One of the innovations in RFEM 6 is the approach to designing steel connections. In contrast to RFEM 5, where the design of steel joints is based on an analytical solution, the Steel Joints add-on in RFEM 6 offers an FE solution for steel connections.
Steel connections in RFEM 6 are defined as an assembly of components. In the new Steel Joints add-on, universally applicable basic components (plates, welds, auxiliary planes) are available for entering complex connection situations. The methods with which connections can be defined are considered in two previous Knowledge Base articles: “A Novel Approach to Designing Steel Joints in RFEM 6" and “Defining Steel Joint Components Using the Library".
In this article, a lap joint of a ZL purlin on a monopitch roof is modeled and designed using the Steel Joints add-on, and compared with the load-bearing capacity table of the manufacturer.
RFEM 6 includes the Form-Finding add-on to determine the equilibrium shapes of surface models subjected to tension and members subjected to axial forces. Activate this add-on in the model's Base Data and use it to find the geometric position in which the prestress of lightweight structures is in equilibrium with the existing boundary conditions.
The Geotechnical Analysis add-on provides RFEM with additional specific soil material models that are able to suitably represent complex soil material behavior. This technical article is an introduction to show how the stress-dependent stiffness of soil material models can be determined.
The advantage of the RFEM 6 Steel Joints add-on is that you can analyze steel connections using an FE model for which the modeling runs fully automatically in the background. The input of the steel joint components that control the modeling can be done by defining the components manually, or by using the available templates in the library. The latter method is included in a previous Knowledge Base article titled “Defining Steel Joint Components Using the Library". The definition of parameters for the design of steel joints is the topic of the Knowledge Base article “Designing Steel Joints in RFEM 6".
Given that realistic determination of the soil conditions significantly influences the quality of the structural analysis of buildings, the Geotechnical Analysis add-on is offered in RFEM 6 to determine the soil body to be analyzed.
The way to provide data obtained from field tests in the add-on and use the properties from soil samples to determine the soil massifs of interest was discussed in Knowledge Base article “Creating Soil Body from Soil Samples in RFEM 6”. This article, on the other hand, will discuss the procedure to calculate settlements and soil pressures for a reinforced concrete building.
You can use the Steel Joints add-on in RFEM 6 to create and analyze steel connections using an FE model. You can control the modeling of the connections via a simple and familiar input of components. Steel joint components can be defined manually, or by using the available templates in the library. The former method is included in a previous Knowledge Base article titled “A Novel Approach to Designing Steel Joints in RFEM 6". This article will focus on the latter method; that is, it will show you how to define steel joint components using the available templates in the program’s library.
The quality of the structural analysis of buildings is significantly improved when the soil conditions are considered as realistically as possible. In RFEM 6, you can realistically determine the soil body to be analyzed with the help of the Geotechnical Analysis add-on. This add-on can be activated in the model’s Base Data as shown in Image 01.