System Members and System Connections ( Modeling )

System members :

• A system member's left end is oriented with respect to global axes, ensuring that its near side and far side is consistently defined on 2D drawings and 3D erection views.
• System members that can have designed connections with connection design calculations are beams, columns, vertical braces, horizontal braces and joists.
• Other system members are legacy girts , purlins and stairs .
• Legacy miscellaneous members also have their left ends oriented with respect to global axes, but their main materials may be left-right reversed. So they are not considered to be system members.

Connections that can be applied to system members :

• Designed connnections:
  • Auto base/cap pate (column)
  • Auto standard connections (optional for beams, columns, joists)
  • Bent plate (beam, may be moment connection)
  • Clip angle (beam, may be a moment connection
  • Clip angle (horizontal brace)
  • Clip angle (vertical brace)
  • End plate (may be a moment connection)
  • Flush framed shear connection (joist)
  • Fully welded moment (beam)
  • HBrc plate (cannot be auto standard)
  • Moment Connection (beam, cannot be auto standard)
  • Seated beam connection
  • Seated joist connection (seat for a joist top chord)
  • Shear (plate, tee, thru, may be a moment connection)
  • Splice Plate Connection (beam to beam - may be a moment connection)
  • Splice Plate Connection (column to column)
  • User defined connection (system connection settings stored in a file)
  • VBrc Plate (cannot be auto standard)
  • Welded connection (cannot be auto standard)
• Designed connection that are not fully supported system connections:
  • Hanger clip angles (column)
  • Hanger shear connections (column)

• Other connections that can be applied to system members:
  • Plain End
  • User Base/Cap Plate (column, user designed, not system-designed)
  • Embeds (custom members, not system-designed connections)
  • Custom components (user designed, not system-designed)
  • Bearing (joist to a beam's top flange)
  • Bearing (beams to concrete, incorporate embed custom members)
  • Stabilizer plates and angles (joist bottom chord)
  • Joist seat to embed (joist to concrete)
  • Stabilizer to embed (joist to concrete)

Fully supported designed system connections :

System connections are designed per the selected " Connection design method ."

Method	Setup Window	Design Specifications
' ASD14 '	ASD 14th Omega Factors	AISC Steel Construction Manual, Fourteenth Edition
' ASD13 '	Omega Factors	AISC Steel Construction Manual, Thirteenth Edition
' ASD 9 '	- - -	AISC Manual of Steel Construction, Allowable Stress Design, 9th Edition
' LRFD 14 '	LRFD 14th Phi Factors	AISC Steel Construction Manual, Fourteenth Edition
' LRFD 13 '	LRFD 13th Phi Factors	AISC Steel Construction Manual, Thirteenth Edition
' LRFD 3 '	LRFD 3rd Phi Factors	Manual of Steel Construction, Load and Resistance Factor Design, 3rd Edition
' CSA 10 '	CSA10 Phi Factors	CISC Handbook of Steel Construction, Tenth Edition
' CSA 9 '	CSA Phi Factors	CISC Handbook of Steel Construction, Ninth Edition
' CSA 8 '	CSA Phi Factors	CISC Handbook of Steel Construction, Eighth Edition

System connections are designed based on the applied loads.

Beam  Loads -------------------------------------------------------------------- --
Shear load	Tension load
Story shear	Compression load
Moment load

Column Loads ------------------------------------------------------------------ --
Load	Splice uplift
Moment	Horizontal shear

Horizontal Brace Loads ----------------------------------------------------- --
Tension load	Compression load

Vertical Brace Loads   --------------------------------------------------------- --
Tension load
Compression load

Joist Loads ------------------------------------------------------------------------- --
Load

Designed system connections can be graphical :

	graphical
	system

Designed system connections can be forced :

	forced
	system

Designed system connections can be edited on the Connection Component Edit window:

With the ' Connection Components ' filter or ' Default ' or ' All ' filter selected, double-click a system connection material to open the Connection Component Edit window for that connection.

A failed connection is a designed system connection that failed the limit-state strength capacity testing that takes place during connection design and, as a result, produced a connection failure message such as the following:

Beam web shear capacity failed

beam column horizontal brace vertical brace joist

Design calculations are available for designed system connections.

• Design Calculations Report
• Cover Sheet
• Expanded Calculation

Also see :

• Macro/examples (folder where parametrics can be found)
• Connection guide (documentation on system connections)
• Custom members (another way to get connections)
• Custom components (another way to get connections)
• Run Parametric (another way to get connections)

job options | use defined | auto standard | top