Out-of-plane performance of cold-formed steel framed brick-veneer walls under wind loading

Brick-veneer construction dominates residential housing in Australia, typically comprising an external masonry wall connected to a supporting frame through mechanical brick ties. Under out-of-plane loading, particularly wind pressure and suction, uncertainties remain regarding the system-level performance of brick-veneer assemblies incorporating light-duty ties with cold-formed steel framing of low base metal thickness. While component-level behaviour may not satisfy prescribed design requirements, it is unclear whether this directly compromises overall system performance. This study investigates this issue through combined experimental and numerical analyses. Full-scale testing was conducted on a representative brick-veneer wall system incorporating commercially available cold-formed steel framing and light-duty ties, subjected to monotonic pressure and suction loading. A two-dimensional numerical model was developed and calibrated against the experimental results. The findings indicate that, despite deficiencies at the component level, the global system performance satisfies both serviceability and ultimate limit state requirements under the considered loading conditions. These findings highlight the need for further research to support potential revisions to existing component-level compliance provisions.