What Are Standard Steel Shapes?

Bar and Plate

• Bars and plates are simply steel sheets. These two shapes are able to fully utilize the structural tensile properties of steel, but they are weak in compression due to their geometry. Bars and plates are often used to reinforce other steel shapes or are welded into T-shapes for cantilevers.

Angle

• Steel angles are L-shaped and are composed of two steel plates. Angles are often used together as tensile members in bridges, stadiums and other steel structures. Angles also are used at structural edges and ridges, as well as at lintels. Like steel bars and plates, angles are very strong in tension and weak in compression.

Channel

• Channels are C-shaped steel members that are used as beams or along the edges of structural frames. Steel channels are much better in compression than angles or bars and plates, but the asymmetry of the channel shape limits their function. Channels are often used aesthetically to cast a shadow line or make the structure appear especially thin.

Wide Flange and I-Beam

• Wide flanges and I-beams are H- or I-shaped structural members. These shapes are perfect for both compression and tension as the loads are transferred to the outer flanges and the web separates the flanges, creating greater load-bearing capacity relative to the area of the cross section. The American standard I-beam, also called an S-shape, is rarely used today because it has a lower load-bearing capacity than the wide flange, also called a W-shape.

Structural Tubing

• Structural tubing is a steel shape that is strong in tension and compression. It is hollow on the interior to lower weight yet limit deflection, or bending, under a load. Furthermore, the hollow interior of steel structural tubing can be used to house conduit, pipes and drains. Structural tubing is usually used in place of a structure that must resist torsion, or twisting.