Framed Structures Structural Steelwork

Fabrication is the term used to

describe the manufacture of
components, which will, when
assembled and joined form a
complete steelwork structure. The
structure generally uses readily
available standard sections which are
manufacture from steel.

Steel is term for a range of alloys of

iron, carbon and manganese in
various proportions.

The varying proportion of the

constituent elements results in steel
Grades. Each grade of steel has a
specific composition and strength.
There are 3 main grades of structural
steelwork S275, S355 and S460.
S for structural and number i.e. 275
refers to the design strength in N/mm2

The range of steel grades allows for flexibility in the selection of material and section
size for any construction. By selecting a section manufactured from a higher grade of
steel its bending and shearing capacities are increased therefore increasing the load
carrying capacity whilst keeping the overall mass of the structure down. The use of
higher grades of steel can also eliminate or reduce the need for expensive fabrication
methods such as web stiffeners or haunched sections. However the use of higher
grades of steel can sometimes present joining problems particularly welding and can
also result in excessive beam deflections.

Steel sections

Standard hot rolled sections are manufactured by passing a bloom or billet (steel
ingots) through a series of rollers of slight different shape until the required section
cross-section is obtained.

1
Universal beam section in the stockyard ready to be cut to length, drilled and
have end connections fitted

2
A period of around 10-14 weeks is usual between placing a steel order and the
arrival of the first elements of the frame on site. Site preparation and foundation
construction generally take about the same amount of time.
Structural steel frameworks should generally be capable of being erected
without temporary propping or scaffolding, although temporary bracing may be
required.

Temporary bracing consisting of a collar and

adjustable props holding a single storey CHS
column in place

For simplicity during the erection process all connection on site should be
bolted. All fabrication should be undertaken off-site and can consist of a
mixture of bolted and welded connections, by manufacturing the frame in a
factory any of the normal delays expected on site such as bad weather or
insufficient or inadequate construction resources are significantly reduced. The
speed of erection is directly related to the number crane hours available, it may
be more economical to arrange for two (or more) mobile cranes during the
frame erection rather than having one fixed crane permanently on site for the
duration of the contract.

3
Anatomy of a frame

Base plates

Commencing at foundation level ideally each column should be placed on its own pad
foundation. Connection is made by means of holding down bolts between the
foundation and the slab base of the column.

Stanchion bases transmit the loads and moments from the steel stanchion to the
concrete foundation. The most extensively used types of base are the slab and the
gusseted. On heavily loaded stanchions slab thicknesses in excess of 50 mm are
possible. The main advantage of the slab base over the gusseted is it is free of
pockets where corrosion may start, and also maintenance of the base is more
straightforward.

A typical slab base consists of a single base plate fillet welded to the end of the
column and attached to the foundation by either two or four bolts. The bolts are cast
into the concrete base in location tubes or in cones fitted with anchor plates. Bedding
material is inserted in the space between the plate and the foundation.

The plate dimensions must be sufficient to spread the design load from the column.

Regardless of any design calculations, it is normal practice for the base plate to be
larger all round than the column and that the thickness of the base plate should be
greater than that of the column flange thickness.

4
Connecting the column to the base plate is generally by means of 8 mm fillet welds on
the outside of the flanges and on either side of the web.

Holding down bolts are provided in grade 8.8 material and the most common sizes
used are M20, M24 or M30. These bolts are situated in clearance holes a minimum
of 4 mm larger than the bolt diameter. The embedded length of the bolt in the concrete
is generally between 16 and 18 bolt diameters. The minimum edge distance for the
bolts should be taken as a minimum of 50 mm and the bolts should be placed in 4 mm
to 6 mm clearance holes.

Arrangement of holding
down bolts, bolt boxes and
temporary framing prior to
concrete being poured to
the base.

The columns are erected using steel levelling packs with steel wedges placed around
the edges of the base plate to ensure stability during erection and to aid in pluming the
column.

A bedding space of 25 mm to 50 mm is allowed between the concrete foundation and

the underside of the base. The bedding grout (mortar) is made from material that has
strength equal to that of the concrete. Grout holes can be provided in the base plate to
allow for inspection and for the placing of the grout.

