Beam and Column Strengthened with Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP)

Scottsdale, Az

The 250-acre, 5-star, ITT Sheraton Phoenician is Arizona's premier luxury resort. This project concerned the beams and columns in one of the large subterranean parking garages. The elongation and shortening of the prestressed beam elements had resulted in wide splitting cracks along the height of the columns.

The objective was to provide additional confinement and shear strength for the columns. In addition, due to the nature of the facility, the construction time had to be minimized so as to cause limited disturbance to the guests.

In addition to the columns, the ends of the beams were strengthened for shear. More than 40 beams and columns were strengthened with QuakeWrap™ TB36C, utilizing 15,000 ft² of fabric.

As can be seen in these slides, in some areas access to the columns was limited due to presence of pipes or perimeter wall. The uncured fabrics could easily be passed through these small openings saving considerable construction time and expense.

This project was completed in September 1999.

Credits