Cross wall construction is a construction construction technique in which the precast load-bearing walls are placed perpendicular to the lateral axis of the construction. In this type of construction, the floors, roofs and the beams are supported by the load-bearing walls. The structures developed with the cross wall technique are structurally efficient and economical.
Read More: Load bearing construction
The features and construction details of cross wall construction are described briefly in this article.
These load-bearing walls transfer the structural loads safely to the foundation without the need for a concrete or steel frame. In cross wall construction, the prefabricated walls are placed in series as shown in figure-1. They also act as shear walls thus preventing the construction from lateral movement.
Read More: What are shear walls?
Cross wall construction is best suitable for buildings with a maximum of 5 stories where all the floors have the same plans. The intermediate floor span in between the load-bearing walls offers sufficient lateral restraint. The figure-2 below shows a typical cross wall arrangement.
If both the load-bearing walls and the floors are precast members, then a series of boxes are formed. This type of building is sometimes mentioned as box frame building.
Cross wall system involves the following construction steps:
The cross walls can be connected by any of the following key connections:
While arranging the cross walls along the floor, the front and the rear walls can be non-load bearing claddings. The connections between the non-load bearing walls and the cross walls must be designed and constructed carefully in order to prevent moisture penetration and other issues.
The crucial benefits of cross wall construction are:
Some of the drawbacks of cross wall building method are :
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