A building is an enclose of space which is built with materials and including foundation, plinth,
walls, floors, roofs, chimneys, plumbing, and building services, etc. For example, houses,
factories, shopping malls, hospitals, etc.
BASIC REQUIREMENT/ FUNCTION OF A BUILDING
The basic requirement as well as function play an important role in the design and construction of
a building. A good building should satisfy the following:
(i) Structurally sound (safety),
(ii) Functionally efficient (conform to purpose),
(iii)Aesthetically good in appearance and
(iv) Economically cost effective
TYPES OF BUILDINGS
Buildings may be load-bearing masonry buildings, RCC, or steel-framed structure buildings. There
are many different types of Buildings. Such as-
• Residential houses,
• Schools, Colleges & Universities,
• Hospitals,
• Factories, Workshops,
• Mosques, Churches, Temples,
• Malls etc.
PARTS OF BUILDING
The following are the part of building which are considered during design:
(a) Sub-structure: The portion of the building below the ground level is called sub-structure
(b) Super-structure: The portion of the building above the ground level is called superstructure.
(c) Plinth: The portion of structure between ground level and floor level is called plinth
BASIC COMPONENTS & PARTS OF BUILDINGS
Building components or parts are essential materials for building construction. All buildings are
built with the same components such as foundations, walls, floors, rooms, and roofs. Buildings
need to be decorated or renovated with paints, plasters, supplied electricity, doors and windows
fittings, fencing, and other external works to finish accurately. All these works are called Building
Service. The structural components of a building include:
SUB-STRUCTURE
It is the part of a building constructed below ground level and which is in direct contact with sub-
strata and transmits all the loads. Foundation is the most critical work of building construction. A
load of buildings depends on the foundation which is the strength of buildings. It is one kind of
substructure. Foundations can be divided into two categories such as Shallow and Deep
Foundations. The words shallow and deep indicate the depth of foundation in the soil. Shallow
foundations are used for small and light buildings e.g. a small or medium-size houses, small
shopping centers, etc., and deep foundations are used for heavy and large buildings e.g. tall
buildings, huge shopping malls, large hospitals, etc. Generally, shallow foundations can be made
in the depth of as little as 3ft (1m), and deep foundations made at depth of 60-200ft (20-65m).
There are various types of foundations in building construction.
• Strip Foundation
• Pad Foundation
• Raft Foundation
• Pile Foundation
FUNCTIONS OF FOUNDATIONS:
✓ Load distribution
✓ Provide firm and level surface
✓ Protection against soil movement
✓ Reduction of load intensity
✓ Reduction of differential settlement
✓ Safety against sliding and overturning
✓ Safety against undermining
PLINTH
A part of the superstructure located between the ground level and the floor level is known as the
plinth. Plinth resists entry of rainwater and insects inside the building. The level of the plinth
depends upon structure elevation, ground level, highest flood level in the area, etc. Usually coping,
plinth beam, and damp proofing course see provided at the top of the plinth. General plinth height
plinth should not be less than 45 cm.
SUPERSTRUCTURE
The portion of the building above the ground level or substructure I called superstructure. The
components of a super structure are plinth, wall, lintel, roof, etc. superstructure provides stability,
weather resistance, fire resistance, heat insulation, sound insulation, privacy and security.
WALL
Wall the part of the superstructure which carries the load of the roof. The primary function of wall
is to enclose or divide space. Wall should support its own weight, superimposed loads and lateral
pressure. The wall is built in brick masonry and has a common thickness of about 230mm. Wall
offers resistance against sun, rain and wind penetration. It also provides adequate resistance against
fire as it acts as vertical barriers for spread of fire in the horizontal direction.
Wall can be divided in to two categories:
➢ Load bearing wall which support its own weight as well as the superimposed loads. Its
transfers load through roof to the floor.
➢ Non load bearing wall that carries it only its own weight and is not design to support any
superimposed load from the structure. Normally the exist as partition wall
PARAPET WALL
The parapet is a low wall constructed above the roofline that usually spans around the perimeter
of a building. A parapet wall can be constructed around balconies or at the edge of terraces and
stairs.
FLOOR STRUCTURES
It is an important element of building construction. It is located at the lower level surface of a
room. Floors can decorate in various ways. Different floors divide the building into different levels
to provide more accommodation on a given plot of land. Ground floors area immediately above
the ground, all other floors above the ground floor are known as upper floors. The floor below the
ground level is known as Basement floor or lower-level floor:
Every floor has the following two components:
Sub-Floor: It is a structural component of a building which imparts strength and stability to support
the super imposed loads, durability, damp prevention, heat and sound insulation as well as fire
protection.
