How Steel Structures Are Designed?

Sometimes we wonder how steel structures are designed? Let's see the general steps in the process of designing a steel structure:

1. Figure out if it is even possible to create this particular structure using steel. 

Steel as a material is not as universal as it may seem at first glance, and creating some structures from steel might not be the most effective way to construction. Steel is at its best when used for complicated frames with large spans and sizable heights – with some of the more notable examples being warehouses, hangars, factories, bridges, stadiums, and so on.

2. Figure out both the layout and the structure type that is going to be produced. This choice is usually done in collaboration with professional engineers, since there are a lot of parameters that have to be taken into account, such as snow or rain being accumulated on the roof, as well as bearing load.

The general layout of the structure is also decided upon within this step, with uniform stiffness across the board, correct calculation of load distribution, the structure's future parameters as a whole, and more.

3. Material selection is another important step in this process since steel in itself is an alloy that can be modified in a multitude of different ways. Most projects use the same steel grade for the entirety of the primary project structure to simplify calculations and avoid potential problems down the line.

4. The last, but not the least part of this process is the drawing preparation. The final design drawing consists of two completely different parts: the design sketch and the construction detail drawing. 

The former is provided by the design drawing as a baseline for the project itself, while the latter is used as the baseline for the actual construction process, with material lists attached to it.

The construction drawing itself usually takes the design drawing as the baseline. Design requirements, technical data, load data, and structural arrangements are only some of the information elements that can be utilized in the process of creating a construction drawing. The construction drawing itself is often referred to as a processing drawing or a stakeout drawing, and it should be accurate and detailed enough to serve as a guide for the following workshop/manufacturing processes, with a complete list of materials and other components that are necessary for the construction to be completed.

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