Trusses

FromSteelconstruction.info
Atrussisessentiallyatriangulatedsystemofstraightinterconnectedstructuralelements.Themostcommonuseoftrussesisinbuildings,
wheresupporttoroofs,thefloorsandinternalloadingsuchasservicesandsuspendedceilings,arereadilyprovided.Themainreasonsfor
usingtrussesare:
Longspan
Lightweight
Reduceddeflection(comparedtoplainmembers)
Opportunitytosupportconsiderableloads.
Thepenalty,however,isincreasedfabricationcosts.
Thearticledescribesalternativeformsoftruss,whereandwhydifferentforms
mightbeappropriateandintroducesdesignconsiderations.Primarily,pinjointed
trussesarediscussed,withsomediscussionofrigidjointedVierendeeltrusses.

Longspan,curvedrooftrusses
RobinHoodAirport,Doncaster
(ImagecourtesyofTubecon)

Definitionofatruss
Atrussisessentiallyatriangulatedsystemof(usually)straightinterconnectedstructural
elementsitissometimesalsoreferredtoasanopenwebgirder.Theindividualelementsare
connectedatnodestheconnectionsareoftenassumedtobenominallypinned.Theexternal
forcesappliedtothesystemandthereactionsatthesupportsaregenerallyappliedatthe
nodes.Whenallthemembersandappliedforcesareinasameplane,thesystemisaplaneor
2Dtruss.
Theprincipalforceineachelementinatrussisaxialtensionorcompression.

Membersunderaxialforcesinasimpletruss
1Compressionaxialforce
2Tensionaxialforce

Overviewoftrusses

Useoftrussesinbuildings
Trussesareusedinabroadrangeofbuildings,mainlywherethereisarequirementforverylongspans,suchasinairportterminals,aircraft
hangers,sportsstadiaroofs,auditoriumsandotherleisurebuildings.Trussesarealsousedtocarryheavyloadsandaresometimesusedas
transferstructures.Thisarticlefocusesontypicalsinglestoreyindustrialbuildings,wheretrussesarewidelyusedtoservetwomain
functions:
Tocarrytheroofload
Toprovidehorizontalstability.
Twotypesofgeneralarrangementofthestructureofatypicalsinglestoreybuildingareshowninthefigurebelow.
Portalframeandbeamandcolumnarrangements

Lateralstabilityprovidedbyportaltrusses.

Verticaltrussesaresupportedbycolumns.

Lateralstabilityprovidedbylongitudinalwind
Longitudinalstabilityprovidedbytransversewind
girderandverticalbracingsinthegables(blue)
girderandverticalcrossbracings(blue)
Nolongitudinalwindgirder.

Longitudinalstabilityprovidedbytransversewind
girderandverticalbracings(green)

Inthefirstcase(left)thelateralstabilityofthestructureisprovidedbyaseriesofportaltrussestheconnectionsbetweenthetrussandthe
columnsprovideresistancetoaglobalbendingmoment.Loadsareappliedtotheportalstructurebypurlinsandsiderails.
Inthesecondcase,(right)eachverticaltrussandthetwocolumnsbetweenwhichitspans,constituteasimplebeamstructurethe
connectionbetweenthetrussandacolumndoesnotresisttheglobalbendingmoment,andthetwocolumnbasesarepinned.Transverse
restraintisnecessaryatthetoplevelofthesimplestructureitisachievedbymeansofalongitudinalwindgirderwhichcarriesthetransverse
forcesduetowindonthesidewallstotheverticalbracinginthegablewalls.

Typesoftrusses
Trussescompriseassembliesoftensionandcompressionelements.Undergravityloads,thetopandbottomchordsofthetrussprovidethe
compressionandtensionresistancetooverallbending,andthebracingresiststheshearforces.Awiderangeoftrussformscanbecreated.
Eachcanvaryinoverallgeometryandinthechoiceoftheindividualelements.Someofthecommonlyusedtypesareshownbelow.

Pratttruss('N'truss)
Pratttrussesarecommonlyusedinlongspanbuildingsrangingfrom20to100minspan.InaconventionalPratttruss,diagonalmembers
areintensionforgravityloads.Thistypeoftrussisusedwheregravityloadsarepredominant(seebelowleft).AnalternativePratttrussis
shown(belowright)wherethediagonalmembersareintensionforupliftloads.Thistypeoftrussisusedwhereupliftloadsarepredominant,
whichmaybethecaseinopenbuildingssuchasaircrafthangers.

