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Selection of steel joists subject to snow loading : a computer application / by Joshua R. Smith.

by Smith, Joshua R.

Load factor design

Decision making -- Computer programs.

103 leaves : ill. ; 29 cm.

Thesis advisor: Dr. Richard DeVries.

Committee members: Dr. Hans-Peter Huttelmaier, Dr. Chris Raebel.

Introduction -- Typical joist loading -- Functions of the program -- Conclusion -- Recommendations -- A: Example calculations -- B: Printed code from program.

Steel joists have been a major building component for the last 60 years. Due to their relatively cheap materials and standardization of sizes and capacities, they are very economical structural component for roofs. It is up to the engineer of record of a building to determine the design loads that will be applied to the steel joists and determine a size that will be adequate for the specific building conditions, based on minimum SJI (Steel Joist Institute) requirements.

These design loads have many factors that are use-dependent, location-dependent and importance of the building dependent. All these things have to be considered when calculating the minimum design loads that the steel joists will have to accommodate. One of the most complex and time consuming factors for joint design is snow load, and more specifically, drift snow. Where applicable, joists may have to be designed for trapezoidal loading because of drifting snow. This can be a very tedious task to do by hand.

This project focuses on joint design and creating a computer application to aid the engineer in the calculations. By using Visual Basic programming language, a simple, yet powerful software program was developed to help aid engineers in an important design task.

The result is a program that can calculate the minimum required loads on a steel joist per the latest building code and industry standards. The program is capable of designing a typical roof joist with standard loading on it, as well as joists that have one of two different types of drifting snow loads applied to it. The program selects a size of joist from the Steel Joist Institute's database and displays the joist size, allowable load and other critical information that pertains to that specific joist.

In conclusion, this program is successful in performing the design of a simple, standard loaded joist, as well as being able to select a joist for two different drifting snow conditions. The program will help any engineer in the efficiency and accuracy of their calculations.

The program could easily be built upon to have additional features, such as the ability to analyze existing joists and suggest reinforcing for the joist if required. It could also be upgraded to output loading diagrams in a drawing file for the engineer to input into the construction documents.

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