COMPARISON OF TIMBER AND STEEL BEAMS ON THE BUILDING OF LJUDSKI VRT PRIMARY SCHOOL PTUJ

The beam is one of the most important structural elements. Beams take on the load and transfer it through walls and columns to the foundation soil. For the production of glued laminated beams, quality dried timber is used, the moisture content of which is around 15 %.

Problem

The beam is one of the most important structural elements. Beams take on the load and transfer it through walls and columns to the foundation soil. Throughout human history, timber beams have been used for thousands of years.

The first traces of glued timber date back to Egyptian culture. The first glued construction made of laminated timber is considered to be the hall of King Edward's College from 1860. Glued laminated beams have an aesthetic appearance and can span large distances (up to 200 m).

They have excellent fire resistance properties, as they conduct heat 300 to 400 times more slowly than steel. Glued laminated beams retain the basic characteristics of timber and are a beautiful, high-quality and durable product.

Solution and Method

For the production of glued laminated beams, quality dried timber is used, the moisture content of which is around 15 %. The mentioned moisture content ensures that glued laminated beams do not need to be additionally protected with chemical coatings. Because the timber is properly dried, surface cracks do not occur.

The beams are glued together with colourless adhesive so that the joints are almost invisible. Steel as a material itself dates back around 4000 years BC, but it was not used as a structural element. Steel beams appear in the 20th century.

Due to their good properties, such as high strength, low weight of the structure, speed of construction, relatively simple modifications by adding or removing parts of the structure, and an increasingly important property, which is the possibility of recycling used profiles, steel structures have taken a prominent place in the construction industry.