

Not only will the adoption of EC6 require European Standards (EN) for manufacturing
specifications of masonry units, mortar, ancillary materials and revised testing methods
but parts of EC6 need to be included in the National Building Regulations and Building
Standards Act (NBR).

Many of the structural masonry failures over the last ten years were as a result of masonry
members being constructed beyond the scope of the deem-to-satisfy rules in the NBR
and the inability by structural designers to identify these cases. Masonry panels have
collapsed due to the omission of lateral supports or the use of inadequate wall ties in
the case of cavity walls, bearing failures (crushing) associated with concentrated loads
emanating from supporting precast concrete floor systems were widespread, collapse of
masonry parapet walls and lintel failures have been prevalent to name a few.

iii
Many serviceability problems occur due to incorrect specifications of masonry materials for
its intended use in a masonry building envelope. The use of unsuitable masonry units due to
cost considerations or simply neglecting to specify appropriate masonry materials can result
in annoying and costly routine maintenance over the life cycle of a building; here in particular
attention is drawn to the fact that it is not uncommon for masonry unit manufacturers to seek
compressive strength tests only and advertise full SABS manufacturing compliance. The
importance of cement setting times and correct mix proportions for masonry mortar shall be
monitored on site since masonry mortar constitutes a small percentage of the total cost of a
wall and does not justify neglect.

FRED S CROFTS (Pr Eng.)

Acknowledgements

The contribution of the following are gratefully acknowledged:

The Concrete Manufacturer’s Association for encouraging and financing the writing and
publication of the design guide.
Ron Watermeyer for writing Chapter 12.

The Joint Structural Division of the South African Institution of Civil Engineering and
Institution of Structural Engineering for technical input, in particular John Cairns, Norman
Dellar, Tony Goldstein and Don Midgeley, the latter also for his editing and editorial
contribution.

Jimmy Catsavis for critical comments.

Brigitte Fauconier, who undertook the word processing and typesetting.

Isikhova Publishing and Communications for the cover design.

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