HSS Insider – April 2026 – Bolted Connections

April 2026 | Issue #43

This HSS Insider issue focuses on bolted connections for HSS and how to design them with confidence across a range of applications. Along with practical design guidance, you will find opportunities to keep learning through the returning 2026 Mastering HSS Connections webinar series, an upcoming May webinar, and a chance to participate in our sustainability contest.

Bolted Connections: Keep it Together with a Bolt of Confidence

This guide delivers clear, practical direction for navigating sustainability documentation requirements when specifying HSS. It breaks down key topics, including Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs), embodied carbon and GWP considerations, and common project submittal expectations. By outlining what’s required, where to source the information, and how to compile it effectively, the guide helps teams save time and better manage compliance requirements.

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Strength and Deformation of HSS Walls and Other Planar Elements Subject to Tension

When fasteners in tension are connected to an HSS wall or other planar element, verifying the strength and deformation of the supporting HSS wall is a critical part of the connection design. David Brown, structural engineering consultant for BlindBolt, compares the AISC Design Guide 24 and CIDECT approaches, walks through numerical examples, and explores when finite element software can help.

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Webinar

The Mastering HSS Connections Series Returns in 2026

STI is continuing the Mastering HSS Connections webinar series in 2026 with a comprehensive, multi-session program focused on HSS connection design. Building on the 2025 series launch, this series combines live and on-demand learning to give you the tools and confidence to design a wide range of connections.

From fundamental principles to more advanced design topics, each session is built to help you take on real-world challenges.

Earn Continuing Education Credits – Earn up to 12 PDH credits, with 1 PDH available per webinar. 

Click below for series packages and pricing. Receive discounts as an HSS Professional Member. Click here to become an HSS Professional Membership.

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Escape the Pen Weld: Alternatives to CJP Welds for HSS

Break free from the default of full-penetration CJP welds and explore more efficient alternatives for HSS connections. This webinar highlights practical options like fillet, PJP welds, and robotic advancements, along with recent AISC 360 updates and inspection considerations that influence design decisions. Through real examples, you’ll gain insight into selecting the right weld approach for your HSS applications. Participants can earn 1.0 PDH upon completion.

This live webinar has already been presented. Click below to watch other HSS recorded webinars on demand.

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Related Resources

HSS Design Manual, Volume 4: Truss & Bracing Connections

Add a valuable resource to your library with the STI HSS Design Manual, Volume 4, which features HSS truss and bracing connection design examples, including connections utilizing HSS braces, HSS beams and/or HSS columns.

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Video | End Plate Splice Types: Key Insights to Simplify Your HSS Designs

Several types of HSS end splices are available, each offering unique advantages. In this clip, we provide an overview of bolted end plate splices, discussing how they perform under compression or tension, the differences between bolting on two sides versus all around, considerations for prying action, and where to find code references and design examples.

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Sustainability Contest
Enter to Win $150 Gift Card!

Submit the correct answer to the following question to be entered into a drawing to win a $150 gift card:

According to Optimizing Sustainable Structures With HSS: A Comprehensive Guide (STI), Section C, when comparing two steel columns of equivalent capacity—a W12×40 wide-flange column and an HSS 8×8×1/4—what is the relative global warming potential (GWP) of the steel columns, including fireproofing?

The WF column has 6.3% greater GWP than the HSS column
B. The HSS column has 9% lower GWP than the WF column
The HSS column has 5.3% greater GWP than the WF column
The HSS column has 2.7% lower GWP than the WF column

The contest has ended. Click below to view the guide.

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