New developments in the direct strength method (DSM) for the design of cold-formed steel sections under localised loading

A consistent and simplified direct strength method (DSM) is proposed for the design of cold-formed (or thin-walled) sections under localized loading, which is called web crippling. The development of this method proposes generalized equations for the design of thin-walled sections under the four different localized load cases: interior one-flange (IOF), end one-flange (EOF), interior two-flange (ITF) and end two-flange (ETF). The same parameters are used in the DSM equations for both the IOF and the EOF load cases. However, the ITF and ETF load cases require different parameters in the DSM equations to predict the capacities of structural members. The equations contain both an inelastic reserve component and a yield load component which are different from those proposed previously in this regard.
This paper briefly introduces the calculation of the buckling load and the yield load. From these two main input variables, DSM equations are used to determine the capacities of structural members under localized loading. Calibration was performed against all available experimental data to validate the accuracy of the DSM predictions.