Unistrut IR Heater Supports for Automotive

Unistrut Midwest was contracted to design, furnish, and install a support structure for a custom automotive shop in Northwest Ohio. The end user needed a support structure to support infrared heaters at 8′ above the ground. The IR Heaters will be used to prepare vehicles for custom decal work. The building was a Butler Building with 20′ ceilings and steel purlins at 5′ o.c. The customer knew the approximate location they wanted heaters but relied on Unistrut to determine a structure that would allow the lights to be moved freely along a Unistrut member but would be rigid enough to prevent the heaters from swaying if one is moved. Unistrut Midwest was able to provide turnkey support from design through installation for Unistrut IR Heater Supports for this customer.

Customer’s Requirements

• Provide a support structure for 9 IR Heaters in specified locations throughout a shop floor
• IR Heaters to be suspended at 8′ above the finish floor height
• Heaters should be able to move within the Unistrut System to allow for future layout changes
• Structure to be suspended from existing Butler Building Steel beams or purlins
• Structure should be braced to prevent sway

Unistrut Midwest’s Solution was to create a 20′ x 100′ Unistrut grid system with 20’x20′ bays. Unistrut used P1001 channel as the main support structure. The P1001 Unistrut was strong enough to handle the IR Heaters loading and required spans. The P1001 Unistrut also has the back to back profile which allowed for all threaded rod connections to the structure to occur on the top channel and all IR Heaters to mount on the lower channel. This design allowed the heaters to be positioned anywhere along the 20′ channel without obstruction.

The upper connections to the Butler building required the use of P1001 to be fixed tight to the purlins. Unistrut Midwest used the P2784-2 Purlin Beam clamps to securely fasten the P1001 to the building structure. The P2784 series of Unistrut Beam Clamps allowed for a design load of 1,200 lbs per clamp which was sufficient for the application.

Eliminating the sway in the support was accomplished using Unistrut P1000 diagonal braces in each corner and at the 1/3 points along the structure. Unistrut used P1000 channel for the bracing with P1354 hinged fittings on each end. The P1354 hinges allow for the bracing to be installed from 30-60 degrees as required to miss existing items in the ceiling space.

Unistrut Midwest was able to solve a customer’s problem and provide an installed Unistrut IR Heater support solution within a week. The Unistrut Team was able to install the support with 2 days and the customer was able to open the facility on schedule. We pride ourselves on offering solutions for your support structure problems and would be glad to discuss your project today.