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A controlled expansion suspended ceiling grid member for suspended panel or tile ceilings comprises a web having a panel supporting flange provided along one of its marginal edges and a bead integral with the other marginal edge. The bead side walls are unconnected at the bead\s base. An expansion a

A controlled expansion suspended ceiling grid member for suspended panel or tile ceilings comprises a web having a panel supporting flange provided along one of its marginal edges and a bead integral with the other marginal edge. The bead side walls are unconnected at the bead\s base. An expansion accommodating portion is provided for accommodating thermal expansion in the beam and comprises three evenly spaced apart notches cut in the web in a manner which adapts the flange to fold downwardly away from the bead during beam expansion. The bead\s top wall has slot means cut therein to essentially free the bead\s side walls from transverse connection to adapt the side walls to buckle laterally out of their respective planes as the flange is folded so that the bead remains substantially horizontal and distortion along the beam\s length is minimized.

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A controlled expansion suspended ceiling grid beam for a suspended panel ceiling comprising a web having spaced-apart marginal edges, a flange having a panel supporting surface provided along one of said marginal edges, a bead being provided along the other of said marginal edges, said bead having s

A controlled expansion suspended ceiling grid beam for a suspended panel ceiling comprising a web having spaced-apart marginal edges, a flange having a panel supporting surface provided along one of said marginal edges, a bead being provided along the other of said marginal edges, said bead having substantially planar spaced-apart sidewalls which are continuous at least along the upper and lower bead portions and an interconnecting substantially planar top wall, said bead sidewalls being unconnected at the bead\s base and an expansion accommodating portion for accommodating thermal expansion at a predetermined location in said beam comprising three substantially evenly spaced-apart notches cut in the web having lower and upper ends, said lower end of each notch being in the form of an apex and located at least near to the plane defined by the panel supporting surface of the flange, the web above said notches being severed in a manner to provide a web severance bridging the upper ends of said notches which leaves a first strip of the web extending along the bead\s base, the bead\s top wall having slot means cut therein, said slot means being substantially centrally located over the middle notch of said three notches with said slot means extending to adjacent points above the notches on each side of the middle notch, said three notches permitting said flange to bend in the area of each said notch apex whereby said flange folds downwardly away from said bead to accommodate thermal expansion in said beam, said slot means essentially freeing the bead\s sidewalls as they lie in their respective planes from transverse connection over the slot means\length to adapt said side walls to buckle laterally out of their respective planes as said flange is folded, said slot means adapting said bead to collapse and maintain its longitudinal alignment without offsetting the longitudinal alignment of said flange apart from the downwardly folding flange portion.