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Resources

Glossary

The language of pre-engineered metal buildings, translated.

Accessory
A building product which supplements a basic solid panel building such as a door, window, skylight, ventilator, etc.
Agricultural Building
A structure designed and constructed to house farm implements, hay, grain, poultry, livestock or other horticultural products. Such structure shall not include habitable or occupiable spaces, spaces in which agricultural products are processed, treated or packaged; nor shall an agricultural building be a place of occupancy by the general public.
Aluminum Coated Steel
Steel coated with aluminum for corrosion resistance.
Anchor Bolt Plan
A plan view drawing showing the diameter, location and projection of all anchor bolts for the components of the Metal Building System and may show column reactions (magnitude and direction). The maximum base plate dimensions may also be shown.
Anchor Bolts
Bolts used to anchor members to a foundation or other support.
Approval Drawings
A set of drawings that may include framing plans, elevations and sections through the building for approval of the buyer.
ASD
Allowable Stress Design.
Assembly
A group of mutually dependent and compatible components or sub assemblies of components.
Astragal
A closure between the two leaves of a double swing or double slide door.
Automatic Crane
A crane which when activated operates through a pre-set cycle or cycles.
Automatic Welding
A welding procedure utilizing a machine to make a weld.
Auxiliary Crane Girder
A girder arranged parallel to the main girder for supporting the platform, motor base, operator's cab, control panels, etc., to reduce the torsional forces that such load would otherwise impose on the main crane girder.
Auxiliary Hoist
A supplemental hoisting unit, usually designed to handle lighter loads at a higher speed than the main crane hoist.
Auxiliary Loads
Dynamic live loads such as those induced by cranes and material handling systems.
Axial Force
A force tending to elongate or shorten a member.
Bar Joist
A name commonly used for "Open Web Steel Joists".
Base Angle
An angle secured to a wall or foundation used to attach the bottom of the wall paneling.
Base Plate
A plate attached to the bottom of a column which rests on a foundation or other support, usually secured by anchor bolts.
Base Tube
A continuous member imbedded in the edge of the foundation to which the wall panels are attached.
Bay
The space between the main frames measured normal to the frame.
Beam
A member, usually horizontal, that is subjected to bending loads. There are three types, simple, continuous, and cantilever.
Beam and Column
A structural system consisting of a series of rafter beams supported by columns. Often used as the end frame of a building.
Bearing End Frame
See "Beam and Column".
Bearing Plate
A steel plate that is set on the top of a masonry support on which a beam or purlin can rest.
Bent
See "Main Frame".
Bill of Materials
A list that enumerates by part number or description each piece of material or assembly to be shipped. Also called tally sheet or shipping list.
Bird Screen
Wire mesh used to prevent birds from entering the building through ventilators and louvers.
Blind Rivet
A small headed pin with expandable shank for joining light gauge metal. Typically used to attach flashing, gutter, etc.
Box Girder
Girders, trucks or other members of rectangular cross section enclosed on four sides.
Bracing
Rods, angles or cables used in the plane of the roof and walls to transfer loads, such as wind, seismic and crane thrusts to the foundation.
Bracket
A structural support projecting to a structural member. Examples are canopy brackets, leanto brackets, and crane runway brackets.
Bridge (Crane)
That part of an overhead crane consisting of girders, trucks, end ties, walkway and drive mechanism which carries the trolley and travels in a direction parallel to the runway.
Bridge Crane
A load lifting system consisting of a hoist which moves laterally on a beam, girder or bridge which in turn moves longitudinally on a runway made of beams and rails.
Bridging
Bracing or systems of bracing used between structural members.
British Thermal Unit (BTU)
That amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by 1 deg.F.
Builder
See "Dealer".
Building
A structure forming an open, partially enclosed, or enclosed space constructed by a planned process of combining materials, components, and subsystems to meet specific conditions of use.
Building Aisle
A space defined by the length of the building and the space between building columns.
