Lift slab construction
Encyclopedia
Lift slab construction is a method of constructing concrete buildings by casting the floor or roof slab on top of the previous slab and then raising (jacking) the slab up with hydraulic jacks, so being cheaper and faster as not requiring boxing and supports for casting in situ.
The Johnstone Hall
a dormitory at Clemson University
, Clemson
, South Carolina
was erected using this method in 1954. Several of the blocks have now been demolished, and campus legend says that that two other similar structures built elsewhere collapsed before completion.
The method was involved in the L'Ambiance Plaza
collapse in Bridgeport, Connecticut
during construction in 1987, and resulted in a major nationwide federal investigation into this construction technique in the United States, and a temporary moratorium of its use in Connecticut.
A patent was issued to Tom Slick
for this construction method, called the "Youtz-Slick" method, in 1955.
The Johnstone Hall
Johnstone Hall
Johnstone Hall is a dormitory at Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina that has housed several generations of Clemson undergraduates. Located on west campus, it originally overlooked the student laundry, the coal-burning Physical Plant and the university fire department, and beyond that the...
a dormitory at Clemson University
Clemson University
Clemson University is an American public, coeducational, land-grant, sea-grant, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, United States....
, Clemson
Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson is a college town located in Pickens County in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 11,939 at the 2000 census and center of an urban cluster with a total population of 42,199...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
was erected using this method in 1954. Several of the blocks have now been demolished, and campus legend says that that two other similar structures built elsewhere collapsed before completion.
The method was involved in the L'Ambiance Plaza
L'Ambiance Plaza
The L'Ambiance Plaza collapse was one of the worst disasters in modern Connecticut history. L'Ambiance Plaza was a 16-story residential project under construction in Bridgeport, Connecticut at the corner of Washington Avenue and Coleman Street. Its partially erect frame completely collapsed on...
collapse in Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport, Connecticut
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in Fairfield County, the city had an estimated population of 144,229 at the 2010 United States Census and is the core of the Greater Bridgeport area...
during construction in 1987, and resulted in a major nationwide federal investigation into this construction technique in the United States, and a temporary moratorium of its use in Connecticut.
A patent was issued to Tom Slick
Tom Slick
Thomas Baker "Tom" Slick, Jr. was a San Antonio, Texas based inventor, businessman, adventurer, and heir to an oil business. Slick's father, Thomas Baker Slick, Sr., a.k.a. "The King of the Wildcatters", had made a fortune during the Texas oil boom of the 1920s.-Career:During the 1950s, Slick was...
for this construction method, called the "Youtz-Slick" method, in 1955.