Opinion ID: 1842796
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Wisconsin Administrative Code.

Text: The plaintiff contends that it was error for the trial court to find that the defendant had not violated Wis. Adm. Code, IND 53.17 [2] when the plans it prepared provided for horizontal bridging rather than cross bridging. Sec. IND 53.17 (6) (e) requires cross bridging. However, sec. 53.17 (2) (b) says the requirements for steel joist construction shall not apply when the spans and spacings defined in the section are exceeded, and it further provides that in such instances the provisions of sec. 53.16 are applicable. Several expert witnesses testified the steel joists in question exceeded the length of the spans subject to the applicable provisions of sec. 53.17. Therefore, the provisions of sec. 53.16 are applicable. It was their testimony that generally the steel joists regulated by the provisions of sec. 53.17, including the specific bridging requirements of sec. 53.17 (6) (e), were of a prefabricated nature and subject to standard specifications and load tables. However, longer spans generally required special design and were therefore subject only to the provisions of sec. 53.16. This court has frequently held that great weight should be given to the administrative agency's interpretation and application of its own rules, unless plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the regulation so interpreted. Josam Mfg. Co. v. State Board of Health (1965), 26 Wis. 2d 587, 133 N. W. 2d 301. This is especially so in an area calling for special expertise. In this case, the department of industry, labor & human relations had approved the plans. Also, the administrator of the industrial safety and building division of the ILHR department testified that sec. 53.17 (6) (e) was not applicable to steel joists which were as long as the ones specified in this building construction. Other expert witnesses supported this testimony. Similarly, there was expert testimony that the construction design in this case complied with the Manual of Steel Construction of the United States steel industry. [3] Admittedly there is expert testimony which, to some extent, conflicted with testimony of other experts in regard to the applicability of the Wisconsin code and the industry manual. However, it cannot be said that the trial court erred in finding the defendant had not violated either of these codes.