PCI opens Fire Resistance standard to comment, clarifies prescriptive vs. rational design

Sources: Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute, Chicago; CP staff

PCI is accepting comments through January 31 on the proposed Specification for Fire Resistance of Precast/Prestressed Concrete. The PCI MNL 124-18 standard will update 2011 design procedures and address two precast/prestressed concrete engineering approaches: “calculated” fire resistance, encompassing prescriptive provisions with tables for selecting concrete mass or protection of steel; and, “rational design,” a true fire resistance calculation procedure referenced in PCI manuals and the charter International Building Code (2000).

PCI has opened Specification for Fire Resistance of Precast/Prestressed Concrete to member, non-member and public comment and review per requirements of an American National Standards Institute-accredited Standards Developer. Abiding consensus-based methods central to ANSI standards development positions PCI for greater influence in model codes. The final Specification for Fire Resistance will be eligible for reference in the 2021 International Building Code as a standard developed through consensus process. Approved by the PCI Fire Resistance and Standards Committees and Technical Activities Council, the document can be viewed here, with comments submitted to [email protected]