Design and development of a cold-formed lightweight steel beam

Cold-formed steel structural elements such as purlins and sheeting rails can be manufactured and produced very efficiently. There is growing interest in the use of cold-formed steel sections in fabricated structures such as frames and trusses. A considerable proportion of the cost of fabricated structures Lies in the cost of fabrication itself and thus the potential savings and benefits of efficient material usage may be lost. The effective manufacture of such systems lie in designs that both optimise the material usage and the fabrication process. This paper describes the development of a fabricated cold formed steel beam that considers manufacture as a principle design criterion. The beam consists of cold-formed steel flanges attached to a profiled steel web. The flanges and web are attached using a mechanical clinching technique that facilitates rapid fabrication and produces a reliable and easily checked structural connection. A series of full scale prototype beams were manufactured and subjected to structural tests to destruction. The deformation and failure mode is discussed.