This five-part series follows the design of an industrial steel building with PRO_SAP, from building the model through to the verification of the connections, presented by Ing. Mirco Basaglia.
The series works through a complete case study, with a level of detail meant to guide the designer through every stage of the work, from the modelling choices to the design of the connections.
The case study
The case study is a single-storey steel building in S275 steel with a truss roof. The main members are:
- Truss roof: IPE 220 purlins, top and bottom chords in 2 UPN 180, verticals in 2 L 50×6, diagonals in 2 L 60×6
- Vertical structure: HEA 450 columns and cladding posts, HEA 220 edge beams
- Bracing system: wall bracing in 2 UPN 140, roof bracing in 2 L 80×8, ties in L 80×8
Modelling in PRO_SAP
The first stage is building the three-dimensional model. The choices that matter here concern how the nodes are schematised (where to place hinges and where to place fixed connections), how the truss members are modelled, and how the bracing and the tension members are handled, since the latter require specific attention in their tension-only behaviour.
These are decisions that condition everything that follows: a node schematised inconsistently with the construction detail produces a model that drifts away from the real behaviour of the structure, regardless of how refined the later analysis is.
In the video, Ing. Basaglia shows the construction of the model step by step, on the case study.
The video is in Italian.
Next part — Part 2: Load analysis and application (self-weight, snow, wind, seismic action).