For concrete structure…

Beam

Initial assumption for deciding the section of the beam is based on deflection control
criteria.

You could assume a initial width of 230–300 mm.

As per IS:456 for a continuous beam, the span to effective depth ratio should be less
than 20.

Beam depth>span/20

thus for 8 m span you would need a beam at least of 400 mm effective depth.
Considering main reinforcement dia. of 20 mm and cover to main reinforcement to
be 20 mm.

Total depth required=440 mm

This is just an initial estimate. Now you would have to check the beam for
Bending moment and Shear Force.

Column

For column the process is much more complex as it starts with deciding the shape of
the column based on the structural configuration, number of beams supported by the
column etc.

1. Beam Design
In beams generally,we start with deflection criteria, as the beam resist load in form of
bending moment by deflection. So the first criteria is always deflection criteria.

For cantilever beams= 7

For Simply supported= 20

For continuous beams= 26

where the numerical values represents the (span/effective depth) ratio. Above values
are valid only when span is less than or equal to 10m. From this criteria you will get a
trial value of depth, from there assuming a proper grade of concrete and steel, you
can calculate Moment of Resistance of the beam. But remember for comparing MOR,
you should know either the overburden load along with dead load of structure or the
gross moment acting on the beam.

As a trial value you will get an effective depth of 400mm, but i can bet you that will
fail in the first trial only, you will need a effective depth of around 600–800mm for
the span of 8m. Moreover it may be singly or doubly reinforced beam depending
upon the total bending moment need to be resisted.
2.Column

It is a most complex component of a building, you need a lot of data, tables, curves
and checks then only you can design a column, because it need to carry a large axial
load, and the loading may be eccentric or may not, so for that we have to counter-
check, axial bending and biaxial bending. You will also need SPD curves. I’ll
generalise the procedure.

 Calculate the total axial load need to be transferred through one column.
 Adopt a section(rectangular, square, circular)
 Adopt a min size of 400mm
 As per the required length of column, check for type of member, i.e. Strut,
Short column, or long column. Try adopting short column.
 Find effective length of the column, check for unsupported length of the
column.
 Check slenderness ratio, it should be less than 12, for short column.
 Check for minimum eccentricity, for which column will be designed.
 Applying proper reduction factor as per the method adopted(WSM/LSM)
 Find out area of steel required.
 Adopt a suitable dia of tie bar as per codal provisions.
 Check for maximum spacing.
 If biaxial bending also exists, then either design for it or try to nullify the
biaxial bending by increasing the size of column so that tension core
broadens.

Column size and beam depth cannot be decided based on span alone.

It depends on many aspects including its position in the structure, loads and many
other parameters. If it was so easy to decide the size based on span, there was no
need of civil & structural engineers! Having said this minimum depth of beam can
be decided based on the deflection requirement that is based on span/depth ratio.
The ratio is 7,20 and 26 for cantelever, simply supported and continuous beams
respectively. Note that this ratio

is before considering the benefit of rebars controlling deflections. For more info and
for structural design courses,visit www.civilera.com /ETABS Trainers in
Why depth of beam is greater than width?
Moment of inertia is proportional to the cube of depth (for a rectangular section).
Hence doubling the depth increases the moment of resistance by eight times while
doubling the breadth increases the moment of resistance two times. There is a
greater benefit in increasing the depth rather than the breadth

What is the effective depth of a beam?

The effective depth of the beam is the distance from the tension steel to the edge
of the compression fibre. Meaning if you have a 400 mm deep beam with T20
tension reinforcement and a cover of 40 mm the effective depth is 400 - 40 - 10 =
350.
lo = distance between points of zero moments in the beam, which is the effectivespan for
simply supported beams and 0.7 times the effective span for continuous beams and frames,
bw = beadth of the web, Df = thickness of the flange, and b = actual width of the flange.

What is effective length of beam?

The effective length of a beam is calculated to determine its susceptibilty to lateral
torsional buckling ( which occurs when a bending moment is applied). It is a factor
that is applied to the actual length (or span) of a beam and is dependent on the end
restraints and the actual load application position height .
What is beam and slab?
Difference in structural role: Slabs usually carry a uniformly distributed load and form
the floor or roof of the building, and are designed to transfer the load to columns
(basically the edges on which the slab rests), while beams are designed to resist
flexural effects (bending) due to that load.
What is the difference between effective span and clear span?
Effective span means the center to center distance between any two adjacent
support. Clear span means the clear distance between two adjecent support of a
bridge.
What is difference between clear cover and effective cover?
Clear cover is the distance from outer surface of concrete member to the outer surface of
steel (either main reinforcement or stirrups). Nominal Cover As per IS 456 Cl: 26.4.1 ;
nominal cover is defined as the cover to all steel reinforcement, including stirrups/links.

What is the difference between beam and column?

If you keep it horizontally it is called a Beam which carries the loads by bending,
simply called flexure. If you keep it vertically forms a Column which carries load by
undergoing compression. If you keep it in an inclined fashion it is called a Strut
which carries horizontal and vertical components of forces.
What is the minimum thickness of slab?
The minimum thickness of slab used in RCC construction is 150mm.
What is the value of minimum reinforcement in a slab?
Minimum reinforcement is 0.12% for HYSD bars and 0.15% for mild steel bars.
The diameter of bar generally used in slabs are: 6 mm, 8 mm, 10 mm, 12mm and
16mm. The maximum diameter of bar used in slab should not exceed 1/8 of the total
thickness of slab.
RCC Dog-legged staircase, the ensuing flights mainly lift in contrary
directions. The two flights in plan are not isolated by a well. A landing is
delivered comparable to the level at which the direction of the flight is
regulated.
Method for designing a Dog-legged Staircase:
The stairs are divided into the following two types based on the direction
along which a stair slab spreads out. 1. Stairs spanning horizontally 2.
Stairs spanning vertically
Stairs spanning horizontally:
In this type of stairs, walls deliver adequate support to both sides.
Loads
Dead load of a step = 0.5 x T x R x 25
Dead load of waist slab = b x t x 25
Live load = LL (KN/m2)
Floor finish = suppose 0.5 KN/m

Stairs spanning horizontally:

In this case, the beam is sustained by both top and bottom of the flights.
Loads
Self weight of a step=1xR/2x25
Self weight of waist slab=1xtx25
Self weight of plan=1xtx25 [(R2+T2)/T]
Live Load=LL (KN/m2)
Floor finish = suppose 0.5 KN/m
To download this spreadsheet click on the link provided below.