Structural Design 1

[TjT95]

My background is in structural engineering, at least in college, before accepting my current position the most design work I had done was drafting. The engineer I now work for has his background in concrete road design and soils work. He wants me to design a metal building for a customer but does not have all the codes that I need to follow in order to complete the project. I am stuck in a hard decision to make. I want to design the structure but without the expertise of an engineer that knows the designs for the connection and other areas of the design that I need I don't believe that I will be able to properly design the structure. I feelt that I should tell him that I don't feel comfortable with it and see what he says. Any thoughts?

 

[SlideRuleEra]

If the "metal building" you mention is a manufactured metal building system (formerly called a pre-engineered building) perhaps your assignment is to design and prepare what amount to "General Arrangement" drawings to be used either for bidding or to turn over to a building manufacturer for the detailed engineering design. If this is true, it may be a reasonable assignment for you - suggest that you check with your boss to be sure.

http://www.SlideRuleEra.net

 

[JAE]

Are you licensed? What country/state are you in?

If not licensed, then you really are behaving unethically with respect to state engineering laws in the USA - here's why:

1. A "metal building" still requires and engineer-of-record to oversee the whole of the building design (beyond the metal building component). This requires a licensed engineer who's discipline is structural.

2. The engineer you work for does not have any experience in structural engineering, thus, cannot serve as the EOR over you. This is a direct violation of engineering laws.

3. Presuming you are not licensed, you too cannot serve as the EOR.

4. The metal building manufacturer does have licensed engineers, but they will only take responsibility for the building frame component, not the entire structure including the footings.

Ask your engineer supervisor: "Who will serve as the Engineer of Record for this project since you and I do not have structural experise or licensing to do this legally?"

I would absolutely refuse to do it.

 

[EddyC]

Most of my employers have treated me and my coworkers in exactly the same way that you are being treated. These days, the burden of a proper design is on the back of the employee. I will assume that your employer is the one who will be PE stamping the drawings since you can't. If you need additional code books, ask your employer to buy them. In the end, you can only do the best that you can with the time & resources that you are provided with. Its your employer's responsibility to provide a company work system that leads to proper designs (many don't understand this). Unfortunately many employers don't meet their professional responsibilities to their employees, their clients and their profession.

 

[zcp]

jcl95,

It is time to dust off the books and study. This is your career. A structural engineer needs references and sometimes he has to buy them for himself. My bookshelf is full of books, codebooks, etc. bought for projects. If the codebooks are too expensive, go to the boss and say "I need these books and this amount of time to read them to do what you have asked me to do." He may qualify the scope of what he asked you to do and/or he will provide the resources you need. No boss in the world will be upset with an employee that is straightforward and honest about what he knows as long as he is willing to bust his tail to learn what he doesn't know to get the job done. Protect the public above all else, sometimes that takes extra effort.

ZCP

http://www.phoenix-engineer.com