Sponsored by ASCE's Structural Engineering Institute and ASCE Continuing Education.

Purpose and Background

Design of foundations for equipment support is often required in industrial and process facilities, yet this topic is rarely, if ever, included in the engineering college curricula. Engineers are left to learn on the job – a process that often produces a variability of foundation designs for similar installations. In some cases the design is performed by the engineers who may or may not even have structural background. Yet whenever any component of an equipment foundation fails, the resulting strengthening and retrofit activities are often very expensive and intrusive into the equipment operations.

There is a wealth of information developed by the engineering firms that specialize in the design of equipment foundations, but this information is often unknown to those who rarely perform such design. The purpose of the webinar is to provide an overview of the practical methods used for design of equipment foundations, introduce attendees to the common foundation solutions, and discuss the reasonable design assumptions.

The foundations for statically and dynamically loaded equipment are designed differently. The statically loaded equipment typically includes various electrical components, such as transformers, vessels (horizontal, vertical and spherical), mechanical equipment (heat exchangers, radiators towers), stacks, etc. The presentation includes some actual design drawings and practical details for some of these components. The dynamically loaded equipment includes compressors, turbine generators, pumps, blowers.

In addition to the foundations, the equipment support systems typically include anchors and grouting, and questions are often asked about designing and specifying both of these components. The instructor offers some specific guidance on these items as well.

Learning Outcomes

• Learn about the available foundation systems for supporting equipment
• Become familiar with the differences in the design approach for statically and dynamically loaded equipment

Webinar Benefits

• Explore the contemporary foundation systems used equipment support
• Find out which grout materials are most appropriate for various types of equipment
• Discover the practical methods of designing foundations for statically loaded equipment
• Learn why and how the foundations used for dynamically loaded equipment differ from those used for static equipment
• Find out how the latest code changes affect the design of anchors used in equipment support systems

Intended Audience

• Structural Engineers
• Civil Engineers 

Webinar Outline

• Introduction
• Foundations for statically loaded equipment 
  - General types 
  - Design criteria and methods
• Introduction to foundations for dynamically loaded equipment
• Grout for equipment bases
• Anchors and concrete embedments for equipment support
• Avoiding foundations for equipment support in existing buildings 
• Conclusion, final Q&A