Structural Steel Construction

Structural steel is an economical construction material for building applications. It offers high ratios of strength to weight and strength to volume. Thus, structural steel has the advantage of permitting long clear spans for horizontal members and requiring less floor space for columns than other common construction materials. It also can be used in combination with reinforced concrete to provide cost-effective building components. For large industrial buildings, where the structural frame can be exposed, it is often the material of choice. The design of a structural building frame involves the following principal steps: 1. Select the general configuration and type of structure (Sec. 1). 2. Determine the service loads as required by the applicable building code (Art. 5.1.2). 3. Compute the internal forces and moments for the individual members (Sec. 5). 4. Proportion the members and connections. 5. Check performance characteristics, such as deflection, under service conditions. 6. Make a general overall review for economy of function. 7. Prepare complete design drawings delineating all structural steel requirements. Designers, in addition to performing these steps, should also have an appreciation of the complete construction cycle to assure a practical and economical design. This includes understanding the needs of other disciplines and trades, types and availability of the materials used in steel of construction, applicable codes and specifications, the role and responsibilities of the fabricator and the erector, and a designers own responsibilities in the area of quality assurance. The other principal parties involved in structural steel construction are fabricators and erectors. Erectors frequently act as a subcontractor to the fabricator. Fabrication operations convert the mill materials into shipping pieces ready for erection at the jobsite. These operations are generally performed in a shop. The pieces are sized and shaped to the dimensions shown on detailed shop drawings that are prepared by the fabricator and approved by the structural designer. Shop attachment of detail pieces (stiffeners, connection materials, etc.) to the individual shipping pieces is most frequently done by welding. Generally, the fabricator is responsible for moving the fabricated material to the jobsite. The fabricator determines the size of shipping pieces, with the concurrence of the designer, at the time the shop drawings are prepared. Erectors receive the material and the position and connect the steel into its final location at the project site. Erectors may have specific equipment on unique projects with which they are able to perform cost-effective operations. Such equipment may require attachment points or stiffening of the frame elements, in which case approval of the designer is requested. Structural steel consists of hot-rolled steel shapes, steel plates of thickness of 1⁄8 in or greater, and such fittings as bolts, welds, bracing rods, and turnbuckles. The owner and the engineer should understand fully what will be furnished by the fabricator under a contract to furnish structural steel. To promote uniformity in bidding practices, the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) has adopted a Code of Standard Practice for Buildings and Bridges (American Institute of Steel Construction, One East Wacker Drive, Suite 3100, Chicago, IL 60601-2001). Additional design guides are shown in Table 7.1.

7.1 Codes and Specifications
7.2 Mill Materials
7.3 Fasteners
7.4 Fabrication
7.5 Quality Assurance
7.6 Wall Bearing Framing
7.7 Skeleton Framing
7.8 Long-Span Framing
7.9 Steel and Concrete Framing
7.10 Bracing Design Considerations
7.11 Frame Bracing
7.12 Bracing for Individual Members
7.13 Floor-Framing Design Considerations
7.14 Roof Framing Systems
7.15 Bases for ASD and LRFD
7.16 Design Aids and References
7.17 Serviceability Criteria
7.18 Tension Members
7.19 Columns and Other Compression Members
7.20 Beams and Other Flexural Members
7.21 Plate Girders
7.22 Web or Flange Load-Bearing Stiffeners
7.23 Bearing
7.24 Combined Axial Compression and Bending
7.25 Combined Axial Tension and Bending
7.26 Composite Construction
7.27 Members Subject to Torsion
7.28 Members Subject to Cyclic Loading
7.29 Combinations of Fasteners
7.30 Load Capacity of Bolts
7.31 Load Capacity of Welds
7.32 Bearing-Type Bolted Connections
7.33 Slip-Critical Bolted Connections
7.34 Eccentrically Loaded Welded Connections
7.35 Types of Beam Connections
7.36 Beams Splices
7.37 Column Splices
7.38 Erection Equipment
7.39 Clearance for Erecting Beams
7.40 Erection Sequence
7.41 Field-Welding Procedures
7.42 Erection Tolerances
7.43 Adjusting Lintels
7.44 Corrosion of Steel
7.45 Painting Steel Structures
7.46 Paint Systems
7.47 Field-Painting Steel
7.48 Steel in Contact with Concrete
7.49 Effect of Heat on Steel
7.50 Fire Protection of Exterior
7.51 Materials for Improving Fire Resistance
7.52 Pierced Ceilings and Floors
7.53 Fire-Resistance Ratings

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