Behavior of curtain wall stud to track connections

Abstract

An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the lateral load capacity of the industry standard curtain wall stud-to-track connections used in wind load bearing cold-formed steel stud walls in USA. These connections, the screw-attached stud to track connection and the deflection track connection, were investigated to gain an understanding of their behavior and to develop appropriate design guidelines. As a result of the investigation, the current design guidelines were found to be conservative. Test results allowed for the formulation of modifications to the existing design equations to better predict the stud end support capacity.