Pratttruss(gravityloads)

Pratttruss(upliftloads)

Itispossibletoaddsecondarymembers(asillustratedbelowleft)to:
Createintermediatesupportpointsforappliedloads
Limitthebucklinglengthofmembersincompression(althoughina2Dtruss,thebucklinglengthisonlymodifiedinoneaxis).
ForthePratttrussandanyofthetypesoftrussmentionedbelow,itispossibletoprovideeitherasingleoradoubleslopetotheupperchord
ofaroofsupportingtruss.Anexampleofadouble(duopitch)Pratttrussisshownbelow.

Pratttrusswithsecondarymembers

DuopitchPratttruss

APratttrussUniversityofManchester
(ImagecourtesyofEllandSteelStructuresLtd.)

Warrentruss
Inthistypeoftruss,diagonalmembersarealternativelyintensionandin
compression.TheWarrentrusshasequallengthcompressionandtensionweb
members,andfewermembersthanaPratttruss.AmodifiedWarrentrussmay
beadoptedwhereadditionalmembersareintroducedtoprovideanodeat(for
example)purlinlocations.
Warrentrussesarecommonlyusedinlongspanbuildingsrangingfrom20to
100minspan.
Thistypeoftrussisalsousedforthehorizontaltrussofgantry/cranegirders.

ModifiedWarrentrussesNationalCompositesCentre,
Bristol
(ImagecourtesyofBillingtonStructuresLtd.)

ModifiedWarrentruss

Northlighttruss
Northlighttrussesaretraditionallyusedforshortspansinindustrialworkshoptypebuildings.
Theyallowmaximumbenefittobegainedfromnaturallightingbytheuseofglazingonthe
steeperpitchwhichgenerallyfacesnorthornortheasttoreducesolargain.Onthesteeper
slopingportionofthetruss,itistypicaltohaveatrussrunningperpendiculartotheplaneofthe
NorthLighttruss,toprovidelargecolumnfreespaces.
Theuseofnorthlightstoincreasenaturaldaylightingcanreducetheoperationalcarbon
emissionsofbuildingsalthoughtheirimpactshouldbeexploredusingdynamicthermal
modelling.Althoughnorthlightsreducetherequirementforartificiallightingandcanreducethe
riskofoverheating,byincreasingthevolumeofthebuildingtheycanalsoincreasethe
demandforspaceheating.FurtherguidanceisgivenintheTargetZeroWarehousebuildingsdesignguide.

NorthLighttruss

Sawtoothtruss
AvariationoftheNorthlighttrussisthesawtoothtrusswhichisusedinmultibaybuildings.
SimilartotheNorthlighttruss,itistypicaltoincludeatrussoftheverticalfacerunning
perpendiculartotheplaneofthesawtoothtruss.

Sawtooth(orButterfly)truss

Finktruss
TheFinktrussofferseconomyintermsofsteelweightforshortspanhighpitchedroofsasthe
membersaresubdividedintoshorterelements.Therearemanywaysofarrangingand
subdividingthechordsandinternalmembers.
Thistypeoftrussiscommonlyusedtoconstructroofsinhouses.

Finktruss

Aspectsoftrussdesignforroofs
TrussorIbeam
Forthesamesteelweight,itispossibletogetbetterperformanceintermsofresistanceandstiffness,withatrussthananIbeam.This
differenceismoresensitiveforlongspansand/orheavyloads.Thefulluseofthisadvantageisachievableiftheheightofthetrussisnot
limitedbycriteriaotherthanthestructuralefficiency,e.g.alimitontotalheightofthebuilding.However,fabricationofatrussisgenerally
moretimeconsumingthanforanIbeam,evenconsideringthatmodernfabricationequipmentishighlyefficient.
Thebalancebetweenminimumweightandminimumcostdependsonmanyconditions:theequipmentofthefabricationfactory,thelocal
costofmanufacturingthesteelunitcost,etc.Trussesgenerallygiveaneconomicsolutionforspansover20or25m.
Anadvantageofthetrussdesignforroofsisthatductsandpipesthatarerequiredforoperationofthebuildingsservicescanbeinstalled
throughthetrussweb,i.e.serviceintegration.

