What does Column Cap Mean?
Definition of Column Cap in Construction
The column cap is a widening at the top of a column, to provide additional surface area of bearing. A column cap will distribute the load to prevent any type of punch through of the column and the load being supported. The column cap can be of various shapes and sizes. The shape of the column must be designed to fit the architectural design requirements, as well as the size of the space surrounding the column. In addition, the head height is important, especially if the columns are in a garage space or a pedestrian walkway. The proper engineering of the column cap is important to ensure that the stresses of the column loading are distributed into the column cap. If column caps are designed into the structure, then not only must the caps be properly engineered, the supported structures must also be engineered to accept the distribution of the load distribution of the column cap. Standard formwork usually allows the forming of standard column caps for this stress distribution.
Picture of Column Caps
