loads in industrial buildings.

Of course there are exceptions to these averages. The limits of variation depend on a

system’s complexity, span length over “normal” and special loading or foundation

conditions. For example, the Crown Zellerbach high-rise bank and office building in San Francisco is an exception, since its structural costs were unusually high. However, in this case, the use of 60 ft steel spans and free-standing columns at the bottom, which carry the considerable earthquake loading, as well as the special foundation associated with the poor San Francisco soil conditions, contributed to the exceptionally high costs. The design was also unusual for its time and a decision had been made to allow higher than normal costs for all aspects of the building to achieve open spaces and for both function and symbolic reasons. Hence the proportion of structural to total cost probably remained similar to ordinary buildings.

The effect of spans longer than normal can be further illustrated. The “usual” floor

span range is as follows: for apartment buildings,16 to 25 ft; for office buildings,20 to 30 ft; for industrial buildings,25 to 30 ft loaded heavily at 200 to 300 psf; and garage-type structures span,50 to 60 ft, carrying relatively light(50～75 psf) loads(i.e., similar to those for apartment and office structures).where these spans are doubled, the structural costs can be expected to rise about 20 to 30 percent.

To increased loading in the case of industrial buildings offers another insight into

the dependency of cost estimates on “usual” standards. If the loading in an industrial building were to be increased to 500psf(i.e., two or three times), the additional structural cost would be on the order of another 20 to 30 percent.

The reference in the above cases is for floor systems. For roofs using efficient

orthotropic (flat) systems, contemporary limits for economical design appear to be on the order of 150 ft, whether of steel or prestressed concrete. Although space- frames are often used for steel or prestressed concrete. Although space-frames are often used for steel spans over 150 ft the fabrication costs begin to raise considerably.

At any rate, it should be recognized that very long-span subsystems are special cases and can in themselves have a great or small effect on is added, structural costs for special buildings can vary greatly from design to design. The more special the form, the