In this example we need to calculate the weight of a 1/16 of an inch thick steel plate, so that we can select rigging equipment capable to lift it’s weight. This is an example of a homogeneous thickness sheet of material, so we will use our weight of material chart for calculating it’s weight. After measuring the sheet, we find it’s length to be 17 feet, and it’s width to be 12 feet. Using our prior knowledge in calculating the area of a rectangle we multiply 17 feet, times 12 feet, and we get an area of 204 square feet. We now use this value and multiply it by the weight value for steel at a thickness of 1/16 of an inch, which is highlighted on the chart in yellow. That means multiplying 204 times 2.55, and we get a weight of 520.5 pounds, for a 1/16 of an inch steel sheet. With this knowledge we can now select the appropriate rigging equipment that can lift this weight.
