Volex Labs / Calculations / Steel design to BS 5950-1:2000.

Steel design to BS 5950-1:2000.

For assessment and refurbishment work still carried out to the withdrawn but widely-referenced BS 5950, Volex Anvil computes the moment capacity Mc, the buckling resistance moment Mb with the equivalent slenderness, the shear capacity and the deflection to BS 5950-1:2000.

The results are checked against the SCI P202 Steelwork Design Guide, so the capacities match the published Blue-Book values engineers used before the Eurocodes.

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What Volex Anvil checks

Validated against the published example

UB moment capacity and buckling resistance — SCI P202 SCI P202 Steelwork Design Guide; BS 5950-1:2000 cl 4.2.5 / 4.3.6
QuantityPublishedVolex AnvilError
Moment capacity Mc521.85 kNm521.85 kNm0.00%
Buckling resistance Mb215.0 kNm212.16 kNm1.32%
This case is one of 359 published checks the platform passes — the full table, with every source and every error, is public at volexlabs.com/verification.

Frequently asked

Why offer a withdrawn code?
BS 5950 is still the basis for assessing and altering the large stock of buildings designed before the Eurocodes; matching the original code avoids spurious non-compliance.
Does it do lateral-torsional buckling?
Yes — Mb is computed from the equivalent slenderness λLT and the bending-strength curve of cl 4.3.6.
Is it validated?
Moment and buckling capacities are checked against SCI P202 — Mc within 0.00% and Mb within 1.32%.
Free to use?
Yes — 10 calculations a month free; Pro (£29/month) adds unlimited runs and PDF calc sheets.

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