Be Structural Newsletter
Hello and welcome to our latest Be Structural Newsletter! In this edition we are pleased to introduce you to very exciting new product releases, like the Integrated Structural Model and AutoPIPE Nuclear:
We hope you find this newsletter informative. If you have any comments, please let us know.
Featured Product: RAM Elements V8i
RAM Elements V8i (release 10.0) is a unique combination of a 3D finite element analysis/design program with structural engineering toolkit modules for your every day engineering design needs.
From the creators of RAM Advanse and STAAD.etc comes the first general purpose software that features a number of innovative engineering desktop tools that perform fully integrated with the 3D model or as stand-alone programs.
A growing collection of 11 modules (12 if with the integration of RAM Connection) in a single convenient program. Design anything from a retaining wall to a spread footing or a continuous beam in any material including skip loading. Investigate in minutes the possible design of a masonry wall vs. a concrete wall. The modules in RAM Elements offer something for every engineer, no matter the size of your firm or the area of your practice.
The tools available range from simple structure components to full complex structures in hot rolled steel, cold-formed steel, reinforced concrete, wood and masonry. All per the latest codes referenced by IBC 2006.
What's new in RAM Elements V8i?
- Link to Bentley’s ISM (Integrated Structural Model) for export/import options to/from RAM Concept, Bentley Structural, Bentley PowerStructural and Revit.
- New attractive graphic user interface with better tools to model/analyze/design faster!
- Design enhancements to the masonry, tilt-up and concrete wall modules.
- Faster optimization of sizes and rebar layout in the spread and combined footing modules.
What’s coming later in the year?
A wood shear wall module, a base plate design module (including anchorage per ACI 318-05 Appendix D), export to RAM SBeam and P-d (small) effects.
Availability
RAM Elements will be available in the summer 2009 and may be downloaded through our SELECT website.
Contact us for more information about RAM Elements V8i.
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New Releases: Bentley AutoPIPE Nuclear Answers Need for Shorter Nuclear Plant Design, Site-Licensing, and Manufacturing Cycles
Newly released AutoPIPE Nuclear (powered by ADLPipe) is a plant detailed design tool which helps engineers, constructors, and owner-operators conduct extensive and more accurate modeling and stress analyses on aging and new nuclear power stations. To address the widely anticipated need for field-proven design methods leading to shorter nuclear plant design, site-licensing, and manufacturing cycles, AutoPIPE Nuclear combines ADLPipe – the industry’s most widely used standard piping analysis engine – with the innovative and productive modeling environment of Bentley AutoPIPE. One of the many benefits of Bentley AutoPIPE Nuclear stems from its use of a CAD-like graphical interface with unique graphical-object, point-and-click, and copy-and-paste technologies. This enables design and engineering professionals to quickly make modifications and find solutions in problem areas. Current users of Bentley AutoPIPE Nuclear include Washington Group; Shaw Stone and Webster, a unit of The Shaw Group Inc.; Fluor Federal Services; and AREVA NP.
With global demand for electricity expected to double by 2030, the cost of carbon-based energy sources climbing, and much of the world taking steps to sustain the environment by reducing carbon emissions, the building of new nuclear power stations is once again an attractive and viable option. As aging nuclear plants close, and the demand for new stations increases, a sizable investment in nuclear power plants by the United States, Europe, India, and China is anticipated. With the release of AutoPIPE Nuclear, powered by ADLPipe, Bentley is well positioned to support this growing commitment on the part of governments to the renaissance of nuclear power plant construction.
Among the major features of Bentley AutoPIPE Nuclear are:
- Comprehensive analysis capability, including ASME NB Class 1, ASME NC Class 2, ASME ND Class 3, material properties database, Class 1 components and joint type, rupture stress criterion, and comprehensive fatigue evaluation;
- Bentley’s rigorous quality assurance and reporting program that’s in accordance with ASME NQA-1, ISO 9001, CSA N286.7-99, ASME N45.2, and 10CFR50 application standards;
- ASME NB and NC code years that date to 1972 for maintenance and operation on existing nuclear plants;
- Japanese JSME PPC Class 2 piping code;
- Advanced analysis features integrated through wall thermal gradient, thermal stratification, fluid transient, seismic response spectra enveloping, and steam relief analyses;
- Bidirectional integration with STAAD.Pro for combined piping and structural analysis for more accurate engineering designs;
- User-defined static-load sets that provide unlimited static analyses that specify different design scenarios;
- Automated and user-defined stress combinations with powerful filtering capabilities that identify and solve complex problems quickly;
- Reliable 3D CAD interoperability with software products that include AutoPLANT, PDS, PDMS, PlantSpace, ProjectWise Navigator, and SmartPlant 3D for fast and accurate model creation;
- ADLPipe Translator to import and convert existing ADLPipe models.
Learn more about Bentley AutoPIPE Nuclear, powered by ADLPipe.
