BJE: Engineering Robust, Reliable, Bolted Joints

BJE Training Focus

BJE provides advanced training.  We teach engineers what they need to know to design, assess and optimize complex joint systems.  We don’t cover what mechanical engineers already know or can easily reference: basic engineering concepts, fasteners standards, thread standards, material standards, power tool standards, fastener manufacturing methods, coating processes, standard torque charts, etc.  We teach what isn’t taught in school, and what’s not in textbooks.  Other technical bolt seminars don’t teach what we do.  Our training continues where the others leave off.  We focus on :

 

A joint is a system.  Text book explain how to bolt two simple plates together, and focus mainly on the bolt: size, grade, torque, and sometimes on threads, head type, coatings and preload.  The bolt is important.  We talk about that too, but then we move on to the other parts of your joint: washers, clevises, spacers, end caps, over-sized holes, slots, weld nuts, cone nuts, two-piece nuts, and how they all interact.  We discuss how to design clevis joints, wheel attachments, and other complex joints.  We teach a system approach.

 

 Load paths are important.  The whole purpose of a joint is to react externally applied loads.  Are external loads reacted through friction between the clamped members, as shear loads in the bolts, or a combination of both?  Different reference sources give different answers, and these different answers lead to different designs.  We show you how to calculate the actual load paths for your specific joint, the magnitude of the load in each path, and what design parameters affect the results.

 

Nominal isn’t good enough.  Most sources present nominal information: nominal torque ranges, nominal K-factors, nominal preloads, and nominal friction coefficients.  This approach results in a nominal assessment of joint performance.  But the nominal performance of a joint isn’t what you need to know; you need to know the full range of  joint performance.

 

It’s the tails of the distribution that matter.  Joint capacity has variation.  The low end of the distribution can let the joint slip.  The high end can yield the parts.  The nominal might work fine, but it’s the tails that make or break the joint.  We teach you how to calculate the tails.