Generalgeometry
Forefficientstructuralperformance,theratioofspantotrussdepthshouldbechosenintherange10to15.Thearchitecturaldesignofthe
buildingdeterminesitsexternalgeometryandgovernstheslope(s)giventothetopchordofthetruss.Theintendeduseoftheinternalspace
canleadeithertothechoiceofahorizontalbottomchord,e.g.whereconveyorsmustbehungunderthechord,ortoaninclinedbottom
chord,toallowmaximumspacetobeprovided.
Foranefficientlayoutofthetrussmembersbetweenthechords,thefollowingisadvisable:
Theinclinationofthediagonalmembersinrelationtothechordsshouldbebetween35and55
Pointloadsshouldonlybeappliedatnodes
Theorientationofthediagonalmembersshouldbesuchthatthelongestmembersaresubjecttotension(theshorteronesbeing
subjecttocompression).

Typesoftrussmembersections
Manysolutionsareavailable.Choiceofmembersdependsonthemagnitudeoftheinternal
forces,easeofconnectionsbetweenmembers,aestheticsandanynecessitytoconnect
prefabricatedtrusssectionsonsite.Whenselectingmembers,theoutofplanebuckling
resistancewillbeimportant,togetherwithresistanceunderreversedloading,forexample,
uplift.

Typicalelementcrosssectionsforlightbuildingtrusses
Boltedanglestoformlightweight,longspan
trusses
(ImagecourtesyofMetsecplc)

Forsmallerspans,teesectionsarefrequentlyusedforchords,withanglesusedasinternalmembers.Theinternalmembersmaybebolted
orweldedtothetees.Backtobackanglesorchannelsmaybeusedforlongerspansorheavierloads,withagussetplateusedatnodesto
connectthemembers.
Forlargetrussesandheavyloads,typicallyfoundintransfertrussesinbuildings,membersmayberolledsectionstypicallyUKCsections.
Nodesareusuallywelded.Anynecessaryconnectionsarecompletedwithboltedspliceswithinthelengthbetweennodes.
Formanyexposedtrusses,hollowsectionsarechosenfortheirstructuralefficiencyandforaestheticreasons.Nodeswillgenerallybe
weldedintheworkshop.Aspartofthetrussdesign,itisessentialtoverifytheresistanceofthejoints(inaccordancewithBSEN199318[1])
asthejointdesignmaydominatememberselectionandfinaltrussgeometry.Membersshouldbeselectedcarefullytoavoidexpensive
strengtheningoftrussesfabricatedfromhollowsections.

Differenttypesofsteelsectionusedintrusses

Typesofconnections

Forallthetypesofmembersections,itispossibletodesigneitherbolted
orweldedconnections.Generallyinsteelworkconstruction,boltedsite
splicesarepreferredtoweldedsplicesforeconomyandspeedoferection.
Whereboltedconnectionsareused,itisnecessarytoevaluatethe
consequencesof'slack'inconnections.Inordertoreducethese
consequences(typically,theincreaseofthedeflections),solutionsare
availablesuchasuseofpreloadedbolts.

Typicaljointsinweldedbuildingrooftrusses

Hollowsectionsaretypicallyconnectedbyweldingwhilstopensections
areconnectedbyboltingorwelding,whichwillusuallyinvolvetheuseof
gussetplates.GuidanceonthedesignofweldedjointsforCelsius355
andHybox355hollowsectionsisavailablefromTataSteel.
Smalltrusseswhichcanbetransportedwholefromthefabricationfactory
tothesite,canbeentirelywelded.Inthecaseoflargerooftrusseswhich
cannotbetransportedwhole,weldedsubassembliesaredeliveredtosite
andareeitherboltedorweldedtogetheronsite.
Inlightrooftrussesentirelyboltedconnectionsarelessfavouredthan
weldedconnectionsduetotherequirementforgussetplatesandtheir
increasedfabricationcosts.

