Guides

Short, practical reference articles for engineers, drafters and fabricators.

• How to read Australian steel section designations
  What 310UB40.4, 100x100x5.0SHS, 75x75x6EA and C20019 mean, and the difference between nominal and actual sizes.
• Section properties explained
  A practical guide to A, I, Z, S, r, J, Iw, kf and compactness, and which property controls which design check.
• Using the DXF section files
  How to insert the free DXF cross-sections into AutoCAD, BricsCAD, Revit or CAM software: units, layers, origin and scale.
• Corrosion protection of structural steel
  Choosing paint, hot-dip galvanizing or duplex systems to AS/NZS 2312, and using surface area per tonne to estimate coating quantities.
• Notation & calculation method
  Symbols and how every value on this site is calculated.
• Steel materials & grades
  Structural, hollow, sheet, weathering, Q&T, wear, reinforcing, bolts and stainless.