INTRODUCTION TO STRUCTURAL STEEL DESIGN

Designer and Engineer
The structural designer or engineer must learn to arrange and proportion the parts of structures so that they can be practically erected and will have sufficient strength and reasonable economy. Some of the items that must be considered include
– Safety
– Cost
– Practicality

– Safety
• Not only must the frame of a structure safely support the loads to which it is subjected, but also it must support them in such a manner that deflections and vibrations are not so great as to frighten the occupants or to cause unsightly cracks.

– Cost
• The engineer or designer needs to keep in mind the factors that can lower cost without sacrificing the strength, e.g., the use of standard-size members, simple connections, etc.

– Practicality
• Designers and engineers need to understand fabrication methods, and should try to fit their work to the fabrication facilities available.
• The more the designer knows about the problems, tolerances, and clearances in shop and field the more probable it is that reasonable, practical, and economical designs will be produced.

Design

• Personal computers have drastically changed the way steel structures are analyzed and designed. 
• Many of the commercial structural software packages can perform 

– Structural Analysis, and
– Structural Design

• The need for these programs stems from the fact that the calculations involved in both the design and analysis of an engineering system are quite timeconsuming. 
• With the use of a computer, the design engineer greatly can reduce the time required to perform these calculations.
• Although computers do increase design productivity, they also tend to reduce the engineer’s “feel” for the structure.
• This can be a particular problem for young engineers with very little design experience. 
• Computers should not be looked at as black boxes that can do powerful things for us.
• Knowledge and understanding of the basic engineering principals are prerequisites for the effective implementation of any design. 
• No matter how impressive your tool chest, you will be hard-pressed to repair a car if you do not understand how it works. Download Ebook