Steel Buildings in Europe

Part 1: Architect’s Guide 1 - 25 3.1.4 Arches Arches have a parabolic or circular form, as illustrated in Figure 3.22. Uniform loading is carried by compression in the arch members; modest bending moments are induced by non-uniform loading and point loads. The compression forces must be resisted by horizontal forces in the foundation of the building – or by tie members between the foundations, as shown in Figure 3.22. Arch members can be formed by cold bending I-section beams. The span/depth ratio for the arch members is typically between 60 and 75 for spans up to 50 m. An example of an arched roof building is shown in Figure 3.23. Tie rod connecting supports Both supports fixed Figure 3.22 Methods of supporting arch members Figure 3.23 Fire brigade station