P 237 - Further development of the design rules for connections in steel and composite construction to improve economic efficiency

For the area of steel connections, the existing design rules have been revised and adapted so that a more economical design is now possible in compliance with safety regulations. In the committee work on Eurocode 3 (steel structures), Part 1.1 (design rules), the revised Annex J (beam-column connections) was accepted as a proposed standard for improving and extending the design rules. The general design models that are now available give the engineer a great deal of planning freedom, as the connection parameters can be calculated for almost any configuration. This means that steel connections can also be designed according to modern, economic aspects and no longer solely according to the specifications of structural statics. It has been shown that up to 20 % of the costs of steel construction can be saved with the aid of innovative connection forms. Furthermore, simple design and construction rules were established for new composite connections and incorporated into the development of European standards. Based on the research results, a concrete contribution was made to a corresponding draft standard as Annex J to Eurocode 4 (composite structures). The research results on composite construction are also being incorporated into a publication by the European Commission as part of the COST C 1 action. STUDIENGESELLSCHAFT STAHLANWENDUNG e.V.