Profileshapingoftubularsectionsforjointfabrication

Lateralstability
Itisnecessarytodesignthechordsincompressionagainstoutofplanebuckling.Forsimplysupportedtrusses,theupperchordisin
compressionforgravityloading,andthebottomchordisincompressionforupliftloading.Forportaltrusses,eachchordispartlyin
compressionandpartlyintension.
Lateralrestraintoftheupperchordisgenerallygivenbythepurlinsandthetransverseroofwindgirder.
Fortherestraintofthebottomchord,additionalbracingmaybenecessary,asshownbelow.Suchbracingallowsthebucklinglengthofthe
bottomchordtobelimitedoutoftheplaneofthetrusstothedistancebetweenpointslaterallyrestrainedthediagonalmembersserveto
transfertherestraintforcestothelevelofthetopchord,thelevelatwhichthegeneralroofbracingisprovided.
Lateralbracing

Key
Thickblackdashestwoconsecutivetrusses
BlueThepurlinwhichcompletesthebracingintheupperregion
GreenThelongitudinalelementwhichclosesthebracinginthe
lowerregion
RedVerticalroofbracing

Itispossibletocreateahorizontalwindgirderatthelevelofthebottomchords,withlongitudinalelementstostabilizeallthetrusses.

Designofwindgirders
Transversewindgirder
Ingeneral,theformofatransversewindgirderisasfollows:
ThewindgirderisarrangedasaWarrenorPratttruss,paralleltotheroofplane
Thechordsofthewindgirderaretheupperchordsoftwoadjacentverticaltrusses.Thismeansthattheaxialforcesinthesemembers
duetoloadingontheverticaltrussandthoseduetoloadsonthewindgirderloadingmustbeaddedtogether(foranappropriate
combinationofactions)
Itisconvenienttoarrangeatransversewindgirderateachendofthebuildingsothatthelongitudinalmembersneedactonlyintension.

Longitudinalwindgirder
Itisnecessarytoprovidealongitudinalwindgirder(betweenbracedgableends)inbuildingswheretherooftrussesarenot'portalized'.
Thegeneralarrangementissimilartothatdescribedforatransversewindgirder:
WarrenorPratttruss
Generally,chordmemberswillbeprovidedfromhollowsections
Theposts(ifrequired)aretheupperchordsoftheconsecutivestabilizedrooftrusses.

Guidanceonglobalanalysis
Althoughjointsintrussesareoftenhardlypinnedinreality,itisgenerallysatisfactory(andencouragedbydesignstandards)toassumethe
jointsarepinnedandtoverifythemembersforaxialloadonly.
Ifloadsareappliedbetweennodes,trussesareoftenanalyseswithcontinuouschords,butwithallinternalmemberspinned.These
assumptionsaboutpinnedjointbehaviourapplytobothboltedandweldedconnections.
Wheremembercentrelinesdonotintersectatanode(thejointgeometrymayhavebeenadjustedtoincreasethestrengthofthejoint),the
additionalmomentsproducedbytheeccentricityareusuallyallowedforinthedesignofthechordmembers.

Modelling
Severalquestionsariseinrespectofthemodellingofatruss.
Itisalwaysconvenienttoworkonrestrictedmodels.Forexample,forastandard
building,itiscommonandusuallyjustifiedtoworkwith2Dmodels(portal,wind
girder,verticalbracing)ratherthanauniqueandglobal3Dmodel.Atrusscan
evenbemodelledwithoutitssupportingcolumnswhenitisarticulatedtothe
columns.
Nonetheless,itisimportanttonotethat:
Ifseparatemodelsareused,itmaybenecessary,inordertoverifythe
resistanceofcertainelements,tocombinetheresultsofseveralanalyses
example:theupperchordofatrussalsoservesaschordofthewind
girder.
Ifaglobal3Dmodelisused,'parasitic'bendingcanbeobserved,which
oftenonlycreatesanillusoryprecisionofthestructuralbehaviourprocess.
Thatiswhy2Dmodelsaregenerallypreferable.
Oncethescopeofthemodelhasbeendecidedandadaptedaccordingtothe
usetobemadeoftheresults,itisimportanttoconsiderthenatureoftheinternal
connections.Incurrentmodellingofmemberstructures,theselectionismade
between'apinjointedmemberatanode'and'amemberrigidlyconnectedtoa

Fastraktrussstructuremodel
(FastrakmodelcourtesyofCSC)

node'thepossibilityofferedbyBSEN1993[2]tomodelconnectionsassemirigidisrarelyusedfortrussstructures.
Fortrusses,themodeliscommonlyrepresentedaseither:
Continuouschords(andthereforechordmembersrigidlyconnectedatbothends)
Trussmembers(diagonalsandverticals)pinjointedtothechords.