Flooring: It consists of suitable floor finish which imparts clean, smooth. durable and wear
resisting surface.
SILLS
Window sills are provided between the bottom of the window frame and above the top of the wall
below to protect the wall from wear and tear. The horizontal bottom level of a window is called
the sills level. Windowsill are usually weathered to throw the rainwater off the face of the wall.
Roofs:
A roof is the uppermost part of a building used to protect the building against rain, heat, snow,
wind frost, etc. A roof basically consists of structural elements provided at the upper parts of the
building to support the roof coverings. A roof consists of the following components.
(a) Roof decking: It is a structural component of a building used to support the roof covering. It
may be flat, sloping, dome-shaped, truss, etc.
(b) Roof covering: It is provided on the roof deck to protect the building against sun, rain, wind,
frost, etc.
LINTEL AND WEATHER SHED
Lintel beams are provided above the openings of doors or windows to bear the load coming from
the superstructure above. Lintels can be steel lintels, reinforced brick lintels, stone lintels, timber
lintels, etc. Weather sheds or chhajjas are generally combined with lintels to protect doors,
windows, or ventilators from sun, rain, wind frost, etc.
DOOR & WINDOWS
Doors provide a connecting link between rooms, allowing free movement from to room-to-room.
Windows are opening provides in walls. Doors and windows provide lighting, smooth sound of
outsides places, and ventilation. Undoubtedly, both provide security and privacy. Different
buildings have different sizes of doors; for example - Residential area’s doors are completely
different from industrial buildings’ doors. There are different types of doors that are used in
buildings construction. Material used for doors and windows fabrication includes: wood and metal
Types of Door
Sliding Door, Composite Door, Swinging Door, Revolving Door, Folding Door
Types of windows are as follows:
Fixed, Pivoted, Double Hung, Sliding, Casement, etc.
SUNSHADE
Sunshade is a horizontal reinforced cement concrete (RCC) slab provided above the window and
doors to prevent sunlight and rainwater entry into the building’ it is constructed by providing an
extension from the lintel. It has a flat bottom surface with a sloppy top surface and a joining
thickness of 75mm.
STAIRS, RAMPS AND ESCALATORS
Stairs, ramps, escalators, etc. are for the vertical access between the floors. Out of these, a stair is
the most common. It is defined as a sequence of steps suitably arranged for the purpose of ascent
and descent between the floors or landings. It consists of treads, risers, stringers, newel posts,
baluster, balustrade, handrail, etc. Stair may be constructed of different materials like timber, stone,
reinforced concrete, metal, bricks, etc. It may be of different shapes like straight stairs, turning
stairs, circular or helical stairs, geometrical stairs, etc.
A ramp is a sloping surface and it is adopted as a substitute for stairs for easy movement between
the floors. The flooring of the ramp should be of nun-slippery material.
Escalators consist of moving flights operated by electricity on stairs. These escalators maintained
a constant motion by a revolving drum.
BUILDING FINISHES
To protect the exposed surface of walls and floors from the effects of atmospheric actions, building
finishes are used. They improve the appearance of the structure as a whole and give a smooth
surface. They also rectify the defective workmanship or conceal inferior materials.
Plastering, pointing, painting, varnishing, distempering, whitewashing, color washing, flooring,
etc. are considered as building finishes. Plastering is a thin plastic covering which is applied on
the surface of walls and ceilings. It removes the unevenness of the surfaces and imparts decorative
effects.
Painting is the process of finishing mortar joints of either stone masonry or brick masonry The
joints are raked out to a depth of about 20 mm and then these spaces are filled up by a suitable
mortar in the desired shape Painting, varnishing, and polishing are generally done on doors,
windows, cupboards, and other exposed wooden and steel components.
Whitewashing, color washing, and distempering are generally done on the plastered surface to
protect them against weathering effects and to give a better appearance. Flooring is the process of
finishing the upper surface of the floor in order to give a pleasing appearance. The materials like
asphalt, brick, concrete, wood, glass, linoleum, marble stone, terrazzo, tiles, granite, granite,
ceramic tiles, etc. are used as flooring materials.
UTILITY FIXTURES:
Utility fixtures are built-in items in the building. They are immovable in nature. Wooden
cupboards made in
walls, shelves, smokeless Chula, etc. are utility fixtures.
Generally, they are provided by making recesses in walls, which makes the structure weak. So in
modern
construction