steelwise

Getting a bearing on bearing can help you design BEAR IT

more efficient connections for a variety of steel assemblies. AND GRIN
BY LARRY MUIR, P.E.

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS PERPETUALLY STRIVE These requirements are not at all onerous, since the same
for more economical designs. mechanisms that often allow us to treat column splices as okay
Finding ways to reduce needed material is often one of the by inspection can also be employed to satisfy the connections
first steps, but opportunities for reducing the cost (while main- for members other than columns. The explicit requirements
taining the value) of the steel package are also available when serve the purpose of making an engineer stop and think about
it comes to connections. One method of getting more out of the condition and its behavior. The largest demand is produced
connections is to have them resist compressive loads through when the splice is located mid-span, as shown in Figure 1. Mov-
steel-on-steel bearing. But as the saying goes, With great pow- ing the splice close to a braced point, such as a floor or a truss
er comes great responsibilityand if we are going to rely on node, can reduce the demand significantly.
bearing, then we also have to ensure bearing will exist. The AISC Specification provides further requirements for
The AISC Specification provides opportunities for designers welds used in connections that bear. Relative to joints that
to incorporate bearing, and taking advantage of them can lead employ PJP groove welds and transfer load through bearing,
to better, more efficient connection design.

The Power Figure 1: AISC Specification Section J1.4 requirement.

Section J1.4 of the AISC Specification addresses the required
strength of the connections joining compression members in
bearing. One thing that is immediately obvious is that the mem-
ber types are separated into two groups: columns and members
other than columns. This distinction occurs repeatedly in the
AISC Specification, and members other than columns are gener-
ally subjected to more stringent requirements. The reason is
that the conditions that exist for a column are assumed to be
well defined and beneficial to ensuring the transfer of loads
through bearing. A column splice will generally look similar to
the typical splices shown in part 14 of the AISC Steel Construc-
tion Manual. By definition, a column is nominally vertical and
therefore during erection gravity will tend to push the joint
into bearing, a condition that may not exist in a compression
chord splice in a truss, for instance.
We also know that a typical column splice can transfer a great
deal of moment, easily satisfying OSHA requirements and likely Larry Muir (muir@aisc.org)
developing the strength and stiffness required to prevent global is AISCs director of
buckling of the member even when not specifically checked to technical assistance.
do so. For these reasons, J1.4 only requires that the connectors at
column bearing splices and plates be sufficient to hold the parts
securely in place. In contrast, the connectors in members other
than columns that bear must be designed for stated demands of
the lesser of either 50% of the required compressive strength of
the member or the moment and shear resulting from a trans-
verse load equal to 2% of the required compressive strength of
the member applied at the location of the splice.

 Modern STEEL CONSTRUCTION

 steelwise
the Specification once again distinguishes between columns not exist, the gap shall be packed out with non-tapered steel
and members other than columns. In Table J2.5, consis- shims. Shims need not be other than mild steel, regardless of
tent with Section J1.4(1), the PJP welds between columns the grade of the main material.
in bearing are not required to resist any defined load and The Commentary indicates that tests have shown that
instead exist merely to hold the parts together. In contrast, small gaps due to out-of-square can be accommodated with-
PJP groove welds used in bearing joints for members other out any loss of strength. Section M2.8 of the Specification ad-
than columns are obviously subject to the loads provided in dresses requirements related to ensuring that the bearing sur-
Section J1.4(1). This is no surprise. What might be unex- face of plates is sufficiently flat. Though explicitly addressing
pected is the assumed design strength of these welds, which columns, these requirements could form the basis of project-
is given as 0.6 FEXX. The Commentary does not provide an specific requirements.
explanation as to why this reduction in the strength of the
weld is applied for the case of a bearing connection. It does Power (and Responsibility) in Action
state that it ...has been used since the early 1960s to com- Lets take a look at some examples, using various scenarios,
pensate for the notch effect of the unfused area of the joint, of how bearing can improve connections.
uncertain quality in the root of the weld due to the inability Column splices. Figure 2 illustrates a typical column
to perform nondestructive evaluation and the lack of a spe- splice, like those provided in Part 14 of the AISC Manual.
cific notch-toughness requirement for filler metal. It does In addition to the AISC Specification requirements, OSHA
not imply that the tensile failure mode is by shear stress on 1926.756(d) requires these splices to be able to resist the ef-
the effective throat, as in fillet welds. fects of a 300-lb force applied 18 in. off the center of the
Many of these stated reasons for the reduction do not column. Engineers also may apply their own more stringent
apply to joints that are assumed to remain in compression. requirements to account for erection loads, such as design-
Notch-toughness and notch effects are considerations for ing for some lateral load to account for conditions during
joints in tension, and the statement that the failure mode erection. The same concept that results in the 2% of the
is not by shear stress on the effective throat is equally ap- compressive demand in Section J1.4 could also be applied
plicable to welds in compression. Again, it comes down to to columns, though again there is no explicit requirement.
uncertainty about the joint. With a column, the configura- The moment strength of the splice can be checked assuming
tion of the joint is well defined and gravity will tend to aid bearing on the compression side and using the bolts to re-
in attaining bearing, but this might not be the case with sist the tension. Though the AISC Specification requirements
other configurations. explicitly ensure a specified strength, stiffness at the splice is
also critical to ensuring that the column can develop its re-
The Responsibility quired strength. In general, joints in bearing can be assumed
As weve demonstrated, the AISC Specification gives the en- to have sufficient stiffness.
gineer great power to decide that bearing will exist and there-
fore eliminate a great deal of the material and labor that would
otherwise have to be incorporated into the joint. Now for the Figure 2: Typical column splice.

