CSIR- SERC develops technology to reduce construction time; demonstrates indigenous Threaded End Anchor system

In a major step towards reducing construction time, the CSIR-Structural Engineering Research Centre (CSIR-SERC), Chennai, has developed and demonstrated an indigenous Threaded End Anchor system for Indian reinforced steel bars conforming to IS 1786:2008, named Head-T. Instead of manually bending the end of the bars at the joints of the columns and beams, the Head-T anchors can be fixed on the ends. The ends will have threads that can be screwed into the anchors.  

This anchor system addresses one of the long – time challenges in reinforced concrete construction, which is reinforcement congestion, and the resultant need for lengthy anchorage requirements. This, particularly in seismic and heavily-loaded structural regions as beam-column joints, are the most vulnerable locations to dissipate seismic energy.  

“We have developed this technology after extensive laboratory tests and full-scale experimental investigations. Tension tests on individual rebars and reverse cyclic loading tests on full-scale beam-column joints too were carried out. The results have demonstrated that Head-T anchors ensure superior strain capacity, effective energy dissipation, and stable hysteretic behaviour, comparable to conventional systems,” explained Saptarshi Sasmal, senior principal scientist, who lead the team that designed the technology.  

N. Anandavalli, Director, CSIR-SERC said that that Head-T will be easy to adopt, cost-effective, and suitable for both normal and seismic design applications, including buildings, bridges, foundations, dams, and nuclear structures. Two types of anchors, square and circular heads, have been optimised based on strength and feasibility criteria for use across various rebar diameters available in India. 

The development of this indigenous technology supports the national ‘Make in India’ initiative and aligns with the country’s goal of self-reliance in infrastructure technologies. The technology has been fully developed, tested and demonstrated and is ready for technology transfer to industry partners, she added.