When you go to twelve trade shows and speak to forty different engineering firms or fabricators each year, I hear people say it’s challenging to design structures for seismic applications. And in some ways, it’s true — if you design with ASTM A500 HSS, it can be difficult to predict how the sections will perform because of the variance in wall thickness and imprecise yield stress. Also, in some cases, A500 HSS might not be approved for use in moment frames.

When I hear this from engineers, I ask them if they’ve looked to design their structure with ASTM A1085 HSS instead. Typically, the answer is no, but when they hear that you’ll know the expected strength and the full nominal section properties, allowing you to easily predict performance, their interest usually picks up. Plus, A1085 is included in the pre-qualification of some proprietary high-seismic moment connections, speeding up your design process.

Additionally, there is new research coming out revealing that concentric braced frames using A1085 may allow for better drift performance. Altogether, that’s why you should think ASTM A1085 for your next seismic structure design. Check out this video to learn more!