At KA Engineering Group, we recently completed a project involving the structural analysis of a sequence of towers supporting netting enclosing a sports complex to ensure that the structures could withstand the wind and weight loading on the, tower, connecting wires and netting, protecting the public from stray balls.
The towers are connected as an array, so it is important to analyse the full connected structure to properly define the system response. However, analysing a large number of lattice towers in a single finite element analysis is complex and computationally expensive. To simplify, we completed preliminary analysis by replacing the lattice towers with single poles. We had to ensure that the poles were representative of the global behaviour of the individual towers. The closer the poles are to the towers, the more analogous the global interaction between the actual tower sequence.
We determined the global properties such stiffness, deflection, of each individual lattice tower. The structural characteristics of the poles (main inner and outer diameters) were iteratively refined until the pole and lattice tower responses were equal. The benefit of continuous refinement is greater accuracy. Using the resulting loads (forces, moments) from the sequence analysis of the poles, we were able to assess then perform detailed analysis of each lattice tower.
Using poles in the sequence analysis allowed us to deliver the project in good time to the client. At KA Engineering Group, we continue to push boundaries, developing new and unique ways to tackle structural issues and advancements in a range of applications. The dynamic nature of the development in our company sets us apart from our competition as we are always seeking to improve existing methods.
Contact our expert team at: info@ka-engroup.com to learn more and discuss how we can best serve your needs.