Improving the Safety of Rebar Cages by Using Innovative Connectors

Rebar cages are the skeleton of reinforced concrete components commonly used in building construction. The largest and heaviest rebar cages on the jobsite are those used in slurry wall foundations (SWF), Cast-in-Drilled Hole (CIDH) piles and tall columns. A rebar cage collapse during their construction would create a critical safety hazard for construction crew, and subsequent legal litigation, construction schedule delays, and thus excessive cost and losses. The industry currently lacks proper engineering design and detailing procedure to safeguard the stability of these rebar cages in various construction stages

The Charles Pankow Foundation is pleased to announce research grant award #01-20 to the Construction Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers in collaboration with the University of Nevada, Reno. This experimental research will examine the behavior of these rebar cages using innovative mechanical connectors (U-bolts, threaded rod with plate, and wire rope connectors) during various types of loading conditions. The results of this research will help inform industry design guidelines for fabrication and site handling of large rebar cages.

Principal Investigators: Hamed Ebrahimian, Professor, Ph. D., P.E. with Ahmad Itani, PhD., P.E., S.E.

Industry Advisors: Mark Bennier, Tanner Blackburn, Ray Fassett, Danielle Kleinhans, Katerina Lachinova, Justin Ramer, Vincent Siefert, Lyle Sieg, Peter Speire, and Jeff Veilleux

This research is made possible with additional support from the ASCE Construction Institute, Association of Drilled Shaft Contractors – International Association of Foundation Drilling, Concrete Reinforcing Steel Institute, Harris Rebar/Nucor, Keller Companies, Kiewit Corporation, Parsons Corporation, P.J.’s Rebar, Siefert Associates LLC and Williams Form Engineering.