DESIGN OF STEEL AND

TIMBER STRUCTURES

Instructor: Solomon A.

Objective:
The main objective of this course is to present
the students about the design concepts for steel
and timber structures. Although several types
of structures can be built from both materials,
emphasis will be given to buildings

Course Description
1.Introduction, materials and design philosophy
2. Tension members
3. Compression members
4. Flexural members
5. Plate girders
6. Combined bending and compression members
7. Structural connections and design of joints
8. Design of timber structures
9. Protection of steel and timber from corrosion

References:
1. Design of Steel Structures by Gaylord
2. Steel Structures by Salmon
3. Steel Structures by Robert Englekirk
4. Handbook of Structural Steel Connection Design and Details by
Akbar R. Tamboli
5. Steel Designer Manual by Steel Construction Institute
6. EBCS-3, Design of Steel Structures
7. EBCS-5, Utilization of Timber
8. EU & ACI Codes for the Design of Steel Structures
9. Steel Design by William T. Segui
10. Any book on Design of Steel and Timber structures

Evaluation:

Assignments -------------------- 20%

Final exam ----------------------- 40%
Project ----------------------------- 40%
At least you have to attend 80% in
order to sat in the examination

INTRODUCTION

Structural design
Loads
Structural steel
Building Codes
Design specifications
Standard cross sectional shapes
Design philosophy

Structural Design
Structural design may be defined as
a mixture of art and science,
combining the experienced
engineers intuitive feeling for the
behaviour of a structure with a sound
knowledge of statics, dynamics,
mechanics of materials, and
structural analysis, to produce a safe
and economical structure that will
serve its intended purpose.

Contd
A structural Design is a process by which an optimum
solution is obtained meeting certain established criteria
The design criteria's may be:
a. minimum cost
b. minimum weight
c. minimum construction time
d. minimum labor
e. minimum cost of manufacture of owners
products
f. maximum efficiency of operation to owner

Design process
Architectural Functional Plans
Select structural system
Trial sections, Assume self weight

Final Design &

Detailing

Acceptable?

Analysis for internal actions

Member
Design

Design Loads

Structural Steel

Contd
Steel: Materials with 95% or more
iron. The remaining constituents are
small amounts are derived from the
raw materials used in the making of
the steel, as well as other elements
added to improve certain
characteristics or properties of the
product

Contd
Structure: One or more elements
arranged in certain form to resist the
forces stably and with no excessive
deformation
Structural steel: steel in various
shapes and forms utilized to support
and resist the various forces to which
a structure is subjected

STEEL Manufacturing

Area of Application
Multi storey buildings

Air port terminals

Rail way stations
Exhibition pavilions
Conference halls
Aircraft hangers
Railway platform
Industrial structures
Bridge construction

Advantages of steel

Disadvantages of steel

Building codes
Buildings must be designed and constructed
according to the provisions of a building
code which is a legal document containing
requirements related to such things as:
Structural safety
Fire safety
Plumbing
Ventilation
Accessibility to the physically disabled

Building codes
EBCS 3: Ethiopian Building Code Standard
for the Design of Steel Structures
EBCS 4: Ethiopian Building Code Standard
for Design of Composite Steel and
Concrete Structures
Uniform building code
Standard building code
National building code
Euro code

Design specifications
Give more specific guidance for the
design of structural members and
their connections
Present the guide lines and criteria
that enables the structural engineer
to achieve the objectives mandated
by the building code

Design specifications
American Institute Of Steel
Construction(AISC)
American Association of State
Highway and Transport Officials
(AASHTO)
American Railway Engineering and
Maintenance of-Way Association
(AREMA)
American Iron and Steel Institute
(AISI)

Design Philosophies
A general statement assuming safety in
engineering design

Resistance (of materials & X-section)

Effect of applied loads -----(1)
In eq(1) it is essential that both sides are
evaluated for same conditions e.g. if
effect of load is to produce compressive
stress on soil, then it should be
compared with bearing capacity of soil.

Design Philosophies
When particular loading reaches its
limit, failure is the assumed result,
i.e. the loading condition become
failure modes, such a condition is
referred to as limit state and it can
be defined as
A limit state is a condition beyond
which a structural system or a
structural component ceases to fulfill
the function for which it is designed.

Limit state

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Examples of limit state for

structures with girders includes:
Deflection
6.Torsion
Cracking
7. Buckling
Fatigue
8. Settlement
Flexure
9. Bearing
Shear
10.Stability

Limit States
Strength Limit States:Serviceability Limit States:
Flexure
Cracking
Shear
Excessive Deflection
Torsion

Slides by: Prof.Dr. Akhtar Naeem

Lecturer: Dr. M Adil

34

Beam action

Limit states
Design Approach used must ensure
that the probability of a Limit State
being reached in the Design/Service
Life of a structure is within
acceptable limits;
However, complete elimination of
probability of a Limit State being
achieved in the service life of a
structure is impractical as it would
result in uneconomical designs.

