Simplified girder analysis

A simplified method to analyze pin-ended girders as uniformly loaded members is presented. This method is shown to conservatively estimate the maximum moment, shear, and deflection of the girder without needing any of the beam reactions it supports. If the exact solutions for the maximum moment, shear, and/or deflections are needed, they can be easily found by multiplying the approximate results by a tabulated constant. Results are valid for any type of pin-ended girder, provided they are loaded by uniformly spaced beams or trusses. This method can easily be programmed into a spreadsheet, calculated by hand, or incorporated into an existing software package.