ABSTRACT
Steel castings have the potential to provide new opportunities for reducing cost, improving performance, and facilitating unique structures. Steel castings are currently used for high performance and critical applications in the railroad, construction, mining, and pump/valve industries. Recent research has shown steel castings can be used in seismic applications for building construction and perform well beyond requirements. Steel castings provide open geometry, manufacturing flexibility, equivalent mechanical properties to wrought material, and good weldability. Steel Founders’ Society of America (SFSA) and American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) have partnered with the University of Arizona to develop casting applications, such as modular and seismic connectors, for building construction through National Science Foundation sponsorship.
