subject: Pre-design, Design & Detailing Costs Of Constructing Steel Structures [print this page] Reducing the production costs of the Steel structure is crucial in the complete development of a building or industrial structure. To find out possible cost savings, the engineer needs to have thorough knowledge about costs of Steel construction and software that helps him prepare an estimatation.
Design costs involves three components:
1) Pre-design cost
2) Shop design cost
3) Steel Detailing and working drawing costs
In the pre-design stage most of the time and efforts are required for main frame design and the stability analysis of the structure. The structural engineer focus only on connections that affect the stability of the structure. This includes rigid or semi-rigid connections with basic calculations.
In shop design stage the engineer needs to detail all the beam-column-end plate connections that affect the stability of the steel structure in detail.
In steel detailing stage the steel detailer or draftsman dedicate most of his time on detailing connections in the steel structure. Advance CAD tools such as Tekla (previously Xsteel) and AutoCAD with their 3D modeling and automization capabilities help draftsman to set up the steel frame. Detailing of other connections and printing and plotting of the drawings is carried out subsequently.
Use of 3D Modeling for detailing steel structures has become the standard worldwide. The 3D system comes with specific modules dedicated to each job such as pre-design, detailing, erection schedule, etc to help detailer reduce production time and cost. At present these systems are mainly used for the detailing and sometimes for estimating. Two main benefits include:
1) The fabricator gets a clear understanding of what is estimated - resulting in less errors
2) 2D shop drawings can be generated automatically
3} Connection design with 3D analysis help detect clash
Promoting the advance technology in steel design makes the fabricator more competitive. The above mentioned advantages helps fabricator reduce delivery schedule, improve design quality and overall profitability.
Should have any queries or want more information related to Structural steel services email us at info@outsourcingsteeldetailing.com We would love to understand your requirements in detail.