responsibility part.
In order to transfer loads through bearing, bearing must ac-
tually existbut what constitutes bearing? The answer is scat-
tered throughout the AISC Specification and the AISC Code of
Standard Practice (though primarily can be found in Chapter M
of the Specification). AISC Specification Section M2.6 states:
Compression joints that depend on contact bearing as part
of the splice strength shall have the bearing surfaces of indi-
vidual fabricated pieces prepared by milling, sawing or other
suitable means.
This is a general requirement and is intended to ensure the
surface is relatively straight and smooth. Section M4.4 of the
Specification addresses the required fit of the bearing surfaces, at
least for columns, and states:
Lack of contact bearing not exceeding a gap of 116 in. (2 mm),
regardless of the type of splice used (partial-joint-penetration
groove welded or bolted), is permitted. If the gap exceeds 116 in.
(2 mm), but is equal to or less than in. (6 mm), and if an en-
gineering investigation shows that sufficient contact area does

DECEMBER 2015
 steelwise
Truss splices. Often, trusses resist gravity loads such that Hearst diagrid. Diagrid assemblies are another situation
the top chord remains in compression. Though engineers often where bearing can be used to enhance connections. All of the
configure the top and bottom chord splice similarly, half of the diagrid connections for the Hearst Tower in New York, N.Y.,
splices can often be economized by taking advantage of com- for example, employed bearing, which significantly reduced the
pression bearing. Figure 3(a) shows a splice designed to transfer amount of welding that had to be done in the shop and the
compression through a bolted splice without bearing. Figure number of bolts that had to be installed in the field. It should
3(b) provides two alternatives designed to transfer compression be noted that while compression was the predominant demand,
through bearing. these members were not subjected to compression loads alone.
A complex set of moments, shears and even uplift also had to be
resisted (and were resisted through the bolts and welds).
Figure 3: Truss splices.

Bearing was ensured through careful detailing and milling of

the plates at the bearing surfaces. Even so, in one instance either
(a) the joint was not properly assembled or somehow the geometry
changed during erection, and a gap was noticed in the joint after
the erection of four subsequent floors. It was impractical to disas-
semble the joint and refit the member. It was decided to continue
erection while monitoring the joint in hopes that the weight of
the structure would force the elements into bearing. Fortunately,
this proved to be the case and no remedial action was required. If
(b) the gap had not closed, shims would have been installed in accor-
dance with Section M4.4 of the AISC Specification. Again, if bear-
ing is relied upon in the design then bearing must be ensured in
the final structure. (See Something Old, Something New in
the April 2007 issue and A New Angle in the July 2006 issue,
both available at www.modernsteel.com.)
Knowing where to find bearing guidance and how to apply
it to different scenarios can help you create better connections
that result in a more economical project. 

The signature diagrid of Hearst Tower in New York.

Cantilevered beams. Another common condition where

bearing can be used to considerable advantage is at cantilevered
beams. Figure 4 shows a detail in which the tension side of the
moment is resisted by a bolted flange plate while bearing is
used to resist the compression. The web connection bolts resist
only vertical shear. In this case, the use of bearing to resist com-
pression results in less shop and field work. It also has the added
advantage that finger shims can be driven under the end plate
to adjust the elevation at the far end of the cantilever.

Figure 4: Cantilevered beam.

DECEMBER 2015