Effect of web holes on web crippling strength of cold-formed steel channel sections under end-one-flange loading condition - Part II: Parametric study and proposed design equations

This paper reports the second part of a study on the web crippling strength of cold-formed steel channel sections with web holes under the end-one-flange (EOF) loading condition. A parametric study is presented, using validated finite element models from the companion paper, that investigates the effect of web hole and cross-section sizes. The holes are located either centred above the bearing plates or with a horizontal clear distance to the near edge of the bearing plates. It was demonstrated that the main factors influencing the web crippling strength are the ratio of the hole depth to the depth of the web, the ratio of the length of bearing plates to the flat depth of the web and the location of the holes as defined by the distance of the hole from the edge of the bearing plate divided by the flat depth of web. In this study, design recommendations in the form of web crippling strength reduction factor equations are proposed, which are conservative when compared with the experimental and finite element results.