The design of plated steel cross-sections is influenced by local instabilities, which reduce their ultimate resistance. EN1993-1-5 addresses these class 4 cross-sections using two primary approaches: the effective width method and the reduced stress method. Additionally, Annex C introduces a third approach that is primarily informative. This method utilizes finite element method (FEM) software, which was historically limited to academic purposes. However, software packages like Sofistik and Ansys are now integrated into design offices, making the FEM method more accessible. Within SBE, several of the aforementioned methods are implemented in separate spreadsheets or calculation software. This work focuses on comparing the available design tools. For this analysis, a steel plate with three longitudinal stiffeners is considered, modelled after a skin plate design for a lock gate. The plate is subjected to in-plane loading from three load cases (pressure in both directions and shear) and out-of-plane loading due to water pressure. For each scenario, the calculated unity check (UC) value is compared across the different tools. Based on these comparisons, recommendations are provided for the method best suited to each case or design stage.
Staen et al. (Wed,) studied this question.
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