40 storeys Limited site access On-site activities kept to a minimum Decking area: 65,000m 2 Decking types: Ribdeck 80 & Ribdeck AL Floor slab span: 4.8m max Floor slab depth: 160mm No temporary propping Permanent edge formwork: 15,000m Shear studs: 370,000 19mm 120 and 95mm Fire resistance: up to 2 hrs This forty storey steel framed composite structure in the heart of Londons financial district, has a surprisingly small footprint and access for the delivery of construction materials was available only from a narrow street. Each floor is circular and comprises an outer ring with equally spaced radial beams plus a central service core constructed with irregularly spaced beams, all supporting steel decking based composite floor slabs. The size of the core is constant, but the outer floors vary in diameter at each level. Detailing at lightwell void Subcontractors were tasked to satisfy a demanding programme whilst keeping on-site activities to a minimum and noise pollution at very low levels. Traditional methods for the manufacture and installation of steel decking were not suitable, but early consultations with the project principals allowed the development of a tailored approach using prefabrication methods. The structural requirements of the building presented an opportunity to use Ribdeck 80, chosen for its innovative combination of longer span performance and shallow slab construction. The maximum span of the floor slab is 4.8m and a 160mm deep lightweight concrete floor slab was designed to achieve a fire resistance of up to two hours with only light fabric reinforcement in the top. The Ribdeck 80 spanned continuously over intermediate beams in double lengths with no need for temporary propping. Due to the radial layout of support beams, it was necessary to cut the ends of decking panels at an angle and to align them closely and accurately to facilitate the placement of shear studs in the troughs and to avoid the need for closures or excessive gap filling at joints. Decking panels are normally formed with square cut ends that are trimmed to shape on site when necessary. To minimise on-site working, a purpose-made tool was developed to allow a fixed angle of skew cutting in the deck Trimming detail at frame nodes Looking up through the atrium PROJECT INFORMATION Project address: 30 St. Mary Axe, London EC3 Project value: 130 million Building owner: Swiss Reinsurance Company Main contractor: Skanska Architects: Foster and Partners Consulting engineers: Arup Steelwork contractor: Victor Buyck-Hollandia Joint Venture Ltd. Decking sub-contractor: Richard Lees Steel Decking Ltd Moor Farm Road West The Airfield Ashbourne Derbyshire DE6 1HD UK Tel: +44(0) 1335 300999 Fax: +44(0) 1335 300888 www.rlsd.com manufacturing process and special procedures were devised to ensure a high degree of accuracy and to minimise disruption of production. The setting out datum was at the perimeter of the structure, so decking was installed working inwards towards the core with the lengths of panels progressively reducing. Special bundling and packing had to be employed to accommodate the variation in panel lengths and to stabilise the bundles during transportation and loading onto the structure. Segmental galvanised steel closure pieces were also pre-cut to shape off-site for placement around the perimeter of the decking. Compared with the perimeter, the inner core had fewer repetitious panel sizes and irregular angles, so it was not economic to set up special tooling in this case. Instead, off-site cutting was carried out using petrol driven saws. Decking panels were scheduled individually for size and shape, cut accurately, then delivered to the structure and installed like jigsaw pieces. This left little opportunity for amendment before concrete placement and was a very successful exercise in quality control and organisation. Detailing of decking was carried out using a bespoke system based upon CSC Ltds 3D+ software, processing parametric modelling imported from Arup via Victor Buyck-Hollandia. Published by: MCRMA 18 MERE FARM ROAD PRENTON WIRRAL CHESHIRE CH43 9TT TEL: +44 (0) 151 652 3846 FAX: +44 (0) 151 653 4080 www.mcrma.co.uk in partnership with THE STEEL CONSTRUCTION INSTITUTE SILWOOD PARK ASCOT BERKSHIRE SL5 7QN TEL: +44 (0) 1344 623345 FAX: +44 (0) 1344 622944 www.steel-sci.org