New steel tools have been added to www.steeltools.org, a platform facilitated by AISC to provide solutions for making structural steel design and construction easier. The most recent additions are a collection of 3D models of prequalified seismic connections and a tool for W-shape beam design. Both are available for free download.
The “Prequalified Seismic Connections 3D PDFs” tool was developed by AISC’s Steel Solutions Center and features four PDF downloads of 3D models of connections that are prequalified in the AISC Seismic Provisions (AISC 358-10). The connections include a reduced beam section, a bolted extended end plate, a bolted flange plate and a welded unreinforced flange-welded web. The files are intended to enhance understanding of the connections beyond the 2D sketches shown in the Provisions.
The “Beam Curves” tool, developed by Gaby Issa-El-Khoury, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the University of Balamand in Lebanon, presents tables in an Excel workbook containing the data necessary to determine the lightest W-shape for a given required moment.
For more on steel tools, visit www.steeltools.org.