Economics of Construction in Relation to Framed Structures

From the 1850s onwards, the civil engineer Robert Henry Bow (1827-1909) published on the design of bridge and roof trusses. In this 1873 work, he applies Thomas Maxwell's contemporary work on graphical statics to a practical analysis of typical truss designs, showing which are most efficient.

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From the 1850s onwards, the civil engineer Robert Henry Bow (1827-1909) became known for his expertise in structural analysis, publishing on the design of bridge and roof trusses, and working with the prolific railway engineer Sir Thomas Bouch (of later Tay Bridge infamy). In the first part of this 1873 publication, Bow describes 337 different truss structures, grouping them into four classes according to their structural characteristics: statically determinate, kinematically determinate, indeterminate, and other. In the second part, he describes a method for graphically analysing truss structures, based on the work of Thomas Maxwell and others, and applies this method to the structures listed in the first part. Perhaps of most interest to the working engineer are the explanations as to which structures are most efficient given typical material constraints, such as girders of uniform cross-section. The work remained a useful resource for practising engineers well into the twentieth century.