Page 144 - Demo

PRECAST CONCRETE ELEMENTS144 CPI %u2013 Concrete Plant International %u2013 6 | 2025 www.cpi-worldwide.comThe external cladding of prefabricated industrial and commercial buildings is often constructed using precast concrete panels. In Italy, it is common practice to design such structures without thoroughly considering the interaction between the structural frame and the cladding panels. These panels, typically connected to columns or beams, are generally treated as suspended masses: they contribute to the overall dynamic response of the building but are not considered to significantly influence its lateral stiffness.The connections between the cladding panels and the main structure are therefore designed primarily to transfer the self-weight of the panels and the horizontal loads generated by seismic events and wind. Within Italian design practice, neglecting the stiffening contribution of fa%u00e7ade panels is regarded as a conservative approach when designing precast concrete structures.In this case, for seismic regulations, the connections must be sized in such a way as to be able to withstand, in the face of the operating earthquake (event characterized by a peak ground acceleration with a probability equal to 10% in 50 years of being equaled or exceeded), relative displacements compatible with an inter-storey displacement equal to 0.01h, where h is the inter-storey height.However, the nonlinear and dynamic behavior of precast concrete structures under seismic loading remains insufficiently understood, mainly due to the limited number of in-depth studies on the interaction between the structural frame and the exterior cladding panels. What is well-established, however, is that the connections must accommodate seismic displacements without transferring excessive forces into the plane of the panels.In response to these challenges, Edilmatic has developed the MT bracket support system, which provides a reliable and effective solution for addressing the behavior of cladding panels under seismic conditions.This system allows for two main installation configurations:%u2022 Outside the structural frame, where the connectors are loaded in a direction perpendicular to the panel plane;%u2022 Between the structural columns, where the connections are located along the lateral edges of the panel and loaded in the fa%u00e7ade plane.Support systems for prefabricated cladding panelsEdilmatic S.P.A., 460202 Pegognaga (MN), ItalyEdilmatic support system with MT bracket