Reply With QuoteBeanie, I suspect you will not get an answer here, well, certainly at least, not from me, I am sorry to say. You need to consult a Structural Engineer with 15,000lbs on an overhead beam, there can be great risk involved.
I want to check the size of an existing beam which has a single point load. I ahve a W6 x 25 lb. beam that has a 15 kip load at the center. The beam is 6.5' long and the beam is fully supported on both ends. By fully supported I mean the W6 beam sits on top of a W12 structural beam. How can I check if this beam can handle the load.
This may be pretty basic, but I am an electricaal engineer!
Beanie, I suspect you will not get an answer here, well, certainly at least, not from me, I am sorry to say. You need to consult a Structural Engineer with 15,000lbs on an overhead beam, there can be great risk involved.
What is the material you are using? I made some simple calculations using ASTM A36 and calculated using the formula (wL^3)/(48EI). this formula calculates deflection of a beam with a center load and supported at both ends. Variables are: w=load, L=Length(in), E= modulus of elasticity, I-Moment of Inertia. ASTM A36 has an E of 29e6 and the I of a W6x25 beam is roughly 53.018in4. Using the formula I came up with a 0.0964in deflection at the center of the beam. Finding Delta(Allowable) using L/480 signifies a tolerable deflection is 0.1625in. Seems reasonable to expect the beam in question is significant enough to withstand the load. However, if I run the analysis in Solidworks in only gives a Factor of Safety rating of 0.84 which isn't good. So it's really up to you.
Last edited by Azekial33; 05-04-2012 at 09:15 AM.
And beanie, remember when it fails and people are hurt, you can tell them that somebody on the internet that you never met and whose qualifications are unknown to you did the calculations for you.
Jb+1+1+1...
I wouldn't take my word for it. I'm a nightime janitor at a college who enjoys solving math problems left on the chalkboard.
Sounds like a movie I once saw. Hmm...
I see a lot of overhead stuff w/ 3 - 5 times factor of safety on it. So even if his calcs are correct that is a fairly slim margin in my mind. Needs further study IMO.
Checking the deflection is a good indication but there are all sorts of other checks that have to be done like Axial compression, bending, shear and stability considerations. Solidworks will calculate stresses but I don't think it will take other factors like slenderness and lateral stability into account. You need a structural program like SAP200 or STAAD to analyse the problem.
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