Cost analysis of reinforced concrete slabs and columns

Abstract

The construction industry is increasingly looking for solutions that are both simple and effective and that provide cost savings, speed and flexibility of execution. Two-way slabs are a form of construction unique to reinforced concrete comparing with the other major structural materials. It is an efficient, economical, and widely used structural system. The present dissertation aims to analyze and compare costs between four types of slabs: waffle slab with recuperate molds, flat slabs with drop panels, two-way slabs with beams and flat plates. In this analysis the loads considered for the floors were of a residential type. The most common spans for slabs were considered. For the analysis of the slabs the simplified methods were used. For the design, security checks and construction rules, it was considered the current legislation applied in the member countries of the European Committee for Standardization, namely the Eurocodes. In order to compare the cost of usage of these four types of floor systems, in the analysis of the results it is shown the price for the necessary resources and the total cost of each slab for each study model per m2 of total area of a building. From this dissertation, the conclusion may be drawn that waffle slabs have a lower cost than flat slabs with enlarged column heads for all spans considered and respectively flat plates have a lower cost than slabs with beams. From all of the slabs, waffle slab is the most economical one in the range of considered spans.