Building Code
Regulations established by a recognized agency describing design loads, procedures and construction details for structures usually applying to a designated political jurisdiction (city, county, state, etc.).
Built-Up Roofing
A roof covering made up of alternating layers of tar and asphaltic materials.
Built-Up Section
A structural member, usually an I-shaped section, made from individual flat plates welded together.
Bumper
An energy-absorbing device for reducing impact when a moving crane or trolley reaches the end of its permitted travel; or when two moving cranes or trolleys come into contact.
Butt Plate
The end plate of a structural member usually used to rest against a like plate of another member in forming a connection. Sometimes called a splice plate or bolted end plate.
Bypass Girt
See "Exterior Framed".
C-Section
A member formed from steel sheet in the shape of a block "C", that may be used either singularly or back to back.
Cab-Operated Crane
A crane controlled by an operator in a cab supported on the bridge or trolley.
Camber
Curvature of a flexural member in the plane of its web before loading.
Canopy
A projecting roof system that is supported and restrained at one end only.
Cantilever Beam
A beam supported only at one end having a free end and a fixed end.
Cap Plate
A plate located at the top of a column or end of a beam for capping the exposed end of the member.
Capacity
The maximum load (usually stated in tons) which a crane is designed to support.
Capillary Action
That action which causes movement of liquids when in contact with two adjacent surfaces such as panel sidelaps.
Caulk
See "Sealant".
Channel, Hot Rolled
A C-shaped member formed while in a semi-molten state at the steel mill to a shape having standard dimensions and properties.
Cladding
The exterior metal roof and wall paneling of a Metal Building System. See also "Components and Cladding".
Clip
A plate or angle used to fasten two or more members together.
Closure Strip
A resilient strip, formed to the contour of ribbed panels and used to close openings created by ribbed panels joining other components.
Cold Forming
The process of using press brakes or rolling mills to shape steel into desired cross sections at room temperature.
Collateral Loads
The weight of additional permanent materials required by the contract, other than the Building System, such as sprinklers, mechanical and electrical systems, partitions and ceilings.
Column
A main member used in a vertical position on a building to transfer loads from main roof beams, trusses, or rafters to the foundation.
Component
A part used in a Metal Building System. See also "Components and Cladding".
Components and Cladding
For wind load considerations, members that do not qualify as part of a Main Wind Force Resisting System. They include girts, joists, purlins, studs, wall and roof panels, fasteners, end wall columns and end wall rafters of bearing end frames, roof overhang beams, canopy beams, and masonry walls when acting as other than shear walls.
Concealed Clip
A hold down clip used with a wall or roof panel system to connect the panel to the supporting structure without exposing the fasteners on the exterior surface.
Connection
The means of attachment of one structural member to another.
Continuity
The terminology given to a structural system denoting the transfer of loads and stresses from member to member as if there were no connections.
Continuous Beam
A beam having three or more supports.
Contract Documents
The Documents that define the material and work to be provided by a Contractor or the General Contractor for a Construction Project.
Covering
See "Cladding."
Crane
A machine designed to move material by means of a hoist.
Crane Aisle
That portion of a building aisle in which a crane operates, defined by the crane span and the uninterrupted length of crane runway.
Crane Girder
The principal horizontal beams of the crane bridge which supports the trolley and is supported by the end tracks.
Crane Rail
A track supporting and guiding the wheels of a bridge crane or trolley system. On underhung cranes, the crane rail also acts as the runway beam.
Crane Runway Beam
The member that supports a crane rail and is supported by columns or rafters depending on the type of crane system. On underhung bridge cranes, the runway beam also acts as the crane rail.
Crane Span
The horizontal distance center-to-center of runway beams.
Crane Stop
A device to limit travel of a trolley or crane bridge. This device normally is attached to a fixed structure and normally does not have energy-absorbing ability.
Crane Support Column
A separate column which supports the runway beam of a top-running crane.
