Abstract

This chapter is concerned with the major structural connections between beams, columns and foundations in skeletal frames. The importance of these connections to the behaviour of precast structures, both in the temporary construction phase and in service, cannot be overstated. It is not a coincidence that the feature which distinguished the patent of precast frames developed in the 1960s and 1970s was the beam-to-column connector – not the total connection, as defined in Section 9.1, but the physical connector itself.