Live loads are dynamic in nature and may be generated from within or outside of the structure. Those from within are produced by the use and occupancy of the building and may be induced by human activity, vehicles in motion, or operational machinery and equipment. Note! Occupancy loads may also be classified as Superimposed Loads […]
The earth’s surface is made up of numerous tectonic plates which are constantly in motion relative to one another pushing one against the other. These points of contact are known as the ‘Fault-Lines’, and when the pressure of the contact reaches a certain level, something has to give, resulting in a violent and sudden slip.
Index In this sub-section we look at typical vertical bracing connections for various bracing types. they include: Single Angles Double (Battened Back-To-Back) Angles Double (Battened Starred) Angles Single and Double (Battened Back-To-Back ) Channels Heavy Duty Bolted / Welded Heavy Duty All Bolted Compression Struts with End-Plates Compression Struts with Splice-Plates Girder (Bridge) Connections
Typical Vertical Bracing Connections Read Article »
What are Flexible Connections? Flexible Connections will be the most common type likely to be encountered by the detailer, they will make up just about all beam-to-beam connections and for braced frames, will be found to make up the beam-to-column connections as well. So, what is a Flexible Connection? When a vertical load is applied
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Introduction A steel structure is exposed to numerous different load conditions. In simple terms, they can be categorized as Vertical or Horizontal and may be either static or dynamic. Vertical loads, also referred to a Gravity or static Loads include the self-weight of the structure including all parts that are permanently connected to, and forming
Stabilizing Systems – Introduction Read Article »
Rules-of-Thumb are often dismissed as the lazy man’s route to design, but it’s worth remembering that in ancient times, structures were built according to form and proportion, the builders knew and understood the relationships between span and depth, together with height and cross-sectional area, and this understanding enabled them to build structures, which were not
General Settings Before beginning with the creation of the structural model you should address the Settings – These cover 3 main areas: Global – Where you can preset global standards and settings – these settings will override all AutoCAD and BricsCAD settings The bottom buttons allow you to edit the various libraries and filters, and clash control settings 3D Model – These settings will determine
Parabuild General Settings Read Article »
Flexible Beam-To-Beam Connections Just about every beam-to-beam connection will fall into this category and there are a number to choose from. The engineer will rarely dictate which connection type to use, preferring instead to leave it up to the fabricator and his right-hand-man – the detailer. To assist the detailer in analyzing the pro’s and
Flexible Connection-Types Read Article »
Today it’s very rare for the engineer to design each and every flexible connection, often he or she will not even select a connection type, preferring instead to leave it up to the fabricator to select such connections best suited to preference provided they meet the design requirements. The fabricator will often delegate the selection
Connection Selection Read Article »
Shared Bolts One factor to be considered with shared bolts is the thought that must be applied to the site-erection of the beams, where both beams must be held in position until at least some of the bolts have been installed. In most cases, especially with smaller beams this can be accomplished with a skilled
Shared Bolts and Interferences Read Article »
Fin-Plates with a Single Row of Bolts Fin-Plates with a Double Row of Bolts Tables Note that the values given for the number of vertical pitches of the bolt rows in Table 3 – should really only be used for estimating purposes. There are numerous variables affecting these values including bolt diameters, and of course
Standard Fin-Plate Connections Read Article »
Welded Fin-Plates, like End-Plates are cut from Plates or standard ‘Flats’ which are then drilled or punched to the required bolt pattern and shop-welded to the web of the supporting beam. The connecting beam web is match-drilled in the workshop to suit. Fin-Plates are not strictly flexible in the vertical plane, and as a consequence
Welded Fin Plates Read Article »
End Plates are probably the most versatile of all the flexible Connection types in that the may be used to connect beam-to-beam and bean to columns, both to the flange and web. They can also be used for skew connections at any angle. End-Plates are cut from Plate or ‘Flats’ which are drilled or punched
Welded End Plates Read Article »
Here we’ll look at standardizing cleats following on from what has been discussed under Bolted End-Cleats. It’s not an accident that the proposed standards align with Welded End-Plates. Though interchangeability is not really recommended, it does have advantages with regards to general Standardization. The standard cleats proposed below all assume a Standard Gauge – however,
Standard Cleats Read Article »
End Cleats are usually used to connect beam-to-beam – they may also be used for beam-to-column connections but there are limitations, which we’ll look at later in this article Cleats are usually fabricated from standard hot-rolled angle sections and may be configured either as ‘Single’ or ‘Double’. Single cleats offer many practical advantages, the most
Bolted End-Cleats Read Article »
The Welded-Tee connection is the most expensive to fabricate of all the connection types, they typically comprise of a flange and web-plate formed into a Tee, which is then welded to the top-flange and web of the supporting beam. The Tee may also be fabricated from a Tee-Cutting of a standard rolled section, usually matching
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Beam-end clearances are necessary to to provide adequate assembly and erection tolerances. They take into account rolling mill and fabrication tolerances. The diagram below indicates the suggested clearance for flexible connections, including: Welded End-Plates Bolted End-Cleats Welded Fin-Plates, and Seating Connections When there are a string of beams erected along a single line, there is
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A beam-end notch will be necessary when connecting a beam directly to the web of the supporting beam – the connection itself may be any of the bolted connections including: an end-plate, fin-plate or a bolted cleat. Welded beam-to-beam connections will also need to be notched, but the method will be different from that of
Beam-End Notches (Copes) Read Article »
Vertical braced-frames are the simplest and most effective of the stabilizing options, they are relatively straightforward to analyze, economic to fabricate, and can be erected in a relatively short space of time. Hence, Braced-Frames are without doubt the most popular and efficient stabilizing option and will account for a great majority light commercial and industrial
Vertical Braced Frames Read Article »
REVISIONS TO PAGE References to Fig’s 1 – 4 corrected Moment connections may be either shop-welded / site-bolted, or shop-welded / site-welded. By far the most common is the shop-welded / site-bolted, examples of which are illustrated below and include: Site-Bolted End-Cleats Site-Bolted End-Plates Site-Bolted Flange-Plates Site-Bolted Moment-Trees Typical Site-Welded connections Bolted End Cleat Moment
Moment Connection Types Read Article »
What are Moment Connections? REVISIONS TO PAGE Duplicated text removed At first glance, a moment-frame appears to be a simple post-and-beam construction With a braced-frame these lateral forces are absorbed by the bracing system, which transmits those forces through the diagonal members, into the vertical columns, and into solid ground via the foundations. The best
Moment Connections Read Article »
To assist the detailer in selecting the appropriate connection type, the following guide has been prepared to provide an insight into the practical advantages and disadvantages of each, which includes: Welded End-Plates Bolted End Cleats Welded Fin-Plates Welded Tees Seating Connections Though all these connection types work and generally fulfill the criteria of being ‘Flexible’
Flexible Connection Guide Read Article »
