Masonry Magazine August 2009 Page. 30
Understanding Masonry Codes & Standards
By Rashod R. Johnson, P.E.
THE YEAR 2009 HAS BEEN CHALLENGING FOR THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE. But more important and specific, mason contractors have felt the blow of this recession head on. The United States construction market is currently in the middle of the worst recession in two generations. This economy is similar to playing that old video game from the early-1980s, Frogger. Small businesses are the frog, the economy is the cars, and the end of the recession is the other side of the street. All we really want to do is make it to the other side of the street without being crushed. If we make it, we will be leaner, more efficient companies that are primed and ready for growth.
In these challenging economic times, contractors project that management skills have taken on an even greater role. Since profits are already small, there is less room for error that may cost a contractor additional cost. One of the easiest ways to lose money on a job is to not understand the specified Codes and Standards that the job has been bid under. There is no single thing that has a greater impact on the manner in which you do business than codes and standards, and yet many contractors do not understand them or how they are developed. Here is an outline of how codes and standards are developed in the United States.
Masonry Standards Joint Committee
IN THE UNITED STATES TODAY, the International Building Code (IBC) and the International Residential Code (IRC) are adopted at the state or local level in all 50 states. Once the local or state jurisdiction formally adopts the Code, it is a mandatory minimum standard for designing and constructing structures in that jurisdiction. As it pertains to masonry, the 2009 IBC and 2009 IRC references the 2008 Building Code Requirements and Specification for Masonry Structures (TMS 402-08/ACI 530-08/ASCE 5-08) and (TMS 602-08/ACI 530.1-08/ASCE 6-08), commonly referred to as the Masonry Code. It is developed by the Masonry Standards Joint Committee (MSJC) every three years as a technical subcommittee of The Masonry Society (TMS) and is sponsored by TMS, American Concrete Institute (ACI) and Structural Engineering Institute (SEI)/American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).
So who is responsible for developing the Masonry Code? The MSJC consists of around 40 professionals nationwide whose mission is to "develop and maintain design and construction standards for masonry for adoption or incorporation into model codes regulating masonry construction" using ANSI procedures. These professionals include contractors, architects, engineers, researchers, material suppliers and others. Due to the extremely technical nature of some of the subject matter, many contractors were fearful of participating. However, this perception is slowly changing and, as a result, the 2011MSJC has three times the contractor representation as the 2008 committee.
The 2008 MSJC is organized into a main committee and 10 subcommittees, plus and executive subcommittees. The subcommittees are: Executive, AAC Masonry, Construction Requirements, Flexure and Axial Loads, General Requirements, Infill Walls, Shear, Reinforcement and Connectors, Seismic, Pre-stressed, and Veneer, Glass Block & Empirical.
Each subcommittee has a chairperson and controls the ballot items in their subcommittee. When an item is balloted, the subcommittee votes on a specific code change in one of four ways: affirmative, affirmative with comment, negative or