Offshore Structure Platform Design - Offshore Structures: Design, Construction and Maintenance - page 146

Where overlapping of braces is necessary or preferred, and the braces differ
in nominal thickness by more than 10%, the brace with the larger wall thickness
should be the through brace and should be fully welded to the chord. Further,
where substantial overlap occurs, the larger diameter brace should be specified
as the through member. This brace may require an end stub to ensure that the
thickness is at least equal to that of the overlapping brace.
Longitudinal seam welds and girth welds should be located to minimize or
eliminate their impact on joint performance.
The longitudinal seam weld of the chord should be separated from incoming
braces by at least 12 inches (300 mm), as shown in Figure 3.31 . The longitudi-
nal seam weld of a brace should be located near the crown heel of the joint.
D/4
(max.)
D
d b /4 or 0.15
m (min)
50 mm
(min.)
4
1
d b
FIGURE 3.31 Out-of-plane joint detailing.