Best practice specification, design and installation for post-installed anchors in safety-critical applications

Post-installed anchors are commonly-used in safety-critical applications in the building industry and large infrastructure projects. Failure of these types of anchors has the potential to risk human lives and has considerable economic impacts. Factors commonly contributing to the failure of fasteners include limited or no product prequalification, poor specification of products and improper product substitution, poor design and understanding of performance limitations of fasteners and poor quality installation practice. Such failures are largely avoidable through a safety framework in product selection, design and installation of anchors. This paper discusses the new Standards Australia Technical Specification TS 101:2015 which is the first Australian design guideline providing deemed-to-satisfy provisions for the design of fastenings to concrete and the AEFAC Installer Certification Program that has been developed to train and equip installers with necessary knowledge and skills to perform installation at the highest level. Collectively, these initiatives form the safety framework for product prequalification, design and installation of fastenings to concrete for safety-critical applications in Australia.