Design philosophy
The objective of the design is safety
and economy
The required strength not exceed the
available strength
Allowable stress design method
Load factor design method
Limit State Design method/ LRFD

Allowable stress design

method
the stress in the structure at working
loads are not allowed to exceed a
certain portion of the yield stress of
the construction material, therefore,
the working stress level is within the
elastic range of the behavior of steel.
The working stress is obtained by
dividing the characteristic value by a
unique factor of safety.

Load factored design

method
All safety is attached to the acting
load, then the acting load is obtained
by multiplying the working loads by a
load factor greater than the unity.
The material supposes to work at the
yield point, that is, at the
characteristic value.

Limit state design method

Was formulated in the former Soviet Union in
the 1930s and developed in Europe in the
1960s, this approach can perhaps be seen as a
compromise between the permissible and load
factor methods.
It is in fact a more comprehensive approach,
which take into account both methods in
appropriate ways.
The majorities of modern structural codes of
practice are now based on the limit state
design method

Limit state design method

A structure or part of the structure is
considered unfit for use when it exceeds a
particular state, called Limit State beyond
which it infringes one of the criteria
governing its performance for use.
The Limit State can be placed in two
categories:
The ultimate limit state
The serviceability limit state

The ultimate limit state

The Ultimate Limit States are those
associated with collapse, or with other forms
of structural failure, which may endanger the
safety of the people.
States prior to structural collapse which, for
simplicity, are considered in place of the
collapse itself, are treated as ultimate limit
states.
Normally the ultimate limit state is
concerning with the strength of the structure.

The serviceability Limit

State
The Serviceability Limit States
corresponds to states beyond which
specified service requirements are no
longer met, e.g. deformation or
deflections which affect the appearance
or effective use of the structure
(including the malfunction of machines or
services) or cause damage to finishes of
non structural members; vibration which
cause discomfort to people.

Mechanical Properties of Structural Steel

Stiffness: The resistance of structural
component to deformation.

Material
Length
X-Section

Mechanical Properties of Structural Steel

Strength: The max load which a structure or
structural component can resist.
Toughness: The ability of a structure or
structural component to absorb energy.

Fatigue is a progressive, localized permanent

damage under fluctuating repeated stress.

Mechanical Properties of Structural Steel

Mechanical Properties of Structural Steel

Material A is more Stiffer but less Tougher than Material C

Material A has more strength than Material C

Considerations for a Design Approach

Structure and Structural Members should
have adequate strength, stiffness and
toughness to ensure proper functioning
during service life
Reserve Strength should be available to
cater for:
Occasional overloads and underestimation of loads
Variability of strength of materials from those
specified
Variation in strength arising from quality of
workmanship and construction practices

Considerations for a Design Approach

Structural Design must provide
adequate margin of safety
irrespective of Design Method
Design Approach should take into
account the probability of occurrence
of failure in the design process

Considerations for a Design Approach

An important goal in design is to
prevent limit state from being
reached.
It is not economical to design a
structure so that none of its
members or components could ever
fail. Thus, it is necessary to establish
an acceptable level of risk or
probability of failure.

Considerations for a Design Approach

Brittle behavior is to be avoided as it
will imply a sudden loss of load
carrying capacity when elastic limit is
exceeded.
Reinforced concrete can be made
ductile by limiting the steel
reinforcement.

Considerations for a Design Approach

To determine the acceptable margin
of safety, opinion should be sought
from experience and qualified group
of engineers.
In steel design AISC manuals for ASD
& LRFD guidelines can be accepted
as reflection of such opinions.

Considerations for a Design Approach

Any design procedure require the
confidence of Engineer on the
analysis of load effects and strength
of the materials.
The two distinct procedures
employed by designers are
Allowable Stress Design (ASD) &
Load & Resistance Factor Design
(LRFD).

Classification of cross
section
Class-1: A plastic hinge can be
developed with sufficient rotation
capacity to allow redistribution of
moments within the structure
Class-2: The full plastic moments
capacity can be developed but local
buckling may prevent development of
a plastic hinge with sufficient rotation
capacity to permit plastic design

Contd
Class-3: The stress at the extreme
fibbers can reach the design strength
but local buckling may prevent the
development of the full plastic
moment
Class-4: Local buckling may prevent
the stress in a thin-walled section
from reaching the design strength