COMPARISON BETWEEN PEB AND RCC/SHELL STRUCTURES
Feature |
PEB CONSTRUCTION |
RCC/SHELL CONSTRUCTION |
Components |
PEB structures consist of primary frame, secondary frame,
roof and wall panels, sandwich panels and other accessories. |
Concrete structures consist of beams, columns,
staircases, slabs and foundations. |
Dimensions |
Accurate and Precise measurements are made by using
automated machinery, usually softwares are used. |
Potential for major errors since the construction
involves a lot of labor and man-made work. |
Fabrication |
It is done under control conditions at production
facilities. |
It is done mostly on site under the influence of various
variables that might affect the construction quality. |
Casting |
Steel on the other hand needs to be casted in the sizes
commercially available, otherwise it needs to be imported, which turns out to
be quite costly. |
Because of the fluid nature of concrete, it can be casted
into any shape and size, as we do in case of shell structures. |
Capacity |
Steel has the capacity to carry up to 6 times its own
weight which makes it an ideal material to be used for construction of PEB
structures. |
In case of concrete, it hardly supports load equal to its
own weight. |
Strength |
Steel works extremely well in tension, and behaves in a
very linear pattern with tension. |
Whereas, even though concrete has great compressive
properties, it is very weak in tension and breaks easily. |
Changes |
PEB construction is quite flexible in terms of changes
since everything is tailor-made and amendments can be made easily. |
It is near to impossible to make changes to a RCC
structure to meet any future needs. |
Specifications |
Material specifications are fixed, precise and can be
accurately controlled under supervision. |
Specifications, in this case, are both non-homogeneous
and variable; the major reason for which is the extremely flexible property
of concrete to change its properties with the change in proportion of
different materials used in its manufacturing. |
Availability |
Steel, occasionally, has to be imported and isn’t readily
available for use. |
Materials required for shell construction are easily and
locally available. |
Height |
Extremely high and tall buildings can be constructed
using PEB construction since steel is relatively lighter material. |
Concrete structures, on the contrary, are shorter
comparatively considering rise in value of dead loads with the increase in
height of the building |
Span |
Clear span is larger, almost up to 90 meters without any interior
columns, which saves a lot of material. |
Clear span is relatively quite small since, a larger span
only increase the over-all weight of the structure. |
Erection |
The erection process is pretty simple, fast and
efficient. It is easiest part of PEB construction. |
Because of the pouring, curing and hardening time of
concrete, and also due to the need of great detail at places, makes it rather
time taking to erect concrete structures. |
Expansion |
Future expansion is pretty easy since it just involves
bolting and riveting new components to the older ones, and doesn’t need much
man power. |
Even in case of expansion, the contractor needs to lay
foundations and columns for an almost new structure, and will mostly likely
has to break previous structure at various points. |
Foundations |
The design is quite simple and results in lighter
structures which are easy to construct. |
Heavy foundations are required in this case which are
extensive and variable in nature. |
Area
Utilization |
These structures are well suited to utilize less space
and to create more, since you can always provide the building with more
height which is very feasible in case of steel structures. |
RCC structures on the other hand, majorly expand over a
larger area and utilize more space. |
Appearance |
Steel structures can be unappealing if left exposed, so
they always need some sort of covering. |
Shell structures on the other hand are very easy on the
eyes and add to the aesthetic value of the structure. |
Maintenance |
Steel is quite sensitive to rusting and thus, PEB
structures requires frequent checking and maintenance. |
Concrete structures, on the other hand, requires low to
almost zero maintenance. |
Corrosion
Sensitivity |
In case, the paint coating over steel isn’t of good quality,
then it is highly likely that steel will start to rust and pre-cautions need
to be taken. |
Whereas concrete shell structures are completely free
from this hazard and won’t rust, and thus quality will not be compromised. |
Resistance |
These structures have relatively low fire resistance and
require special protection. |
Concrete structures, on the other hand, have
comparatively good fire resistance properties. |
Labor |
A single supplier can get the job done easily and quickly
even if skilled labor is not available momentarily. |
Skilled labor is required for concrete construction. |
Durability |
Because of its lighter nature, steel is slightly less
durable when compared to RCC. |
RCC structures are well known for their durability
because of the rigidity reinforced concrete provides to the structure. |
Initial
Cost |
Initial cost of steel is higher. It is approximately
38.19% higher as compared to RCC construction. |
Whereas, RCC construction saves up to 41.28% if in
comparison composite steel is being utilized. |
Economy |
Even though steel is expensive, but when looked at the
overall construction cost, PEB construction turns out to be comparatively
cheaper. The major benefit being that the cost can be accurately and
precisely defined and estimated. |
RCC construction turns out to be relatively variable in
terms of cost estimation and also, the construction cost is higher due to
numerous variables involved. |
Insulation
Cost |
PEB structures require insulation up to a certain
benchmark which only acts to increase the overall construction cost. |
Shell structures are rather economical in terms of the ultimate
construction cost because of the fact that no further insulation is required. |
Warranty |
The warranty period of steel structures is quite high; on
average at least 20 years. |
Whereas, concrete structures have low warranty period;
around 5-10 years. |
Lifespan |
Steel structures last from around 35-52 years. |
Lifespan, on the other hand, for a concrete structures is
extremely high; about a 100 years. |
Applications |
Used in both industrial and commercial construction. |
Preferred for Villas, Houses and Parliament buildings. |
Earthquake
Resistance |
It has been seen that a hybrid between PEB and RCC/Shell
structures can help coop with natural disasters, such as earthquake, where
the best attributes of both structures can be studied and utilized to create
earthquake resistance. |