There are many design options for buildings; depending on the purpose of the structure, different load-bearing elements are used - walls, columns, or both at the same time.
Wireframe design
In the case of a frame building, only columns are used as load-bearing elements, and the walls are exclusively dividing and enclosing structures. They can be either prefabricated (panel) or monolithic, but in any case, no load will be transferred to them, except their own weight. But the columns must be selected well to withstand not only their own weight, but the weight of all the elements located above, as well as snow, wind, dynamic and short-term loads. As a rule, such a design scheme is used in industrial buildings, where bridge and overhead cranes are often used, equipment that creates significant dynamic loads, so the foundation for the column must be calculated with special attention and care.
What foundation to choose
There are many options for the foundation, but in the case of a frame structural scheme, the tape can be discarded immediately. Therefore, you need to choose which foundation for the column will be optimal for your building: columnar, pile or slab.
The choice depends on the type of your building, its geometric parameters, purpose, type of soil at the construction site, as well as the presence or absence of groundwater. Having assessed all the factors, we can proceed to the choice of the foundation and to its calculations.
Column and pile foundations
Columnar foundation for the column is a cost-effective solution: there is no unnecessary material costs, and the structural strength is ensured in full. However, this option is good if the soil has a high bearing capacity, otherwise the columnar foundation will not be enough. In addition, columnar foundations for columns are a convenient option for a small-sized building, a small house, a cottage with a frame structural scheme, but if it comes to a large industrial building, it is worth giving preference to a more reliable and stable foundation. A pile foundation is suitable for these purposes: in addition to being installed on strong rocks, it is less susceptible to shear or roll, so it can be loaded much more than other types of foundation. By the way, it is the pile foundation that is used in the construction of high-rise buildings.
Slab foundationWhen the construction of a small structure with a wireframe scheme is on the agenda, and soils are reliable, you can use monolithic foundations for columns. In this case, the load transferred from the columns to the base will be distributed evenly throughout the slab. A plus of the slab foundation is that when it is used, the possibility of subsidence of one or several columns is excluded, which is fraught with a distortion of the entire building. If, for some reason, a slab foundation is selected, but the reliability of the soil is questioned, the foundation for the column can be strengthened using piles installed under the slab.