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Bentley’s Latest Technology: Integrated Structural Model (ISM)
With the Integrated Structural Model (ISM) release just months away, the excitement is building among the structural development teams within Bentley. Why are these developers so excited? Because ISM will offer our clients a new and improved way to manage the multiple software applications that are required on structural projects.
What makes ISM unique from other products and the previous integration “links”? The workflow and capabilities of ISM are quite different:
Engineers can start a project using any structural application, not just an “uber-modeler” application. If the RAM Structural System is your application of choice, you are free to start there. You can then use a product like STAAD.Pro to do a lateral analysis or Bentley Structural to produce contract drawings without compromising the integrity of the model (which happens when doing typical import/export or using industry standard neutral files).
ISM has a very capable change management system. Engineers can review and approve (or reject) all changes made to the ISM model. Engineers are presented with a preview of the changed model to assist in determining if the proposed changes are appropriate. Partial approvals (where some changes are accepted and others are rejected) are also available.
ISM tracks changes, both visually and with check-in notes. Now it is possible to determine exactly who made a change, and when it was made. Changes that were made in error can be undone, days, weeks or months later.
ISM models can be reviewed with Bentley View - a free viewing application. There is no need to purchase additional seats of any application just to allow managers and collaborators to view the ISM model.
The ISM Engine is available free for 3rd party use. You can write, use and distribute your own custom ISM link in VB, C# or any other dot-net language without needing to purchase any ISM components.
ISM is a technology unlike those that our industry has seen before. The first applications to link with ISM will be Bentley Structural, RAM Elements (formerly RAM Advanse), RAM Concept and Revit (Structure and/or Architecture). By the end of 2009, most of Bentley's other structural applications will have ISM links as well.
View the Be Connected ISM seminar. Register here now!
Learn more about Bentley’s structural offerings.
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Contributions from the Structural Team
A Revisit to Linear Solvers in RSS
Bulent N. Alemdar, Ph.D., Senior Software Product Research Engineer
RAMFE is the finite element analysis engine of RAM Structural System and it is used for several products including RAM Frame, RAM Concrete and RAM Elements (formerly RAM Advanse). In past years, ability of walls with openings is integrated into RSS, which involves meshing of walls and enforcing compatibility conditions between orthogonal wall systems. This process is completely automated and it takes care of all meshing details. And recently, lateral analysis of structures with semi-rigid diaphragms and gravity analysis with two-way load distribution are added to RAM Structural System. Again, it involves meshing semi-rigid diaphragms with openings considered as well as enforcing compatibility conditions between meshed diaphragms and walls. It is observed that these features substantially amplify the size of an analytical model created and demand a significant increase for computer resources (particularly a crucial issue for big models). Observing the fact that a substantial amount of computer resources are usually needed for solving “n” number of equations, an efficient solver is desirable to provide a more productive analysis platform. To this end, the engine is recently updated with a new sparse solver to address these performance issues. In this paper, the new solver is compared to the existing solutions in RAM FE and two examples are provided to highlight the merits of the new solver.
Read the full article from Bulent N. Alemdar.
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Meet the Team - The Driving Force of Bentley’s ISM: Allan Bommer
Bentley’s latest technology, the Integrated Structural Model (ISM), works behind the scenes to provide engineers with a shared repository for structural information and single program visualization of the structure for increased coordination. (See article in this issue on the ISM.)
The driving force behind the ISM technology is Allan Bommer, PE, who is Bentley’s Chief Design Engineer for our structural concrete products. With Allan’s experience in developing new technology there is no one better suited for this task.
Since obtaining his BS and MS in Civil Engineering from MIT in 1985, Allan has been heavily involved in the concrete and post-tensioning software industry. In 1989 he founded Bommer Coleman, Inc. and wrote the first mass market post-tensioning finite element analysis software program. While there he designed and built an award-winning concrete building, tying the rebar, building the forms and pouring the concrete with the two other members of his crew.
In 2000 he co-founded a software company, Structural Concrete Software, Inc., and created a cutting-edge, post-tensioning concrete slab design software which today is the best-selling program, Bentley’s RAM Concept.
Allan Bommer represented Bentley at the recent American Concrete Institute Convention and was named a Fellow of the American Concrete Institute. Bentley is enthusiastically involved in all areas of ACI activity from development of the ACI 318 building code to the creation of software interoperability standards for concrete structures.
Learn more about RAM Concept.
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Structural Quiz
In our last structural quiz we asked you to pick the correct moment diagrams for a cantilever column subjected to a high axial load and a shear. 67.7% of all respondents got the structural quiz right - the answer was C. Correct answers were submitted by:
Afzal Kareem, CED
Ahmed Mohamed Othman, icf
Al Wolnski, Gallet & Associates, Inc.
