Z Purlin Design Spreadsheet

Z Purlins

Z shaped purlins are very commonly used in all kinds of steel framed buildings. Z purlins are used as horizontal beams spanning between large steel columns. These horizontal Z purlin beams form the roof and wall joists of the steel frame structure. The beams are between the main steel columns and beams and the exterior cladding and roofing sheets. This ensures that the sheets have a firm attachment to the structure without having to span large distances between columns.

Z purlins are cold formed steel beams shaped in a Z shape with a steel leg or return at the end of the section to provide additional stiffness. The beams Z shape provides both the strength and stiffness required to span between the main steel columns and easy fixings for both the roof and cladding sheets and to the main steel columns.

Z Purlin Design Procedure

The CivilWeb Z Purlin Design Excel Sheet allows the designer to follow a very simple procedure in order to design Z purlins for any steel frame using only a handful of inputs. Firstly the designer must input the details of a proposed Z purlin for analysis. The spreadsheet includes full pre-set details of 95 different standard Z purlin sizes. Where different sized Z purlins are required, a separate spreadsheet is included which allows the designer to enter the precise dimensions for a Z purlin of any shape. This means the spreadsheets can be  used to design any standard or non-standard Z purlin.

Next the design must enter the loadings which the Z purlin will be required to resist. This includes the bending moment, shear force and the type of bending to be resisted. Also the designer can enter values for the shear at the location of the maximum bending moment and vice versa, allowing the spreadsheet to check combined bending and shear resistance.

Next the CivilWeb Z Purlin Design Excel Sheet completes all the calculations required under BS 5950-5. These include;

• Calculation of the effective section properties including effective area, second moment of area for X, Y and neutral axes, effective width and modified compressive design strengths.
• The spreadsheet checks the section is sufficiently stiff.
• Moment Capacity Check
• Buckling Resistance Check
• Shear Resistance of the Web Check
• Combined Bending and Shear Resistance Check

Each spreadsheet includes unique analysis tools such as analysis graphs and the Z purlin suggested sections tool. The spreadsheet is able to check the resistance of all 95 of the standard Z purlins including in the database. The spreadsheet then returns a list of the ten best suited to the design forces input by the user. This saves the designer from having to complete detailed calculations for many different Z purlins in order to find the one best suited to the design loadings. The spreadsheet does all this for the user automatically and instantly. The user can simply pick the best Z purlin section straight from the suggested purlin tool.

The Z Purlin Design Excel Sheet completes the calculations instantly and presents the results of each calculation in detail with a utilisation factor shown in either green or red. This allows the designer to see at a glance not only whether the design is adequate or not, but also exactly where the design is deficient and by how much. The designer use this information to quickly see exactly where the Z purlin design can be optimised.

CivilWeb Z Purlin Design Spreadsheet

The CivilWeb Z Purlin Design Spreadsheet is an easy to use tool for the design of Z purlins of any dimensions to suit any design conditions. The spreadsheet includes 95 standard Z purlins in its database, or Z purlins of any dimensions can be analysed. The calculations are completed in accordance with the requirements of BS 5950-5. Each spreadsheet includes unique analysis features and completes all the calculations instantly allowing the designer to complete an optimised Z purlin design in minutes.

Buy the CivilWeb Z Purlin Design Spreadsheet now for only £19.99.