Typical horizontal joints between an external wall of prefabricated ordinary concrete components and a concrete floor — Properties, characteristics and classification criteria

This document specifies the properties and characteristics of typical horizontal joints between two prefabricated ordinary concrete external wall components and a concrete floor. However, the characteristics of joints, which are involved in the structural behaviour of buildings, are not specified in this document. This document is applicable to all public or private buildings, used as dwellings, offices, educational or hospital premises.

Assemblages horizontaux courants entre une façade en composants préfabriqués en béton ordinaire et un plancher en béton — Propriétés, caractéristiques et éléments de la classification

General Information

Status
Published
Publication Date
15-Mar-2026
Current Stage
6060 - International Standard published
Start Date
16-Mar-2026
Due Date
19-Jul-2026
Completion Date
16-Mar-2026

Relations

Effective Date
23-Sep-2023

Overview

ISO/FDIS 7728:2025 defines the properties, characteristics, and classification criteria for typical horizontal joints between external walls made of prefabricated ordinary concrete components and concrete floors. This standard is essential for architects, engineers, and builders dealing with prefabricated concrete construction in various building types, including residential, office, educational, and hospital premises. While the document focuses on non-structural joint characteristics, it provides guidance and proposed solutions regarding watertightness, thermal performance, acoustics, fire resistance, durability, and maintainability based on laboratory studies and practical experience.

Key Topics

Properties of Joints
The document outlines necessary and optional properties that horizontal joints must exhibit, including:

  • Thermal conductivity: Minimizing heat losses between internal and external environments under varied climatic conditions.
  • Sound insulation: Reducing airborne sound transmission between different spaces separated by the concrete floor.
  • Air-tightness: Ensuring resistance against air infiltration to improve energy efficiency.
  • Water and snow tightness: Preventing water ingress and snow penetration.
  • Light blocking: Avoiding unintended light passage between separated spaces.
  • Non-toxicity and odor control: Preventing emission of harmful or unpleasant odors from joint materials.
  • Condensation resistance: Avoiding water vapor condensation on joint surfaces to prevent deterioration.
  • Stress resistance: Accommodating static and dynamic forces, vibrations, and dimensional changes due to thermal expansion or contraction.
  • Fire resistance & toxic fumes: Ensuring the joints resist fire penetration and do not emit toxic fumes during combustion.
  • Aesthetics: Maintaining acceptable internal and external visual appearance.
  • Durability: Sustaining performance despite environmental factors such as weather, biological agents, and mechanical impacts.
  • Maintainability and replaceability: Allowing easy maintenance and replacement of degradable materials.
  • Tolerance to dimensional deviations: Accommodating construction tolerances and material variations.

Agents Affecting Joints
The joints must withstand diverse influences, including environmental forces (wind, rain, temperature changes), vibrations, contamination by organic and inorganic matter, and structural movements such as differential settlement.

Thermal and Acoustic Performance
Thermal transmission is quantified by the linear thermal transmittance of the joint (W/m·K), following guidelines in ISO 10211. Acoustic insulation focuses on limiting noise transfer, although joint influence is assessed indirectly via airborne sound insulation measurements.

Applications

ISO/FDIS 7728:2025 is applicable to:

  • Public and private buildings where prefabricated concrete construction is employed.
  • Dwelling units, offices, educational facilities, and healthcare premises requiring effective joint design.
  • Building envelope design: Used by design professionals to ensure joints provide airtightness, watertightness, and thermal comfort.
  • Quality assurance and testing: Provides methods to verify compliance with joint performance requirements.
  • Maintenance planning: Facilitates effective maintenance and replacement strategies to prolong joint and building lifespan.

The standard supports sustainable building practices by enhancing energy efficiency through control of thermal exchange and air leakage, thus contributing to occupant comfort and safety.

Related Standards

ISO/FDIS 7728 references several relevant standards to harmonize joint performance evaluation, including:

  • ISO 2444 - Joints in building: Vocabulary for consistent terminology.
  • ISO 6589 - Laboratory methods for air permeability testing of joints.
  • ISO 717-1 - Acoustics: Rating airborne sound insulation in buildings.
  • ISO 16283-1 - Field measurement of airborne sound insulation.
  • ISO 10211 - Calculation of thermal bridges in building components for thermal transmittance evaluation.