5
6
Baseplate connections

Holding down bolts

Slab baseplates are secured to the foundation by either two or four holding down bolts
and are connected to the column by fillet welding.
For practical purposes the holding down bolts are generally provided in grade 4.6
material and restricted to M20, M24 or M30 These bolts are situated in clearance
holes a minimum of 4 mm larger than the bolt diameter. The embedded length of the
bolt in the concrete is generally between 16 and 18 bolt diameters. The minimum
edge distance for the bolts should be taken as a minimum of 50 mm and the bolts
should be placed in 4 mm to 6 mm clearance holes. The table below gives the
preferred lengths of bolts that can be provided

Welding

As a minimum welding is provided both sides of the column web and on the outside
of the column flanges, for design purposes only the welds along the column web are
assumed to be effective. For practical purposes a minimum weld size of 8 mm should
be used.

7
8
Columns

The columns normally

extend over two or three
storey heights and are
temporarily braced until
the first and second floor
beams are bolted in
place. The next lengths
of column are spliced
onto the bottom lengths
by a series of web and
flange cover plates or by
welding.

It is usual to arrange the

column splices 500mm
above the adjacent floor
level so that the joint is
well clear of any of the
floor beam connections
and for ease of
construction.

Column splice connecting columns of

differing serial size using flange plates and
a division plate

Selection of column splices

9
(a) Equal sections
The diagram above shows a welded connection between two column of equal
section and serial size. This form of connection requires a considerable amount of
fabrication as the column ends must be prepared for butt welds at the ends. As the
fabrication must take place off site it is not a popular form of construction. More
common on site is the bolted connection using web and flange cover plates for
Universal Column section and the end plate connection for hollow sections which
are similar to base plates in that the plate is welded to the ends of the column and
lengths are bolted together on site. The positioning of the splice for hollow
sections varies from other splices in that the splice is made at floor level so that
when the finishing screed is applied it is obscured from view.

(b) Sections of the same serial size but differing weights.

The diagram on the top right hand side shows the most popular version of this
type of splice. The web and flange plates are bolted on to the columns on site but
as the column depths vary additional packing plates are placed between the
column flanges and the flange plate to make the connection more rigid. Normally
packing plates are not required between the web cleats and the column web as the
variation in flange widths between section sizes is small and can be easily
accommodated when connection the bolts.

(c) Sections of differing serial size

The photograph above shows the detail of a bolted column splice connection. In
addition to the flange and packing plates a division or capping plate is required.
The division is generally welded on to the lower column length and the upper
length is site bolted to the plate be means of web cleats (angles).

10
Beams

The most efficient floor span in a steel structure is rectangular, not square, in
which the main (primary) beams span the shorter distance between the columns
and the closed spaced secondary beams span the longer distance between the
primary beams. The actual spacing of the floor beams is controlled by the
spanning capability of the type of concrete floor construction chosen.

11
In simple multi-storey construction there are three main forms of beam-to-column
and beam-to-beam connection used as illustrated in the diagram above:
Double angled web cleat
Partial depth or flexible end plate
Fin plate

The term simple means that the beam is simply supported and the force transmitted
through the connection is the vertical reaction.
The standard on site connection is made using M20 Grade 8.8 bolts in 2mm clearance
holes. Grade 8.8 means the ultimate tensile stress of the bolts is 800 N/mm2 and the
yield stress is 80% of the ultimate value.

Double Angle Web Cleats

The double angle web cleat connection consists of a pair of angles, which are usually
bolted to the supported beam web in the fabrication shop, the beam assembly then
being bolted to the supporting member on site.
It is a popular connection on site as the 2-mm clearance holes and 10-mm end
clearance of the cleats beyond the beam web allow for minor adjustments to be made.
However this connection is not as strong as an equivalent end plate connection. For a
single row of bolts in each leg 90 x 90 angles are used as standard. This form of
connection is being gradually phased out in the UK.

Flexible End Plates

A typical flexible end plate connection consists of a plate welded to the web of the
beam in the fabrication shop, the beam is then bolted to the supporting member on
site. End plates are the most popular of the simple beam connections. The connection
of the end plate to the beam is made using 6mm fillet welds.

12
Fin Plate Connection

This type of connection is much used overseas particularly Australia and the USA and
is becoming more popular in this country. They are simple to fabricate, consisting of
a single plate welded to the supporting member and site bolted on to the supported
beam.

