On Structural Design of Steel Roof Truss Geometry Used in Factory Shed

Abstract

Use of steel is steadily increasing all over the world in civil engineering related fields due to its superior material properties like high strength and durability, high ductility, light weight etc. Various types of steel structures become more popular because of their high aesthetic appearance. Among these steel structures, roof trusses are widely used to cover large column free open areas like shopping malls, auditoriums, car parking lots, stadiums as well as factory sheds etc. Design of steel truss members is an important aspect to the practicing civil engineers. Hence this paper aims to study the design and analysis of different types of truss geometries used in a factory shed using commercial well-established software package STAAD Pro V8i. Various types of truss geometries like Pratt truss, Howe truss, Fink truss are considered in the present investigations with different aspect ratios. Besides these truss geometries, portal frame geometry is also taken up here to examine the best suitable geometries which are to be used as roofing units in industrial purposes. The results obtained from the present numerical experimentations are studied meticulously to extract a set of meaningful conclusions regarding the design and optimum choice of steel truss geometry which is used as roofing units in industrial sheds. The practical design guidelines along with the best choice of roof trusses are highlighted in the results and discussions section of this paper.