Shear stiffness of upright frames in high-bay rack structures

For the bracing in cross aisle direction of high-bay rack structures the shear stiffness of the upright frames is of vital importance. Compared to an ideal framework, the shear stiffness of the upright frames is only about 5-15 %. Until now, the fundamentals for the analytical calculation of the shear stiffness are not given. Therefore, it is common practice to determine the shear stiffness of upright frames experimentally. This approach is very costly and impedes the further optimisation of the highly stressed rack structures. For this reason, the research project FOSTA P1078 Shear stiffness of upright frames in high-bay rack structures has been initiated. By means of extensive experimental and numerical investigations, the load-bearing and deformation behaviour of the upright frames has been analysed. Based on the findings an analytical design model based on the component method has been developed, which allows to determine the shear stiffness in a realistic manner.