FG Bautechnikgeschichte
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This paper discusses the development of shell structures in the context of the application of early reinforced concrete in the Russian Empire. Following a short discussion of the context and general conditions, the main construction methods are addressed. Different types of buildings are analysed in the paper, covering the period from the first structures in 1888 until the revolution of 1917. Special attention is given to shell constructions and their supporting structures. As they are intricate and technically advanced, these structures arguably represent the highest point in the development of early reinforced concrete.
The research was based on Soviet era and later construction history publications, archival documents, and drawings as well as historical technical literature on the topic in Russian, French, German, and English. Such a broad overview has allowed the history of the development of early reinforced concrete constructions to be seen from different perspectives.
As a part of the wide research field regarding the introduction of European knowledge to the Russian Empire and its adoption and implementation, this paper shines a light on aspects of early reinforced concrete knowledge transfer. The development of reinforced concrete in Russia has been studied and described in Russian publications of the Soviet and later periods to a limited extent. However, the evident and substantial influence of European knowledge and the contributions of European specialists from France, Germany, Swit-zerland, and Austria has remained unexamined. Drawing on historical, technical, and periodical literature as well as on archival documents, this paper describes three different examples of knowledge transfer and their influence on the local development of reinforced concrete.
The omission of the contribution of European specialists to the development of early reinforced concrete in the publications of the Soviet and later periods led to this research. An investigation of the technical literature and archival documents brought about new discoveries. European engineers and representatives of well-known European construction companies played an important role in the early development of reinforced concrete in the Russian Empire. This paper describes the introduction and the development of this construction technology in Saint Petersburg and is an extract from the author’s doctoral thesis on the development of rein-forced concrete in the Russian Empire from its inception to the outbreak of the October Revolution.