Windposts

A High Quality Range of Windposts

Windposts and parapet posts are used to provide lateral support to masonry panels which may be difficult to prove structurally and would otherwise require the introduction of extra columns or an increase in the wall thickness. They are generally made from grade 304 stainless steel but can also be supplied in other grades of stainless and mild steel.

Windpost Design
The VEW1 and VEW2 type Windposts span vertically between floors and the design will usually include a positively fixed base and a top fixing that will allow differential movement between the structure and the masonry. Windposts are usually designed as ‘simply supported beams’ with a maximum allowable deflection of span/360 and a maximum allowable design stress of 230N/mm2. Where deflection is the limiting factor Windposts may be designed as a ‘propped cantilever’, using this method reduces the deflection of the Windpost considerably but requires a much larger baseplate.

Parapet Posts
In most cases parapet posts are required to carry a uniformly distributed load along its height but in some instances it is necessary to consider a point load or a combination of both u.d.l. and point load acting on a post, this may be the case when designing spandrel posts in particular. Parapet posts are designed as ‘cantilevers’ with a maximum allowable deflection of span/180 and a maximum allowable design stress of 230N/mm2.