Together, these standards ensure comprehensive assessment and uniform classification of joint performance in prefabricated concrete construction.


Keywords: ISO 7728, horizontal joints, prefabricated concrete, concrete floor, watertightness, thermal transmittance, sound insulation, fire resistance, building joints, joint classification, air-tightness, durability, construction standards, building envelope, concrete components.

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ISO 7728:2026 - Typical horizontal joints between an external wall of prefabricated ordinary concrete components and a concrete floor — Properties, characteristics and classification criteria

Release Date:16-Mar-2026
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Frequently Asked Questions

ISO 7728:2026 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Its full title is "Typical horizontal joints between an external wall of prefabricated ordinary concrete components and a concrete floor — Properties, characteristics and classification criteria". This standard covers: This document specifies the properties and characteristics of typical horizontal joints between two prefabricated ordinary concrete external wall components and a concrete floor. However, the characteristics of joints, which are involved in the structural behaviour of buildings, are not specified in this document. This document is applicable to all public or private buildings, used as dwellings, offices, educational or hospital premises.

This document specifies the properties and characteristics of typical horizontal joints between two prefabricated ordinary concrete external wall components and a concrete floor. However, the characteristics of joints, which are involved in the structural behaviour of buildings, are not specified in this document. This document is applicable to all public or private buildings, used as dwellings, offices, educational or hospital premises.

ISO 7728:2026 is classified under the following ICS (International Classification for Standards) categories: 91.080.40 - Concrete structures. The ICS classification helps identify the subject area and facilitates finding related standards.

ISO 7728:2026 has the following relationships with other standards: It is inter standard links to ISO 7728:1985. Understanding these relationships helps ensure you are using the most current and applicable version of the standard.

ISO 7728:2026 is available in PDF format for immediate download after purchase. The document can be added to your cart and obtained through the secure checkout process. Digital delivery ensures instant access to the complete standard document.

Standards Content (Sample)


International
Standard
ISO 7728
Second edition
Typical horizontal joints between
2026-03
an external wall of prefabricated
ordinary concrete components
and a concrete floor — Properties,
characteristics and classification
criteria
Assemblages horizontaux courants entre une façade en
composants préfabriqués en béton ordinaire et un plancher
en béton — Propriétés, caractéristiques et éléments de la
classification
Reference number
© ISO 2026
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on
the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below
or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: +41 22 749 01 11
Email: copyright@iso.org
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .vi
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Properties of joints and agents to which they are exposed . 2
4.1 Properties .2
4.2 Agents to which joints are exposed .3
5 Characteristics of joints . 4
5.1 General .4
5.2 Thermal transmission between internal and external environments .4
5.3 Influence of joint on acoustical insulation of the floor .4
5.4 Air permeability of joints (between either external and internal environments, or
spaces separated by the floor) .4
5.5 Water tightness .4
5.5.1 General .4
5.5.2 Sealing and waterproofing measures of joints . .6
5.5.3 Overlap .7
5.5.4 Capillary break .7
5.5.5 Air tightness .7
5.6 Water vapour condensation on the internal face of the wall and floor in the vicinity of
the joint .7
5.7 Transmission of forces .8
5.7.1 Load-bearing external wall, self-supporting external wall .8
5.7.2 Supported external wall .8
5.8 Fire resistance .8
5.9 Emission of gases or toxic fumes in the event of fire.8
5.10 Internal and external appearance .8
5.11 Durability .8
6 Other indications to be given . 9
6.1 Maintenance of jointing materials .9
6.2 Replacement of degradable jointing materials .9
6.3 Dismantling and reassembling components .9
7 Dimensional coordination . 9
8 Classification criteria . 9
Bibliography .11

