1. Commercial Wall Systems
If a building looks better under construction than it does when finished, then it's a failure. -Doug Coupland
Civil Engineering and Architecture
© 2010 Project Lead The Way, Inc.

2. Commercial Wall Systems
Load Bearing Walls
Low Rise
Cast-in-Place Concrete
Tilt-up Concrete
Concrete Masonry Units
Non-Load Bearing Walls
Curtain Walls

3. Commercial Wall Systems
Load Bearing Wall
Supports vertical loads other than its own weight
Often supports floors or roof above
Non-Load Bearing
Supports only it own weight
Typically used as
Partition walls to separate interior spaces
Protection from the elements

4. Load Bearing Walls Common Construction Materials
Low-rise commercial construction (three stories or less) may be similar to residential construction.
Wood
Precast Concrete
Light Gauge Steel

5. Load Bearing Walls Other common commercial wall materials
Cast-in-Place concrete
Tilt-up Concrete
Concrete Masonry Units (CMU)

6. Concrete
Courtesy of TCA

7. Concrete Advantages Strength (especially in compression) Durable
Fire Resistant
Pest Resistant
Rot/Rust Resistant
Low Maintenance
Energy Efficient—Thermal mass stores heat energy
Pictures courtesy construction photography
Concrete is mixed at a plant . . .
. . . and transported to the site of the pour.

8. Green Concrete? LEED® credits earned for
Using aggregate extracted, processed, and manufactured within a 100-mile radius of the project site
Using fly ash, slag, and recycled aggregate
Improved energy efficiency by taking advantage of thermal mass of concrete
Reduced VOCs using concrete compared to other construction materials
Generating less construction waste than wood or steel

9. Cast-in-Place Concrete
Concrete walls are formed, reinforced, and poured in place.
Concrete is reinforced with steel bars to improve tensile and bending strength.
©iStockphoto.com
©iStockphoto.com

10. Cast-in-Place Concrete Typical Construction
WEEP
HOLE
Image courtesy masonrysystems.org

11. CAST-IN-PLACE CONCRETE EXAMPLES
155 N Wacker
Chicago
Notice the formwork in the three images on the right.
The Dubai Tower opened in 2010 and is currently (March 2015) the world’s tallest building at over 828 m (2700 ft) tall and has the largest number of stories. The building also currenlty boasts the highest occupied floor and the elevator with the longest travel distance.
You may view a diagram that compares the height of the world’s tallest buildings at skyscaperpage.com (
Courtesy Portland Cement Association
Burj Khalifa
Dubai
United Arab Emirates
Courtesy Portland Cement Association
Courtesy Portland Cement Association

12. Cast-in-Place Concrete Wall with Insulating Concrete Forms (ICF)
Concrete forms consist of insulating foam that stays in place as a permanent part of the wall assembly.
Courtesy TexAZ Commercial Properties

13. Tilt-up Concrete
Concrete wall sections (with reinforcing) are poured horizontally on site, tilted vertically, and then anchored.
Courtesy TCA
Courtesy Greg Thiel
Courtesy TCA

14. Tilt-up Concrete Can be formed into a variety of shapes and sizes
Different surface treatments and form inserts can be used to create a wide variety of surface textures
Relatively quick design and construction time
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association
Courtesy Greg Thiel
Thin bricks are set in the form before the concrete is cast
Form inserts give relief to the panels

15. Typical Tilt-up Concrete Wall Section

16. TILT-UP CONSTRUCTION EXAMPLES
Austin Research Center for the Homeless, Austin, TX
Bright House Networks,
St. Petersburg, FL
TILT-UP CONSTRUCTION EXAMPLES
Boca Village Corporate Center
Boca Raton, FL
San Diego Children’s Museum,
San Diego, California
All images courtesy Tilt-Up Concrete Association

17. Concrete Masonry Units (CMU)
Concrete is cast into hollow blocks that can be stacked and grouted to form walls.
CMU load-bearing walls are reinforced with steel bars to improve tensile and bending strength.
Courtesy Masonry Systems.org
Photo courtesy of constructionphotographs.com
©iStockphoto.com

18. MASONRY WALL EXAMPLES Isle of Palms Recreation Center, SC
Courtesy Isle of Palms Recreation Center
Isle of Palms Recreation Center, SC
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association
Tilt-up and CMU construction
RS+K Advertising
Madison, WI
Courtesy Constructionphotographs.com
Commercial building under construction

19. Non-Load-Bearing Wall
Supports only its own weight
Typically used as
Partition walls to separate interior spaces
Protection from the elements
Materials
Wood framing
Light-gauge steel framing
Concrete masonry units
Curtain walls
Photo courtesy of constructionphotographs.com
Courtesy Connie Bertucci
Notice in the photographs that the walls do not support other structural components.
In the first photograph, the ceiling framework is suspended from the roof above (look closely for the wires)
In the second photograph [click], the exterior beams carry the structure loads—the walls simply fill in and will provide protection from the elements.
In the third photograph [click], the wood-framed walls were constructed to the underside of the trusses. The trusses carry the load from the roof above to the exterior load-bearing walls.
Courtesy TexAZ Commercial Properties

20. Curtain Walls
Non-load-bearing wall attached to the exterior of a building
Often composed of glass and metal
Provides visual appeal, daylight, and protection from the elements
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association
Trump Tower
Courtesy Lawrence C. Novak,
Portland Cement Association
Wikipedia.com
Courtesy Tilt-up Concrete Association

21. Commercial Wall Systems
Load-Bearing Walls
Low Rise
Green Concrete?
Cast-in-Place Concrete
Tilt-up Concrete
Concrete Masonry Units
Non-Load-Bearing Walls
Curtain Walls

22. Image Sources Wikipedia.org Tilt-up Concrete Association
TexAZ Commercial Properties, LLC
Constructionphotographs.com
Isle of Palms Recreation Center, Isle of Palms, SC
Masonrysystems.org
Connie Bertucci, Victor Senior High School, Victor, NY
iStockphoto.com