The Benault Company built France's first overhead car park made from a 2-hour fire-rated steel concrete composite structure. The composite structure is made by connecting steel girders to a concrete floor cast on a steel trough. Ten-centimeter long pins are welded to the top flange of the profile and sunk into the floor, the total thickness of which is only between 12 and 15cm. This solution helps to optimise the parking area, as a steel post takes between 30 and 40% less space than a concrete post.
In this case, the composite profile (girder or post) offers proven increased fire resistance and mechanical resistance.