Expansion joint

[IYIeI2cY]

hi all,

i have a plan to design , its about 50m length and 11m width, i know that i have to make an expasion joint after 40m, but in my case doing an expasion joint will affect the arctecture view,

can i design it without expansion joint, and increase the stresses, or i have to put the expansion joint ??

what is the conditions of expansion joints??

thx in advance....

Pea$e

 

[dougantholz]

I have seen, but don't have in front of me a copy of a research report by Jack Gillam (I don't know if the spelling is right) that gives expansion joint information for buildings (how big to make them, when to use them, etc).
From what I remember for moderate temperature fluctations, say -10 degF to 95 degF, a building smaller than 400 feet (120 m) does not need an expansion joint. I have used this in a lot of buildings throughout the United States with steel deck and masonry walls, and had little to no problems.
Hope this helps