Explain the need and Advantages of a Castellated Girder.
Answers
Castellated beams refer to the type of beams which involve expanding a standard rolled steel section in such a way that a predetermined pattern is cut on section webs and the rolled section is cut into two halves.
The two halves are joined together by welding and the high points of the web pattern are connected together to form a castellated beam. The castellated beams were commonly used in Europe in 1950s due to the limited ranges of the available steel rolled section and the cheap labour cost. In terms of structural performance, the operation of splitting and expanding the rolled steel sections helps to increase the section modulus of the beams.
Moreover, it is versatile for its high strength to weight ratio so that lighter section can be designed with subsequent cost saving in foundation.