TABLE OF CONTENTS Larry S. Muir, P.E.
Chief Engineer, Cives Steel Company
President, Cives Engineering Corporation
Roswell, Georgia
William A. Thornton, Ph.D., P.E.
Corporate Consultant, Cives Corporation
Roswell, Georgia
In this chapter, the term connection is used in a general sense to include all types of joints in structural steel made with fasteners or welds. Emphasis is placed on the more commonly used connections, such as shear connections, beam-to-column moment connections, and axial force connections including main-member splices, bracing connections, and truss connections.
Recommendations apply to buildings that are not subject to special detailing requirements due to seismic loading. This material is generally based on the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), "Specification for Structural Steel Buildings," 2005, referred to herein as the AISC Specification. This new unified specification includes both load and resistance factor design (LRFD) and allowable strength design (ASD), with common expressions for nominal strength. All examples in this chapter are given in LRFD format, but most of the procedures are readily adaptable to ASD. See Chap. 5 for further discussion of design methods and terminology. For additional considerations in seismic applications, see AISC, "Seismic Provisions for Structural Steel Buildings," 2005, and Chap. 8.
To connect or to join is to bring together so as to make continuous or form a unit. In steel structures, this bringing together is usually accomplished through the use of fasteners (primarily...
