Cladding University
Founded 1997

Reference Section
Cladding University Library

The Reference Section lists books and other reference materials that are helpful, if not essential, for cladding manufacturers. We have provided internet links to sources of these books so there is no excuse not to have these in your library. Currently, the listing emphasis is mostly on structural books. Keep checking in as we will be listing more reference materials.

Most of these books can easily be bought on-line with only a credit card and a mailing address. In many cases they can be purchased on CD-ROM - But we DO NOT recommend this. The CD versions are just too hard to use.

If you have a good reference book you would like to see added to the list, click here and tell us about it.

GENERAL ENGINEERING Books
	Roark's Formulas for Stress & Strain, Warren C. Young. Classic engineering reference book with lots and lots of useful formulas. Covers shells, plates, beams, curved beams, bars, columns, and more. A must for the structural department. We bought ours at www.amazon.com.
	Engineering Mechanics of Solids, Egor P. Popov. Excellent engineering text book. Covers all basic structural problems including stress, strain, determinate and indeterminate systems, pressure vessels, torsion, beams, columns, and elastic and plastic analysis. From the calculations we review, the section on figuring composite action is reason enough for most contractors to buy this book. It is startling how many engineers are unable to calculate composite action. Get this book! We bought ours at www.amazon.com.
	Design of Weldments, Omer W. Blodgett. Published by The James F. Lincoln Arc Welding Foundation. A classic text on a variety of welding and engineering topics. Written before computers, it offers a number of practical, easy to use and understand analysis tools and tables. A must for that engineer just out of college who thinks a computer is required to add two numbers together. (The computer is a MUCH better tool once you understand what you are modeling with it. This book will help.) We recommend it highly for its weld-as-lines tables, torsion basics, frame tables, and its simple, practical approach. Very inexpensive. We found out how to buy ours at www.lincolnelectric.com/wserv
	Marks Standard Handbook for Mechanical Engineers, Eugene A. Avallone, Theodore Baumeister III. A great general reference book. Highly recommended for your engineering library. Available on CD - but, like all "books on CD" we DO NOT recommend it. We have tried several (including this one) and it is just plain clunky to use the CD version - even with the "extras". Get the paper version! We bought ours at www.bn.com.
	Machinery's Handbook, Erik Oberk, Franklin D. Jones, Holbrook L. Horton, and Henry H. Ryffel. A good all around reference for metals and metal work. Also recommended as a general reference book for math, mechanics, materials, and threads. Nice to have on the shelve. (I would NOT get the CD version.) We bought ours at www.borders.com.
United States Reference Standards
	ASTM E1300-97, American Society for Testing Materials. Glass design. The new 1997 edition includes factors for laminated and insulated glass. Note, this standard is included in the ASTM Building Code set, so if you get that, there is no need to buy E1300 too. We bought ours at the ASTM web site, www.astm.org. Note, if you are in a hurry, many ASTM standards can be downloaded or setup to be faxed directly from their web site.
	ASTM Standards in Building Codes, American Society for Testing Materials. This four volume set of books is a compilation of ASTM construction related standards. It covers much more than building cladding. A bit pricey if you only need a few sections, but it is nice to have on the shelve. We bought ours at www.astm.org.
	Aluminum Design Manual, Specifications and Guides for Aluminum Structures, The Aluminum Association. The design manual for aluminum. A must for any cladding designed to US standards. It includes allowable stress design, building load and resistance factor design, specifications, design guide, beam formulas, and examples. Comes in a nice three ring binder. We bought ours at the Aluminum Association web site, www.aluminum.org.
	Metal Curtain Wall Fasteners, American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA). A great design guide for cladding fasteners. Covers standard fastener design as well as special cases such as pullout strength, screw slots, screw chases, and more. Many load tables are provided for quick reference. And the book includes examples. Highly recommended. You can get information on all the AAMA publications where we bought ours at www.aamanet.org.
	AISC Manual of Steel Construction, American Institute of Steel Construction, Inc. (AISC). The US steel design guide. A must have for any steel designed to US standards. Information is available at the AISC website, www.aisc.org. (As of this writing, you need to register to get anywhere on the website.)
	PCI Design Handbook, Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute. The best design guide we have found for the design of studs on cast-in inserts. Covers many other topics in addition to stud design, but for the cladding contractor, the stud design section alone is worth the price of admission. Includes easy to use load tables for quick reference of stud design. Also covers stud groups. There is no better insert design guide. We got ours at www.pci.org, you should too.
	ACI 318, Building Code Requirements for Concrete, American Concrete Institute / Portland Cement Association. This is the basic concrete design guide. You need this to factor the loads for PCI design. ACI 318 also comes with a commentary book. We highly recommend that you get both books if you want to understand the rational behind the formulas. You can also purchase a book of examples for stud design. We got ours through www.aci-int.org.
	Uniform Building Code (UBC), This code is commonly referred to internationally for seismic design. Currently in three volumes, Volume Two is the most relevant to cladding works.
	Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). A good all around reference book for loads. Generally good to specify this in addition to the local code to make sure you have all the bases covered. We got ours at www.asce.org.
British Reference Standards
	BS 8118 Structural use of Aluminum, British Standards Institution (BSI). The British Standard aluminum design book. Any curtain wall contractor designing to the British Standard will need this book. This standard supercedes the prior standard, CP118. Information for all British Standards can be found at www.bsi.org.uk. (As of this writing, you have to be a member to order on-line, but we called and got ours via the phone.)
	BS 5950, Structural use of Steelwork in Building, British Standards Institution. The British Standard steel design book. This book comes in several volumes. Volume 1 is generally the most applicable to cladding. Start with this one, if you need the others, buy them as needed. BS 5950 is the replacement for BS 449. Information for all British Standards can be found at www.bsi.org.uk (You have to be a member to order on-line, but we called and got ours via the phone.)
	CP118 The Structural Use of Aluminum, British Standards Institution. The old British Standard aluminum design book. Although it has been superceded by BS 8118, it has not been officially withdrawn yet. Unless you specifically need it, go with the new one. Information for all British Standards can be found at www.bsi.org.uk (You have to be a member to order on-line, but we called and got ours via the phone.)
Australian Reference Standards
	The best (and only) glass standard we have found for designing glass mullions. We got ours at www.cssinfo.com.