Curb
A raised edge on a concrete floor slab or roof accessory.
Curtain Wall
Perimeter wall panels which carry only their own weight and wind load.
Damper
A baffle used to open or close the throat of ventilators.
Dead Load
The weight of the Building System construction consisting of members such as framing and covering.
Dealer
A party who, as a routine part of his business, buys Metal Building Systems from a manufacturer for the purpose of resale.
Deflection
The displacement of a structural member relative to its supports due to applied loads. Deflection should not be confused with "Drift".
Design Loads
The loads expressly specified in the contract documents which the Metal Building System is designed to safely resist.
Design Professional
The Architect or Engineer responsible for the design of a Construction Project.
Diagonal Bracing
See "Bracing".
Diaphragm Action
The resistance to racking generally offered by the panels, fasteners, and members to which they are attached.
Direct Tension Indicator
See "Load Indicating Washer".
Door Guide
An angle or channel used to stabilize or keep plumb a sliding or rolling door during its operation.
Downspout
A conduit used to carry water from the gutter of a building.
Drift (Sidesway)
Horizontal displacement at the top of a vertical element due to lateral loads. Drift should not be confused with "Deflection". Drift (Snow) The snow accumulation at a height discontinuity.
Drift Pin
A tapered pin used during erection to align holes in steel members to be connected by bolting.
Eave
The line along the sidewall formed by the intersection of the planes of the roof and wall.
Eave Gutter
See "Gutter".
Eave Height
The vertical dimension from finished floor to the eave.
Eave Strut
A structural member located at the eave of a building which supports roof and wall paneling.
Edge Strip
The surface area of a building at the edges of the roof and at the wall intersections where the wind loads on components and cladding are greater than at other areas of the building.
Effective Wind Area
The area used to determine the wind coefficient. The effective wind area may be greater than or equal to the tributary area.
Elastic Design
A design concept utilizing the proportional behavior of materials when all stresses are limited to specified allowable values in the elastic range.
Electric Operated Crane
A crane in which the bridge, hoist or trolley is operated by electric power.
Electric Overhead Traveling Crane
An electrically-operated machine for lifting, lowering and transporting loads, consisting of a movable bridge carrying a fixed or movable hoisting mechanism and traveling on an overhead runway structure.
End Approach
The minimum horizontal distance, parallel to the runway, between the outermost extremities of the crane and the centerline of the hook.
End Bay
The bays adjacent to the end-walls of a building. Usually the distance from the end-wall to the first interior main frame measured normal to the end-wall.
End Frame
A frame located at the end-wall of a building which supports the loads from a portion of the end bay.
End Post
See "End Wall Column".
End Stop
A device attached to a crane runway or rail to provide a safety stop at the end of a runway.
End Truck
The unit consisting of truck frame, wheels, bearings, axles, etc., which supports the bridge girders.
End Wall
An exterior wall which is parallel to the interior main frame of the building.
End Wall Column
A vertical member located at the end-wall of a building which supports the girts. In beam and column end frames, end-wall columns also support the beam.
End Wall Overhang
The projection of the roof beyond the plane of the endwall.
End Zone
The surface area of a building along the roof at the end-wall and at the corners of walls.
Engineer/Architect of Record
The engineer or architect who is responsible for the overall design of the building project. The manufacturer's engineer is typically not the Engineer of Record.
Erection
The on-site assembling of fabricated Metal Building System components to form a completed structure.
Erection Bracing
Materials used by erectors to stabilize the building system during erection.
Erection Drawings
Roof and wall erection (framing) drawings that identify individual components and accessories furnished by the manufacturer in sufficient detail to permit proper erection of the Metal Building System.
Erector
A party who assembles or erects a Metal Building System.
Expansion Joint
A break or space in construction to allow for thermal expansion and contraction of the materials used in the structure.
Exterior Framed
A wall framing system where the girts are mounted on the outside of the columns.

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