The Washington, D.C.-based Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute (CFSEI) will host a webinar titled “Strengthening the Weakest Link – Designing Reliable Connections for Cold-Formed Steel Framing” on February 7 at 3:00 p.m. EST. The webinar will discuss considerations for cold-formed steel connection design and is intended for architects, engineers, building officials, and others who design or evaluate cold-formed steel connections. 

Topics include:

  • The proper design of angles, blocks of stud, or proprietary clips for metal connectors and small fasteners to produce a strong, easy-to-install connection between cold-formed steel framing members;
  • Common construction challenges, such as insufficient tool access, drill capacity, and adjustability;
  • Techniques for determining connection capacity under eccentric loading, buckling, prying, and other commonly overlooked failure modes;
  • Characteristics of common fasteners;
  • Techniques of connection design with emphasis on clip angles designed for compression, tension, and shear.

The presenter is John Lyons, owner of Peachtree City, Ga.-based Structural Evolution, a firm specializing in the design of cold-formed steel-framed structures. With more than 18 years of experience in the industry, Lyons is secretary and treasurer of the Atlanta Chapter of the CFSEI and a former member of the CFSEI Executive Committee. He has authored several CFSEI Technical Notes on the design of cold-formed steel framing connections. More information about the webinar and registration details are available on the CFSEI website, www.cfsei.org.