Structural Precast Firewalls
Sears Canada Warehouse Complex
Belleville , Ontario

When a firewall exceeds traditional warehouse heights, the temperature gradient under fire conditions causes considerable lateral bowing of the wall, which could collapse under its own self -weight if not properly designed and supported.

Pre-Con’s design group had to develop a new wall system that exceeded 18 meters in height and would perform during a fire.

To meet the performance criteria, the fire separation was to be comprised of (2) three hour rated walls laterally tied to internal steel framing. The precast panels were 180mm thick x 2400mm wide and were vertically stacked at six meter spans.

During a fire the steel and attached wall would fail at one hour and the remaining wall would provide the additional 3 hour protection. Each precast panel was constructed using a combination of conventional reinforcing and prestressing. A special Fire Resilient Material was used between the joints, to aid in preventing the passage of flames or hot gases and the transmission of heat across the joint.

Having previous experience with this precast firewall system at the 92,900 m² Canadian Tire warehouse facility in Brampton, the Pre-Con’s expert erection crews were able to quickly assemble the firewalls, streamlining the schedule and successfully completing the project.

Consultant: NLK Consultants Inc.
Vancouver, B.C.
Owner: Sears Canada