How to Design a Steel Beam

by Tom Kujawa
Designing a steel beam is not as complicated as you may think. There are essentially 6
Steps to design most steel beams:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Material - Choose the appropriate grade of steel for the beam you will be designing.
Shape - Select the shape of steel beam you would like to design.
Span - Enter the distance you are trying to span.
Bracing - Not to be overlooked! Bracing is critical in determining the capacity of a
beam.
5. Load - Enter loads based on their type and load case.
6. Design - In the United States, there are two common methods of beam design (ASD
and LRFD). Select the method you would like to use and specify deflection limits.
In the WebStructural beam design app each of these steps has an associated icon to allow
you to efficiently work through the design process: