Designers’ Guide to Eurocode 9: Design of Aluminium Structures

ISBN 978-0-7277-5737-1

ICE Publishing: All rights reserved

http://dx.doi.org/10.1680/das.57371.001

Introduction

The material in this introduction relates to the foreword to the European standard EN 1999-1-1,
‘Eurocode 9: Design of aluminium structures – Part 1-1: General structural rules’.

The following aspects are covered

g the background of the Eurocode programme

g the status and field of application of Eurocodes
g the national standards implementing Eurocodes
g the links between Eurocodes and product-harmonised technical specifications (ENs and
ETAs)
g additional information specific to EN 1999-1-1.

Background of the Eurocode programme

Work began on the set of structural Eurocodes in 1975, although work on Eurocode 9 did not
start until 1990.

The first drafts of some of the Eurocodes (ENVs) started to appear in the mid-1980s. The
fragmented nature and multiple parts of many Eurocodes, many of which were not published
until much later, meant that the drafts were not readily usable for many applications.

ENV 1999-1-1 was published as a draft in 1998. Several countries carried out extensive
calibration checks, and these checks gave rise to comments that were taken into account in the
drafting of EN 1999-1-1, which was published in 2007.

The original, and unchanged, main grouping of the Eurocodes comprises ten standards each one
generally comprising a number of parts. The ten standards are:

g EN 1990, ‘Eurocode: Basis of structural design’

g EN 1991, ‘Eurocode 1: Actions on structures’
g EN 1992, ‘Eurocode 2: Design of concrete structures’
g EN 1993, ‘Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures
g EN 1994, ‘Eurocode 4: Design of composite steel and concrete structures’
g EN 1995, ‘Eurocode 5: Design of timber structures’
g EN 1996, ‘Eurocode 6: Design of masonry structures’
g EN 1997, ‘Eurocode 7: Geotechnical design’
g EN 1998, ‘Eurocode 8: Design of structures for earthquake resistance’
g EN 1999, ‘Eurocode 9: Design of aluminium structures’.

Status and field of application of Eurocodes

Generally, the Eurocodes provide structural design rules that may be applied to complete struc-
tures and structural components and other products. Rules are provided for common forms of
construction, and it is recommended that specialist advice is sought when considering unusual
structures. More specifically, the Eurocodes serve as reference documents that are recognised
by the EU member states for the following purposes:

g as a means to prove compliance with the essential requirements of Council Directive

89/106/EEC

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Designers’ Guide to Eurocode 9: Design of Aluminium Structures

g as a basis for specifying contracts for construction or related works

g as a framework for developing harmonised technical specifications for construction
products.

National standards implementing Eurocodes

The national standards implementing Eurocodes (e.g. BS-EN 1999-1-1: 2007+A2) must
comprise the full, unaltered text of that Eurocode and its annexes. Generally, there will be a
national title page and a national foreword.

Of significant importance is the National Annex, which may be published as a separate

document. The National Annex gives country-specific information on those parameters left
open to national choice (e.g. values of partial safety factors). The National Annex also gives
country-specific decisions on the status of informative annexes in the Eurocode – whether they
become normative, remain informative and can be used, or whether they are not recommended
for use in the country.

National choice is allowed in the clauses of EN 1999-1-1 listed in Table 1.

The National Annex may also reference non-contradictory complementary information. In the
UK, PD 6702-1:2009 gives recommendations for the design of aluminium structures to
BS EN 1999.

Links between Eurocodes and product-harmonised technical

specifications (ENs and ETAs)
The clear need for consistency between the harmonised technical specifications for construction
products and the technical notes for works is highlighted. Of particular note is that information

Table 1. Clauses in EN 1991-1-1 for which national choice is permitted

Subclause Nationally Determined Parameter

1.1.2(1) Minimum material thicknesses

2.1.2(3) Options allowed by EN 1090 to suit reliability level required
2.3.1(1) Actions for particular regional or climatic or accidental situations
3.2.1(1) Use of aluminium alloys and tempers not listed in clause 3.2.1
3.2.2(1) Rules for application of electrically welded tubes produced to EN 1592-1 to 4
3.2.2(2) Characteristic strength at service temperatures between 808C and 1008C
3.2.3.1(1) Quality requirements for castings
3.3.2.1(3) Provisions for the use of aluminium bolts and solid rivets
3.3.2.2(1) Rules for preloaded bolts other than classes 8.8 and 10.9
5.2.1(3) Global mode elastic instability criterion
5.3.2(3) Design vales of initial bow imperfections
5.3.4(3) Initial imperfection factor to be used for second order analysis taking account of lateral
torsional buckling
6.1.3(1) ULS partial safety factors
6.2.1(5) Critical point yield criterion for the resistance of cross-sections
7.1(4) Plastic redistribution of moments and force at serviceability limit state
7.2.1(1) Building vertical deflection limits
7.2.2(1) Building horizontal deflection limits
7.2.3(1) Building dynamic effects limits
8.1.1(2) Partial safety factors gM for joints
8.9(3) Other joining methods
A.2 Rules for the application of consequence classes and reliability classes
C.3.4.1(2) Partial safety factors gM for castings
C.3.4.1(3) Partial safety factors gM for bearing resistance in castings with bolts and rivets
C.3.4.1(4) Partial safety factors gM for resistance in castings with pin connections
K.1(1) Specific flange geometry where shear lag effects can be ignored at ULS
K.3(1) Methods for determining shear lag effects at ULS

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 Introduction

accompanying the CE marking of construction products that refer to Eurocodes must detail
which Nationally Determined Parameters have been taken into account.

Additional Information specific to EN 1999-1-1

As with the Eurocodes for other structural materials, Eurocode 9 is to be used in conjunction
with EN 1990 and EN 1991 for basic principles, actions (loads) and combinations of actions.

EN1991-1-1 is the first of five parts of EN 1999. It gives the general design rules for most types of
structure subject to predominately static actions. Other parts of Eurocode 9 deal with structural
fire design, structures susceptible to fatigue, cold-formed sheeting and shell structures.