13
Secondary beams (beam-to beam connections)

The same three main forms of connections are used. However as a level floor is
required then the top flanges of all the beams must be at the same level. Thus the
secondary beams must be notched so that the connection frames into the web of the
supporting beam. Details on the sizes of the notches are given in the Structural
Steelwork Section Properties Tables, where the sizes are dependent on the supporting
beam dimensions.

Flexible end plate beam-to-beam connection

Flexible end plate beam-to-beam

connection
Rigid and Semi-rigid connections

These types of connections are design to transmit bending moments in addition to the
beam end reactions. The connections are designed to ensure that a monolithic joint is
provided (similar to that of in-situ reinforced concrete construction). The connections
generally consist of substantial end plates anywhere between 20 to 30 mm thick
compared with a flexible end plate which is normally 8 or 10 mm thick. Bolt
diameters are increased from M20 to M24 or M30 and the welding connecting the
endplate to the supported beam can be partial penetration butt welds rather than the
simple 6mm fillet welding used in flexible end plates. The extra fabrication cost
incurred by the adoption of this type of construction is offset by the savings that can
be made in the reduction in size of the supported beams.

14
 (c) Haunched connection
In order to accommodate the large end bending moments
developed at the ends of the rafters of portal frames
additional plates or sections are welded to the end of the
member.
Normal practice for portal frames is to cut the haunch from
a section of Universal Beam of the same serial size as the
rafter. The section used should be split diagonally with a
single cut so that both halves may be used to strength the
rafters.

15
Flooring systems

These take the form of concrete slabs of various forms spanning between steel floor
beams.

(a) In-situ concrete slab cast on to permanent profiled metal decking

The main advantages of this form of construction include:

The steel decking acts as permanent shuttering which can eliminate the
need for slab reinforcement and propping of the construction while the
wet concrete develops strength
It provides up to 2 hours fire resistance without additional fire
protection
It is light and adaptable, it can be easily manhandled on site, cut to
awkward shapes and can be drilled or cut to accommodate services

The most efficient floor arrangement is have the decking spanning about 3m between
floor beams

16
Alternative framing systems

Long span
primary beams

Long span
secondary beams

17
(b) Precast concrete slabs

Universal beams supporting precast floor units have some advantages over other
forms of construction.
Fewer floor beams are required as the units can span 6-8m with no
difficulty
No propping required
Fast construction type because no time is needed for curing and the
development of the concrete strength

Stockpiled precast units and typical cross-section of unit

Precast units 6m long spanning over secondary beams

18
 (c) Shallow depth floor (Slimflor)

A range of asymmetric beams (ASB) have been developed with nominal depth
280 to 300mm with an embossed 190mm wide top flange and 300mm wide
bottom flange. A 225 mm deep by 1.25mm thick galvanised cold rolled steel
decking is attached to the bottom flange and a layer of mesh reinforcement is
placed above the top flange, and tension reinforcement is provide in the ribs prior
to pouring of the structural concrete. The deck can span up to 6.5m un-propped
and 9.0m propped.

As an alternative arrangement the ASB can support precast floor units. This form of
construction is heavier than Slimflor which leads to small spans but has the
advantage of being easy to erect and requires no temporary propping.

Square grid of
columns and beams
allowing spans of up
to 9m

19
Steel Portal Frames

Steel portal frames are fabricated from standard steel Universal Beam section, angle
iron or steel tubes allowing flexible building design. Frames can be welded or bolted
together on site, in todays industry site welding is avoided where ever possible due to
quality control and safety implications. Most frames have any welding required
carried out in the fabrication shop with site connections bolted together.

As with the other frames, lightweight roof and wall coverings are common and where
required traditional masonry walls can be incorporated. Foundations are usually
reinforced concrete pad foundations similar to that used for multi-storey frames.

Steel portal frames are widely use for light industrial units and although units vary in
size the basic principles of portal frame construction are as shown;

Small industrial unit

consisting of a steel
portal frame, masonry
and lightweight panel
walls and a lightweight
panel roof.

20
21
Haunched eaves
connection including
bracing

Haunched connection
showing shop welded and
bolted components

22
Strengthened ridge
connection showing shop
welded and bolted
components

Below
Frame showing lightweight
steel purlin for roof fixing.

23