Theeffectofnonpreloadedassembliesontrussdeflection
Whentheconnectionsbetweenelementswhichmakeupatrussarebolted,withboltsinshearandbearing(categoryAinBSEN199318[1]
),theclearanceintroducedintotheseconnections(whichallowsslip)canhaveasignificanteffectondisplacementofthenodes.
Inordertofacilitateerection,theboltsarelocatedinholeswhicharelargerthantheboltsthemselves.Forstandardboltsizes,holeswhich
are2mmbiggerthantheboltareusuallymade(usuallyreferredtoasaclearancehole).
Inorderforaconnectionwithclearanceholestotransmittheload,theboltmust
comeintocontactwithoneorotheroftheconnectedparts:thisiscalledoften
referredtoas'takingupslack'.Foraconnectedtensionmember,thisslackcan
beassimilatedasanadditionalextensionthatisaddedtotheelasticelongation
ofthememberintension.Likewise,foraconnectedcompressionmember,the
slackisassimilatedasareductioninlengththatisaddedtotheelastic
shorteningofthecompressedmember.
Thetotalslackinthemanydifferentconnectionsofatrussstructurecanleadto
asignificantincreaseindisplacements,whichcanhavevariousandmoreorless
seriousconsequences.Amongstthese,note:
Inmostofthecases,thevisualeffectistheworstconsequence
Increaseddeflectioncanleadtoareductionoffreeheightunderthe
bottomchord,whichmightpreventorupsettheanticipatedusage.For
example,theadditionaldeflectionofatrussholdingdoorssuspendedina
gableofanaeroplanehangarcouldpreventthepassageoftheaeroplane
Increaseinthedeflectioncanresultinreductionintheslopeofthe
supportedroofandeven,ifthenominalslopeweresmall,toaslope
inversiontheriskofwateringressisincreased.

Tubulartrussesasanaesteticfeatureinasinglestorey
building

Itisthereforeessential,wheretrussstructuresareconcerned,tocontroltheeffectofconnectionslackonthedisplacements.Inordertodo
this,itisoftennecessary:
Tousepreloadedbolts(categoryCconnections)or
Touseweldedconnectionsinsteadofboltedconnections.

Detaileddesignconsiderationsforelements
Trussmembersaresubjectedtoaxialforce,butmayalsobesubjectedtobendingmoments,forexample,ifthechordshavebeenmodelled
ascontinuous.

Verificationofmembersundercompression
Theresistanceofamembertocompressionisevaluatedbytakingintoaccountthedifferentmodesofinstability:
Localbucklingofthesectioniscontrolledusingsectionclassification
Bucklingofthememberiscontrolledbyapplyingareductionfactortotheresistanceofthecrosssection.
Inmosttrussmembers,onlyflexuralbucklingofthecompressedmembersintheplaneofthetrussstructureandoutoftheplaneofthetruss
structureneedbeevaluated.
ThebucklingresistanceisobtainedfromBSEN199311[3]byapplyingareductiontotheresistanceofthecrosssection.Thisreduction
factorisobtainedfromtheslendernessofthemember,whichdependsontheelasticcriticalforce.
Forthediagonalsandtheverticalsstressedinuniformcompressiontheelasticcriticalforceisdeterminedfromthebucklinglengthofthe
memberinaccordancewithBSEN199311[3]Section6.3.1.3andaccordingtoAnnexBBofBSEN199311[3]:
Forbucklingintheplaneofthetruss,thebucklinglengthistakenequalto90%ofthesystemlength(distancebetweennodes),when
thetrussmemberisconnectedateachendwithatleasttwobolts,orbywelding.
Forbucklingoutofplaneofthetrussbeam,thebucklinglengthistakenequaltothesystemlength.
Forbucklingintheplaneofthetrussofthechordmembersinuniformcompression,thebucklinglengthmaybetakenas90%ofitssystem
length(distancebetweennodes).
Forbucklingoutofplaneofthetruss,thebucklinglengthmustbetakenbetweenlateralsupportpoints.
Intheworkedexample,wherethetrusssupportsaroof,withpurlinsattheleveloftheupperchordofthetruss:
Allthepurlinsconnectedtoaroofbracingcanbeconsideredaslateralrigidsupportpoints.
Intermediatepurlinscanalsobeconsideredasarigidpointofsupport,iftheroofbehavesasadiaphragm(class2construction
accordingtoBSEN199313[4]).
Lateralsupportpointsareprovidedtothelowerchordbyadditionalverticalbracingelementsbetweentrusses.

