Fox Tech High School
Engineered carbon fiber U-wraps and anchors addressed changing shear demands along an existing beam at Fox Tech High School.
Delta Structural Technology completed carbon fiber strengthening at Fox Tech High School in San Antonio. The project focused on beam B-50, where the required shear reinforcement varied along the member. The design combined anchored and unanchored carbon fiber U-wraps, with the arrangement coordinated around existing joists and stair stringers. This made reinforcement detailing and review of the beam’s shear diagram central to the work.
- Market
- Education
- Services
- Carbon fiber beam shear strengthening
- Location
- San Antonio, Texas
- Structural members
- Concrete Beam Strengthening
Project challenge
The existing beam did not require a uniform reinforcement pattern across its span. Higher-demand regions needed a different arrangement from intermediate portions, and the stair stringers created a further location requiring attention. Translating the structural analysis into a practical installation meant identifying both the changing demand and the physical interfaces that could interrupt a continuous wrap.
Project approach
The revised shop drawings specified Simpson Strong-Tie carbon fiber U-wraps oriented vertically around the beam. Anchored, multilayer reinforcement was detailed in selected regions, with a lighter arrangement elsewhere. Carbon fiber anchors developed the reinforcement into the existing concrete, and rounded corners and anchor-hole transitions formed part of the installation detail. The engineer’s review also called for additional reinforcement between stair stringers, connecting a specific field location to the broader strengthening layout.
Delivery and coordination
Delta’s submittal passed through Bartlett Cocke, the architectural team, and the structural reviewer. The review process identified a discrepancy between a listed shear value and the accompanying diagram, requiring clarification before the reinforcement design could be treated consistently. Field dimensions, joist spacing, anchor placement, and the corrected engineering details therefore needed to remain aligned as the package moved into installation.
Project significance
Fox Tech demonstrates why beam strengthening requires more than selecting a carbon fabric. Reinforcement type, anchorage, demand along the span, and adjoining construction all influence the final detail. The project’s particular value is the connection between engineering review and a reinforcement layout that responds to the actual geometry of one existing beam.
