ACI 7.10.5.3 explanation needed

[CTW]

I need some help fully understanding what this section is describing. I understand that every corner and alternate bar should have support provided by the corner of a tie, but I'm unclear about the 6" or less. Is 6" the max. spacing of bars when more than 4 are req'd by analysis? What if I had a column similar to the one shown in the figure with 12 reinf. bars, except my bar spacing was 7 or 8 inches. Would I need to add more steel to reduce the spacing?

 

[JedClampett]

You could either add column steel so that the spacing of adjacent bars is less than 6 inches or add ties so that each bar (with a spacing of more than 6 inches) is laterally supported. Even if you add column bars every other bar needs to be supported so you're probably ahead if you add ties.