--- url: https://qsteelcad.com/en/glossary language: en alternate: https://qsteelcad.com/sozluk updated: 2026-11-06 publisher: RENMAE Teknoloji ve Yazılım LTD. ŞTİ. --- # Light gauge steel and rollforming glossary Short definitions of terms used in light gauge steel design and production, and what they mean in QSteelCAD. ## Load path The sequence of members and connections a force passes through from where it acts to the ground. If one link is missing the system is not complete. ## Braced panel A light steel wall panel that resists lateral load with bracing members. TBDY 2018 classes this system as Limited Ductility Level. ## Sheathed panel A light steel wall panel that resists lateral load with sheathing fixed by screws. For sheathing to count as structural, stud spacing is at most 625 mm. ## X strap bracing (Strap bracing) Two flat steel straps fixed corner to corner on a panel face. It works in tension only; when the load reverses, the other strap takes over. ## K bracing A K-shaped layout of C-profile diagonals inside a panel bay. It carries tension and compression and needs buckling and node checks. ## Chord stud The stud at the end of a load-bearing panel segment. It carries tension and compression from bracing or sheathing and connects to the anchor. ## Bridging (Noggin) A horizontal member fixed between studs to shorten their buckling length. It holds the stud; it does not carry the building's lateral load. ## Hold-down A connection that transfers tension in the chord stud at a panel end to the structure below. ## Shear anchor A connection that transfers horizontal force at the panel base to the foundation. The number comes from the shear force to be transferred. ## Gusset plate A corner plate that spreads the force of a bracing member into studs and tracks. ## Diaphragm The in-plane action of a floor or roof that collects lateral force and delivers it to the lateral load-resisting walls. ## Collector A line that gathers diaphragm force into a lateral load-resisting panel or carries chord force. ## Eccentricity A force acting away from a member's axis. With a strap on one face, the moment T·e goes into the stud design. ## Net section The cross-section left after holes are taken out. Net section strength is checked at bracing connections. ## Overstrength factor (D) A TBDY factor that sizes the members and anchors connected to bracing for amplified forces. ## Temporary prop An inclined erection support that holds a panel until the permanent lateral system is complete. It is not permanent bracing. ## Strap tensioner An erection part used to fix strap bracing under tension. ## Light gauge steel (LGS, cold-formed steel (CFS)) A building system made of profiles cold-formed from thin steel sheet. Wall, roof and floor structures are built from these profiles. ## Rollforming A production line where steel strip passes through successive rollers and takes the shape of a profile. Stations along the line punch holes, notch, flatten and finally cut the profile. ## .bde file The production file a rollforming line reads. Each line describes one profile: its name, length and operation positions. QSteelCAD writes one .bde and one CSV per section. ## Machine profile The setting that defines which operations a rollforming line can perform. QSteelCAD ships with Rollform-80, 90, 140, 200 and 300; operations a profile doesn't support never reach the line. ## Station A unit on a rollforming line that performs one operation. In QSteelCAD, stations H, F, N, S, S2 and S3 switch on or off per machine profile. ## Panel A wall, roof or ceiling section made of profiles, produced and then assembled on site. QSteelCAD builds panels from a DXF plan. ## Stud A vertical load-bearing profile in a wall panel. It has a lipped C section and forms the main structure of the panel. ## Track The unlipped U profile that connects the studs at the bottom and top of a wall panel. ## Lintel The horizontal member above a door or window opening. It transfers the load from above to the studs on either side of the opening. ## Corner bracing Diagonal members added at wall panel corners. In QSteelCAD you choose None, Zigzag or K; bracing adds wall steel, and its adequacy is for the project engineer to approve. ## Truss The framed member that carries the roof. In QSteelCAD, Automatic roof places trusses by spacing and shows how many you will get before creating them. ## Girder truss A truss that carries other trusses at a junction. QSteelCAD flags these joints as needing an engineer's approval. ## Hip roof A roof that slopes on all four sides. In Automatic roof the end type can be half truss or cut truss. ## Gable roof A roof that slopes on two sides. It is one of the shapes Automatic roof builds. ## Notch (n:) A cut in a profile's web or flange for a connection. Written in the n: field of a .bde line. ## Flatten (f:) An area of a profile flattened for a connection. Written in the f: field of a .bde line. ## Swage (w:) An operation that narrows a profile's section. Written in the w: field of a .bde line. ## Service hole (s:, l:) A small or large hole in a profile for services. Written in the s: and l: fields of a .bde line. ## DXF A file format for moving CAD drawings between programs. QSteelCAD reads DXF plans; it does not read DWG, so the file must be saved as DXF. ## Takeoff The list of material quantities in a building. QSteelCAD calculates it from net area, waste rate and unit price, and never invents a price for a material without one.