iii
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through
ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee
has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations,
governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely
with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are described
in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the different types
of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the editorial rules of the
ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
ISO draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). ISO takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent
rights in respect thereof. As of the date of publication of this document, ISO had not received notice of (a)
patent(s) which may be required to implement this document. However, implementers are cautioned that
this may not represent the latest information, which may be obtained from the patent database available at
www.iso.org/patents. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions
related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the World Trade
Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 59, Buildings and civil engineering works,
Subcommittee SC 19, Prefabricated building.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO 7728:1985), which has been technically
revised.
The main changes are as follows:
— update of reference documents;
— addition of terminological entries for “surface temperature coefficient” (3.4), “fire resistance” (3.5) and
“concrete sandwich board” (3.6);
— addition of Tables 1, 2 and 3, integrating 4.1 and 5.5.2;
— addition of 5.2, regarding the indexes of thermal transmission;
— addition of 5.3, refining the data and measurement of sound insulation R value;
— addition of Figure 2, integrating Clause 5;
— redrafting of 5.5.3 to describe the overlap range in different building environments;
— redrafting of 5.5.4 to describe the setting of capillary fracture width between the fracture surface and
the vertical plane;
— addition of μ value calculation reference in 5.6;
— addition of joint fillers to the condensation coefficient inside, fire resistance, and emission of gases or
toxic smoke in 5.6, 5.8 and 5.9;
— addition of explanation of heterogeneity coefficient, Q, in 5.10;
— redrafting the text describing durability in 5.11;

iv
— addition of description of maintenance of jointing materials in 6.1;
— addition of the characteristics of joints dimension in Clause 7.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

v
Introduction
This document outlines a convention for designers about jointing an external wall made of ordinary
prefabricated concrete components and a concrete floor.
This convention refers to standardized methods for the determination of the properties of the joint. However,
the methods for some of these properties are not elaborated. Given the importance of these properties,
solutions are proposed and both experience and laboratory studies have shown to be satisfactory under the
usual conditions. It should be noted that these solutions are not the only viable options.

vi
International Standard ISO 7728:2026(en)
Typical horizontal joints between an external wall of
prefabricated ordinary concrete components and a concrete
floor — Properties, characteristics and classification criteria
1 Scope
This document specifies the properties and characteristics of typical horizontal joints between two
prefabricated ordinary concrete external wall components and a concrete floor.
However, the characteristics of joints, which are involved in the structural behaviour of buildings, are not
specified in this document.
This document is applicable to all public or private buildings, used as dwellings, offices, educational or
hospital premises.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes
requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references,
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 6589, Joints in building — Laboratory method of test for air permeability of joints
ISO 717-1, Acoustics — Rating of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements — Part 1: Airborne
sound insulation
ISO 16283-1, Acoustics — Field measurement of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements — Part 1:
Airborne sound insulation
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https:// www .iso .org/ obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at https:// www .electropedia .org/
3.1
load-bearing external wall
external wall, the role of which includes the stability of the building, that, in additional to self-weight, wind
loads and similar, also support floor loads (wholly or in part), transmitting them directly or indirectly to the
foundation
3.2
self-supporting external wall
external wall that does not form part of the load bearing structure and the weight of which is transmitted to
the foundation
3.3
supported external wall
external wall that does not form part of the load-bearing structure and the weight of which is transmitted
back to the load-bearing structure of the building
3.4
temperature factor
ratio of the difference between the minimum surface temperature at the joint and the indoor air temperature
and the difference between the outdoor air temperature and the indoor air temperature
3.5
fire resistance
measure of the ability of a material or structure to resist collapse, flame penetration, and excessive
temperature rise on the unexposed surface under specified conditions of test
3.6
concrete sandwich board
prefabricated concrete exterior wall panel with precast concrete inner and outer layer that are structurally
connected, and insulation materials filled in the middle
4 Properties of joints and agents to which they are exposed
4.1 Properties
For joints, the necessary properties listed in Table 1 shall be considered. The optional properties listed in
Table 2 should be considered.
Table 1 — Necessary properties of joints
Application
No. Property name Description
environment
a Thermal To limit thermal losses (between the internal and external Various climatic
conductivity environments). conditions
b Soundproofing To limit sound transmission (between the spaces separated by Various indoor
the floor, if any). environments
c Air-tightness To provide satisfactory resistance to air penetration. Various climatic
conditions
d Water and snow To ensure water-tightness and snow tightness between the Various climatic
tightness exterior and interior and, for water and other liquids, conditions
between the spaces separated by the floor.
e Light blocking To prevent the passage of light (between spaces separated by the Various lighting
floor, if any). conditions
f Non-toxic and The joints should be non-toxic and not emit odours (odours Various indoor
odour-free emitted by jointing products). environments
g Anti-condensation Condensation of water vapour should not occur opposite the Various climatic
joints and in the joints on the internal face of the wall. con
...

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