Connection Verification: Moment resisting joint

Connection Verification: Moment resisting joints to EUROCODE 3 (EC3) connection SCI, P398

Below is the example problem taken from SCI, P398 to check whether the connection pass in Idea STATICA and see if there is any room for an optimization.

The connection is passing as expected. However, it can be observed that, the strain utilization is just 0.3% << 5%. Whereas bolts & welds have reached to their optimum utilization. The Production cost is € 312.

An additional test has been carried out with a 20 thk. end plate and with an 8mm size weld to the flanges. This was done so that the design may be optimized as much as possible.

With the above test, it has been seen that the connection is safe. It has been possible to cut costs by about 28%. But it’s up to the engineer to decide what kind of cushion to keep in the design of the connection. For example, in the above exercise, with an end plate thickness of 25 mm, the use of bolts is 90.8% and the use of welds is 95.9%. In the above trial, the use of bolts and welds was 96.2% and 98.5%, respectively. Most of the time, 85% to 90% limits would be safe and sound for all practical purposes.

With the above example, it has been demonstrated that, with Idea STATICA, one can optimized the connection to the best possible way. Thanks to CBFEM on which Idea STATICA is based on.