Roof Framing Design - Beam Calculation

My first assignment is to design a classroom of one story with steel framing. Before I start designing, there are a few tasks that I need to follow. Most of these tasks deal with calculating loads and the weight of building components. Today, I focused on the first task, which dealt with the roof frame design of the classroom.

These are duties I've been assigned to do during my mentorship

The small rectangular squares in the corners of the roof frame, represent the columns. These plans are not three dimensional because the view is above the roof frame. The unit measurements (between grid lines and A&B and 1-3) represents the spacing between the steel beams that will placed, horizontally, on top of the columns (this can be seen on the picture below).



This picture shows the measurements of each beam and the loads that impact the roof. The red squares represents the columns and the steel beams are the blue lines that have measurement W14X22. W is unit for the wide flange, which is the big hinges on the ends of the steel beams. The type of loads that affect the roof are dead loads and live loads. My mentor told me the measurements of each load and taught me how to calculate each load (it's also on this picture.)




This picture explains how to solve the amount of momentum that a typical steel beam can withstand. Since the loads are pushing down on the roof, the steel beams has it's own bending force resisting the dead loads and the live loads.

Second Interview Questions

1.  Who is your mentor and where do they work?

My mentor is a structural engineer associate, Tzuoh-Jaw Wu. He works for a company in South Pasadena called Kanda and Tso Associates. The company is specifically only for structural engineers.

2.  What five questions will ask them about their background?

What types of projects have you've been working recently?

What types of projects have you worked on before and your experiences with those projects?

How did you start working for Kanda and Tso Associates?

How did you achieve your current position as a structural engineer associate at Kanda and Tso Associates?

Do you have any family members that made an impact on your career, if so can you describe the impact they made on you?

Blog 5 Project Reflection and Working EQ

(1) Positive Statement: What positive thing happen as a result of what you have completed so far?

So far I've learned three positive things from my senior project. First, I've learned some of the basics of two different types of engineering fields, structural engineering and mechanical engineering. It's important for me to have a more diverse perspective in multiple engineering fields, because most engineering fields deal with buildings. For instance, structural engineers check the entire building layout, so it's important for structural engineers to be familiar with many building elements so they don't make mistakes. Second, I've learned the basics in a building software program called AutoCAD. Almost all engineers fields that deal with buildings use AutoCAD, so this gives me an advantage to help my mentor design building parts. Finally, I've learned how the engineering environment works. At my current mentorship, there is always a section where the engineer employees design the given details for a specific building project. Then there's another section where the project manager looks over what the engineer employees designed and the other errors on the building project. Once the designs and the errors are fixed on the building project, it will be sent to the architects or to the people who created the building project. This work process is the same as my summer mentorship (at that time my topic was mechanical engineering), which is why my summer mentorship was very helpful in my senior project.

(2) EQ Content:  Pick a piece of research or your interview.  How has it helped you improve your understanding of your topic?

From the research I've looked recently (Building Construction Illustrated Second Edition by Francis D.K. Ching), I've learned that designs in buildings' are always earthquake proof. Each building element plays a specific role in counteracting with any earthquake force. For example, columns are a linear vertical structural element, so the force generated from an earthquake is compressed vertically into the column and is transferred to another building element. I didn't realize the complexity of how buildings counteracted earthquakes because I simply thought there just needs to be heavy materials to withstand earthquake.

(3) What has worked for you so far in the senior project?

Well what's worked so far is I've found a reliable mentor and he's told me what I'm going to do during my mentorship. My research has also been good because my mentor has given me reliable book sources that are text heavy.

(4) What hasn't worked so far?  

I can't find a second mentor and there's a lot of my math that I haven't learned that is involved in my research.

(5) Finding Value:  

·                      What is a potential question you would like to study this year?  (working EQ)

How can a structural engineer design a hospital that provides the best resistance towards earthquakes in California?

·                      What do you plan to do for mentorship? 

I plan to design details for my mentor on the computer by using the software AutoCAD and to learn more about structural engineering as my mentor explains what I'm designing.