Third Party Verification Claim

550 Cleveland Avenue North | Saint Paul, MN 55114
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CONSULTANTS
· ENVIRONMENTAL
· GEOTECHNICAL
· MATERIALS
· FORENSICS
March 2, 2021
Mr. John Ruprecht
Clear View Glass Railings
737 Quentin Avenue South
Lakeland, MN 55043
Re: Wind Load Requirements for Wind-Borne Debris Regions, and Considerations for “Hercules”
Glass Guardrail Panel
AET Project #: 05-20608
Dear Mr. Ruprecht,
This letter reports the findings of our review of the North Carolina wind requirements for Wind-Borne
Debris Regions, as described by North Carolina Building Code Section 1609. These requirements
closely follow ASCE 7. We compare these requirements to the published and tested strength of the
Hercules Glass Guardrail Panel, model CVGR 1001 FWP, and provide conclusions regarding panel
design requirements to meet specific portions of the NCBC code.
Panel Construction
The North Carolina State Building Code (NCBC) Section 2407 addresses glass used in handrails and
guards; it specifies materials, loads, support conditions and wind-borne debris regions. According to the
NCBC and in compliance with Category II of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and
Class A of ANSI Z97.1, glass used in guardrails must be laminated glass constructed of fully tempered
or heat strengthened glass and tested for its water penetration resistance, wind loading, impact,
durability, thermal properties, and mechanical performance. It is our understanding that the panel is
laminated and fully tempered.
Panel Support
NCBC Section 2407.1.2 requires that all panels “shall be supported by a minimum of three glass
balusters or shall be otherwise supported to remain in place should one baluster panel fail”. We
interpret this to mean that the panels will require three spigot supports. The Hercules Glass Guardrail
Panel is available with three spigots, where required by North Carolina Building Code.
The stainless steel spigots have been reviewed to confirm they possess the strength to support the shear
and bending forces placed on them by the glass panels. When three spigots support the panels, they
have sufficient capacity to resist wind loads required by the North Carolina Building Code. To meet the
4 * multiplier for live loads shown in 2015 IBC section 2407.1.1 (required by some municipalities) a