Vierendeeltrusses
UseofVierendeeltrusses
Vierendeeltrussesarerigidlyjointedtrusseshavingonlyverticalmembersbetweenthetop
andbottomchords.Thechordsarenormallyparallelornearparallel.
ElementsinVierendeeltrussesaresubjectedtobending,axialforceandshear,unlike
conventionaltrusseswithdiagonalwebmemberswherethemembersareprimarilydesigned
foraxialloads.
Vierendeeltrussesareusuallymoreexpensivethanconventionaltrussesandtheiruselimited
toinstanceswherediagonalwebmembersareeitherobtrusiveorundesirable.

Vierendeeltruss

Vierendeeltrussesaremomentresisting.Verticalmembersnearthesupportsaresubjecttothehighestmomentsandthereforerequire
largersectionstobeusedthanthoseatmidspan.Considerablebendingmomentsmustthereforebetransferredbetweentheverticalsand
thechords,whichcanresultinexpensivestiffeneddetails.

Analysis
AsVierendeeltrussesarestaticallyindeterminatestructures,computeranalysissoftwarepackagesaregenerallyusedtoanalysethetruss.

Connections
Vierendeeltrusseshaverigidjointswhichmusttransfersignificantbendingmoments,especiallynearthesupports.Weldedjointsare
thereforecommonandmayinvolvesignificantlocalreinforcementofthemembersatthejoint.Ifjointsarebolted,substantialconnectionswill
benecessary,generallyusingpreloadedbolts.
TypicaljointsforVierendeeltrusses

References
1.
2.
3.
4.

^1.01.1BSEN199318:2005.Eurocode3:Designofsteelstructures.Designofjoints,BSI
^BSEN1993Eurocode3:Designofsteelstructures.Variousparts,BSI
^3.03.13.2BSEN199311:2005+A1:2014,Eurocode3:Designofsteelstructures.Generalrulesandrulesforbuildings,BSI
^BSEN199313:2006Eurocode3.Designofsteelstructures.Generalrules.Supplementaryrulesforcoldformedmembersand
sheeting,BSI

Furtherreading
SteelDesigners'Manual7thEdition.(http://shop.steelsci.com/products/231steeldesignersmanual7thedition.aspx)EditorsB
Davison&GWOwens.TheSteelConstructionInstitute2012,Chapter20
ArchitecturalDesigninSteelTrebilcockPandLawsonRMpublishedbySpon,2004

Resources
TargetZero:Guidanceonthedesignandconstructionofsustainable,lowcarbonwarehousebuildings
SCIP167ArchitecturalTeachingResource.StudioGuide.SCIandCorus,2003
NCCI:DesignofrooftrussesSN027aENEU
SchemeDevelopment:ConceptualdesignoftrussandcolumnsolutionsSS050aENEU
Example:SinglespantrussandpostframeforalowpitchroofusingbattenedsectionchordsSX017aENEU
SingleStoreySteelBuildingsPart5:Jointdesign,TheSteelAlliance
DesignofweldedjointsCelsius355andHybox355,2013,TataSteel
(http://www.tatasteelconstruction.com/static_files/StaticFiles/Business_Units/Corus_Tubes/Tubes/TST06_Welded_Joints_Brochure_07
2013.pdf)

Seealso
Singlestoreyindustrialbuildings
Costofstructuralsteelwork
Operationalcarbon
TargetZero
Fabrication
Welding
Construction
Preloadedbolting
Steelconstructionproducts
Simpleconnections
Momentresistingconnections
Modellingandanalysis
Memberdesign

Externallinks
CSC(http://www.cscworld.com/)
Retrievedfrom"http://www.steelconstruction.info/Trusses"
Category:Design