INTRODUCTION TO THE TEACHING RESOURCE
During
a discussion this writer had with Mr. R.K. Prasannan, Development Commissioner
for Iron and Steel, Ministry of Steel in late 1998, it became obvious that the
present low usage of Structural Steel in India could be largely attributed to
skills shortage in its proper and effective use in construction. The urgent need, to reorient the education
of student engineers and to retrain the professional engineers based on
up-to-date state-of-the-art science and technology, was clearly
identified. A team of experts led by
Professor Rangachari Narayanan (Retired Senior Executive, The Steel
Construction Institute, England), working in co-operation with Professor V.
Kalyanaraman (IIT Madras), Professor A.R. Santha Kumar (Dean, Anna University,
Chennai) and Dr. S.Seetharaman (Structural Engineering Research Centre,
Chennai) was entrusted with the task of compiling this Teaching Resource which
could be used for the purposes outlined above.
Dr. S.R. Mediratta, the Director General of the newly formed Institute
for Steel development and Growth (INSDAG) was requested to act as the
facilitator. The Team commenced the
work in August 1999.
Globally,
Structural Steel Design used to be based on the “Working Stress Method” till
the late 1960’s. The more modern “Limit State Design” approach - developed in the early 1970’s - is
technologically sound and results in significant economy in the completed
structures. This is of particular
advantage as Steel is a reusable material and is environment-friendly.
Moreover, modern Steel Mills have made substantial improvements in the quality
of finished steel in recent years. To
derive the fullest benefits from this improved steel, the Codes of Practice in
the use of Steel will need updating. Unfortunately,
the Indian Codes for Steel Construction have not so far been revised, to
conform to Limit State methods, unlike the Codes for the Structural Use of
Concrete in Construction. This makes
the use of steel in construction an uneconomic proposition. The Bureau of Indian Standards is currently
addressing this issue with the voluntary assistance of the Indian Institute of
Technology Madras.
There is hundreds of University level
Institutions in India teaching courses in Structural Engineering. Being autonomous, they formulate their own
syllabi. The depth and breadth of
coverage in Structural Steel Design – as in other subjects – would vary between
Institutions. In view of the
obsolescence referred to in the previous paragraph, all the Universities and
Colleges would need support and assistance to varying degrees in their need for
state-of-the-art training material. Retraining the Engineers who are currently
employed in Industry and in Design Offices is an added challenge. Standardised modules reflecting the current
state of the art was specially developed to meet both these purposes. The
syllabus – based on the Limit State approach developed in Europe and U.S.A. –
has been prepared after consultations
with selected Structural Engineering Departments in Universities and IITs to
ensure that the coverage is comprehensive and relevant to India. The material
conforms to this syllabus and presented in the form of comprehensive notes,
supplemented by Design Examples, Visual aids, etc. These cover a variety of topics extending from Theoretical
Analysis to practical Designs and could be presented in a typical University
Course of 45 hours plus the associated Design Course. The overhead transparencies are intended to help in rapid and
lucid dissemination of information.
Chapters that cover design of elements or connections are supported by
design examples. All the material
will be reviewed by University Teachers
and panels of experts before final publication. Draft Chapters of the Teaching
Resource are being published in the web site of INSDAG in instalments to enable
University Teachers and other interested persons to review them. Suggestions to improve the contents and
constructive comments and criticisms will be gratefully received by the writer.
Rangachari Narayanan
(E-mail:
[email protected])
Indian Institute of Technology Madras
Chennai 600 036