Connection design hss software

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Read More. Learn More. Pro to Analyze Unconventional Curved-wall Design. Rolled right here in the U. Coming September Learn more. Compression Only. Tension Only. Truss Modeling. If you have ever looked through the AISC Specification and Manual to design a structural steel connection involving HSS, then you know there are a number of limit states to check and equations to solve.

Even with the STI Limit States Tables as a guide through the maze, determining the capacity of a single connection by hand can take a fair amount of time. Using a spreadsheet certainly helps, but there are several conditional statements to track and verify. In situations like this, it may make sense to allow some computer software to do the heavy lifting so you can focus on the engineering task at hand.

Connection software is split into two main categories. The first category is geared toward the design of connections in bulk for an entire building structure. In this type of software, the engineer or steel detailer would model all framing members in the structure.

Next, all standard connection information for the project would be entered, such as connection type, bolt size, weld size, spacing, edge distance, loading information, etc. These standard connections are then automatically designed throughout the entire building frame. One of the strengths of this type of software is the minimal design time for the engineer because the software will both design and optimize all connections.

A drawback for the first connection software type is that it can be difficult to use when trying to design a small number of connections or nonstandard connections. Thus, there is a second category of connection design software that focuses instead on designing a single connection at a time, also referred to as stand-alone or component-based software. For each connection design, the parameters and loading information can be entered individually to quickly provide a capacity check as each piece of information is updated.

Additionally, some of these connection software options can integrate with structural modeling software that engineers typically use. In this case, the loads can be directly transferred from the model into the connection software. This type of connection behaves more similarly to a connection to a WF web. Due to this distinction, it is important to understand which software will properly design connections to closed HSS shapes as this design requires the consideration of many limit states that are unique to HSS.

While most connection software packages available on the market can handle many of the typical wide flange connection cases, they may be more limited when it comes to designing HSS connections. IDEA StatiCa is a steel connection design software that allows structural engineers to verify almost any type of connection geometry.

It can design simple to very complex connections such as the one shown below. The software gives you the freedom to model almost any connection topology. When starting a connection design, you may choose from one of the available templates or start with a blank canvas then build your components from it.

IDEA StatiCa can perform all sorts of design checks such as verification of overall utilization plates, bolts, weld , stress checks, buckling analysis, and stiffness analysis to determine whether your connection is fixed, semi-rigid, or pinned. If not, you may need to adjust the global analysis to suit the actual joint stiffness then review the member design after redistribution. One of the handy features of the software is the ability to import the geometry and loadings of a joint from the most popular global analysis tools.

IDEA StatiCa provides tons of documentation on their website, helpful for those who want to self-train. They discuss theoretical background and give plenty of examples of connections which are downloadable. They also hold regular webinars presenting real-world connections sent by their users across the world. The recordings are then uploaded to YouTube for on-demand viewing.