Allan Long, Ahler & Young
Andrew Rauch
Andrew Stephansen, Jacobs Engineering
Anish Thomas, Middle East Prestressing
Arif Mahmood,Tadjer-Cohen-Edelson Associates
Arthur Ashburn, PB
Arunan Arumainayagam, Independent Technology Limited
Atilio Andrade, cadaconsult
B Holman, aztek
Ben Jennings, Butler Rosenbury
Bhajan Singh, M & M Consulting Engineers
Brent Boes, AAR Mobility Systems
Brian Herzfeldt, Lear Corporation
Brian Trapp, SNC Lavalin
Bryan Frey, OWP/P
Carlo Margheriti, Alhambra
Carlos Aguera, Bentley
Carlos Leal, CARLOS LEAL Structural Engineers
Carlos Padilla, LA Co DPW
Carmine Filoia, Cagley & Assoc.
Charlie McGowan, HATCH
Daksha Girish, Rexzion Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
David J. Brosig, Meers Engineering, Inc.
Denis McNelis, AMSE
Dilan R, BCC City Design
G.Schaaf, TPD
George Soukar, dematic
Gil Graham, Pioneer Bridges
Glenn, Counrty Energy
Gonzalo Camponovo, G. C. Estructuras.
Greg Arbour, KLG Corporation
H DE SILVA, DT
Jabran Saleem, art heir interiors and decor
James MacKenzie
Jarib Medina, Christie Engineering, P.C.
Jon Grey, P.E., Wohlsen Construction Company
Jorge Gutierrez, structural Designers
Josh Brown, Marine Industrial Design
Judith Cosby, HDR
Kayode Aremu, first ambition inv.limited
Kirk Davis, Mattson Macdonald Young Structural Engineers
Kotha S. Rao
Kunle Patrick, TEPNL
Len Rozovsky, The S/L/A/M Collaborative
Manuel Elias, Probajel
Marc D. Rossignol, Hill Foley Rossi & Associates
Marc D'Amore, Russell and Dawson, LLC.
Mark, CTA
Marvin Wolfe
Matt Novicki, Allied Engineering, Inc.
Matt Reuer, HDR
Mehwish Aslam, aa associates
Melissa Mucha, Hoyle, Tanner & Associates, Inc.
Michal Ciupak, Clarke Bond
Nathan Johnson, GBA
Obed Caban-Velez, Caban Structural Engineering Office
Patrick Harkin, KBR
Paul Dunn, Finite Dsign
Paul Ivie, The Benham Cos., LLC
Pragasam, frishmann prabhu
Rahim Zadeh, Marino Ware
Raj Bhatia, Carollo Engineers
Rasha Yehia, futech
Raymond Smith, USACE
Rich Eckert, Laurene, Rickher & Sorrell, PC
Rich Pakhchanian, FHWA
Richard Lewis, Lewis Engineering
ROBERT STROBEL, ArcelorMittal Steel
Robert Tristram, KBR
Rodriguez, Baker
Rolando Gozalez
ROMULO G. BANI, AZZAM CONTRACTING CO.
Rupesh Valentine, Maritime Gulf LLC
Ryan C. Barth, Monroe & Newell Engineers
Scott Lawson, Parsons Brinckerhoff
Scott Wright, DEM (Aust) Pty Ltd
Shawn Kowalewski, MNS Engineers, Inc.
Stephen Zellner, SEM Architects
Szabo Endre
Teddy Meshesha, CDOT
Themos Demetriou, Themos Demetriou, Civil Engineer
Timothy M. Gilbert, Louis Perry & Associates
Tom, RIC Inc
Tom Bedford, BEP Consulting Engineers
Troy Nissen, Thompson, Dreessen & Dorner
Vincent Palese
Thanks to all who took part!
Our new quiz for this newsletter is as follows:
Ignoring the effect of shear deformation, what is the deflection at the free end of a propped cantilever with a load P on the free end thus:
100mm x 100mm rod, L = 5000mm, a = 1000mm
Answer 1:
Answer 2:
Answer 3:
Submit your answer here.
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Be Connected Online Seminar Series
Bentley is proud to announce the launch of the Be Connected online seminar series. This series offers a unique stream of over 100 online educational seminars on best practices, and over 50 seminars on Bentley products to help you work smarter. For many years, Bentley has brought such seminars to its users at Be Conference. In the spirit of “Sustaining Infrastructure” from 2009, we bring the same unique content to the desktops of infrastructure professionals around the globe through the Be Connected Seminar Series.
Be Connected seminars are given by experts in their fields and have been designed to help you keep abreast of the latest advances in both practice and technology for infrastructure. Find sessions of specific interest to Structural Engineers here!
Be engaged, be informed, and be empowered
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Registration is open now!
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Unique, professional-level content delivered to your desktop for FREE.
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Interact with infrastructure thought leaders in live Q&a sessions.
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Each live seminar will be available OnDemand after the live webcast date.
Take this unique opportunity to attend the Be Connected seminars and learn from some of the “best and brightest” in the world of infrastructure.
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