Cold Form Steel Program: Moment & Shear

[DHKpeWI]

This is for users of the CFS program by RGS Software for cold formed steel member design.

In the member check menu, the user is required to input the axial loads, moments and shears. Must the maximum shear and moment be used even if they do not occur at the same location?

Thanks.

 

[ishvaaag]

That would be very anomalous since all the effort in structural design is driven towards examining all the prescriptive combinations that may control the design, but only these. Hence my view is that except the code mandating otherwise, only concomitant solicitations at the sections / members should be examined anytime.

 

[PMR06]

The member has to work at all sections, for the forces it sees at that point. Hence, unless you are creating the shear, moment and axial diagrams as inputs, you should only input forces that happen at the same point.

To be completely thorough, you could check the point of max moment, with the axial and shear that occur there.

Then check the point of max shear, with the axial and moment that occur there.

Then the point of max axial, with the moment and shear that occur there.