What a snow region is
SP 20.13330 (the Russian loads and actions code) divides Russia into eight snow regions: from 50 kgf/m² in the south to 400 kgf/m² in Kamchatka. Moscow, Yekaterinburg and Chelyabinsk are in the third region, Perm and Ufa in the fifth.
The frame is designed for the weight of the snow plus coefficients for snow drifts at parapets, height differences and junctions.
Where savings are dangerous
The most common “saving” is designing the building for a lower region than the actual one, or without snow drifts. Such a frame is 10–15% cheaper, but in a snowy winter its deflections go beyond the tolerances.
Ask the contractor for an analysis that states the region and the snow load diagram — it’s one page that is easy to check.
