Basic guidelines in the analysis

and design of structures

20-06-2024
1. Understanding Requirements
Purpose: Determine the function and use of the structure.
Loads and Forces: Identify all the loads the structure will be
subjected to (e.g., dead loads, live loads, etc).

2. Site Analysis
Soil Conditions: Conduct soil tests to understand bearing
capacity, settlement, and other soil properties.
Environmental Factors: Consider local climate, seismic activity,
and other environmental conditions.
3. Material Selection
Suitability: Choose materials that are appropriate for the intended use
and environment.
Availability and Cost: Consider the cost and availability of materials.
Sustainability: Opt for sustainable and environmentally friendly
materials when possible.

4. Structural Analysis
Load Analysis: Calculate the loads and forces acting on the structure.
Structural Model: Create a model to analyze the distribution of these
forces and identify potential points of failure.
Methods: Use methods such as finite element analysis {FEA) for
5. Design Principles
Safety: Ensure the structure can withstand anticipated loads without failureo
Serviceability: Ensure the structure performs well under normal use
conditions without excessive deflections or vibrations.
Durability: Design for a long service life with minimal maintenance.
Code Compliance: Follow relevant building codes and standards.
6. Detailing
loa ds
Connections: Design join ts and con nec tion s to han dle the tran sfe r of
safely.
nfo rceme nt: For con cre te stru ctu res , des ign the pla cem ent and am oun t of
Rei
rein forc em ent .
wit hou t
Compatibility: Ensure diff ere nt par ts of the stru ctu re wo rk tog eth er
.
rssues.
7. Revi ew and Veri ficat ion
Peer Review: Have the design revie wed by othe r engineerso
Simulations and Testing: Conduct simu latio ns and, if possible,
physical testi ng of critical com pone nts.

8. Doc ume ntat ion

10. Post-Construction
Inspections: Conduct final inspections to ensure everyth ing is
built according to design.
Maintenance Plan: Provide a maintenance plan to ensure the
structu re remains in good conditi on.
Basic points of structural design and analysis 1
• Structural design is the process of creating a safe an d f unction al structure
under any load that it may experience.
• During this process, the structural engineer will determine the structure's
stability, strength, and stiffness (rigidity).
• The basic objective in structural design and analysis is to produce a structure
capable of resisting all applied loads without failure during its intended life.
• There are mainly 5 essential steps to be followed for the design of any
structure:
{l)Modelling
(2)Load analysis
( 3 )Structu ra I analysis
(4)Structural design
(S)Detailing.
1. Modelling
• The first step is to model the structure's mechanical skeleton, including its
foundations, columns, beams, frames, trusses, and ot her elements.
• The start point is the architectural model. An architectural model shows what
the structure will look like in reality, but it is not suitable for calculations due to
the high level of detailing.
• The architectural model needs to be stripped until only the load-bearing
structure remains.
• The load-bearing structure will transfer the applied loads to the groundo
• Translating the load-bearing structure to a model ready for calculations is called
schematization or creating the wireframe model, the mechanical model, or the
plan of the model.
• Schematization is a very important step: it is essential that that the mechanical
model can anticipate loads since it would be the basis for the whole process.
• The most uset1 structural e1ements wtHch can ne 1nci uaed ·in t tle strucrura1 moae1 are :
• Beams;
• Columns;
• Struts and ties;
• Slabs;
• Shear walls;
• Membranes.
Furthermore, modelling involves determining the structure s material, wheth er it would be
1
•
"structural steel "reinforced or prestressed concrete", "timber", or any mater ial.
11
,

• The choice depends mostly upon the economy and safety of a structure. A lot of structu re
consists of both steel, concrete, and timbe r elements.
• Model ling also involves assuming dimensions for each element which is the basis for self-
weigh t computation for the load analys is.
• Estimating the memb er size includes what should be the element width, the depth or the
thickness.
• Rules of thumb can be used for the choice of the initial dimensions.
• Anoth er relevant aspect in the modelling consists of defining the internal and external
boundary conditions of the members that make up the structure.
2. Load analysis
Next, the structural engineer must identify all possible loads that the structure may
experience during its lifetime. Examples of loads on structures are ;
• Dead loads, meaning the self-weight of the structure
• Live loads: occupancy of people in buildings, moving equipment, and the movement of
cars on bridges;
• Wind loads: any horizontal, uplift or shear pressures or forces that the wind exerts on a
building;
• Snow loads: only applicable for structures expected to receive snowfall;
• Earthquake loads: when the structure is in a seismic region;
• Earth pressure: to be applied for tunnels, retaining walls, cellars;
• Water and ice: for some structures such as bridges, offshore platforms, and coastal
structures;
• Thermal loads: Unequal heating or cooling of parts of the structure create high
stresses;
• Dynamic loads: for example, induced by machinery.
So, depending on where your structure is, you
must consider the various kinds of loads.
The values of these loads can be identified
using appropriate structural design codes and
referenceso Snow
In real life, different loads act simultaneously
with the structure.
The combination of the various loads should be
evaluated. For instance, a simultaneous action Live loads l
between dead load (weight of the structure)
and live load (use of the building by people) can
be a load combination. But also, dead loads and ----- __. I
Earth/ ---+
wind loads can be a combination. Finding wh ich water ---+ 1 - - - -- - -- - - - - - 1

pressure
is the worst load combination for your
structure is a part of the loads analysis process.
Usually, structural engineering software will
automatically create a set with all possible
load's combinations.
3. Structural analysis
• In this step, we perform the analysis on the structural members.
• The goal is to investigate how the structural model behaves w ith the different load
combinations made. The analysis of a whole structure is also known as the global
analysis.
• The results of the analysis include the internal forces diagrams (shear, bending
moment, normal, torsion and stresses), reactions, deformations / deflections
produced by the different load combinations .
• For simple structures, like a single beam or column, this analysis can be done by
hand. However, for 2D or 3D structures, the analysis requires many detailed
computations , mostly in matrices, in which errors are quickly made in case of hand
calculations. Computer Structural Design Software are used manual computation is
done at some locations for cross verification.
• A great structural analysis software should be fast and user-friendly to make life
easier for beginners and advanced users.
4. Structural design
• Structural design is, perhaps, the most crucial step in the process.
• It involves dimens ioning the differe nt parts of the buildin g based on the analysis results . Structu ral
design is materi al related .
• The initially estimated dimensions are verified for the design require ments on the field of the
stability, strength and stiffness (rigidit y/defle ction) . These require ments can be found in the
design code.
• If these design require ments are satisfied, the chosen dimensions are ok. One can consid er
playing with the eleme nt sizes to achieve a more economical design "
• If the design require ments are not satisfied, then the engine er should repeat all these stepsQ
• The initial eleme nt dimensions should be increased, and we loop again throug h the structu re
analysis and structu ral design verifications . This is repeated until the design require ments are met.
• The result of the structu ral design represents the dimensions of each eleme nt in the model ,
comply ing with the design requirements, togeth er with material related details, such as the
require d area of reinfor cemen t to be provided for concrete elements.
• Many countr ies have their structu ral design codes, codes of practice or technical docum ents . It is
necessary for a structu ral designer to become familia r with local require ments and
recom menda tions concerning correc t practice.
5. Detailing
Once the global analysis and design are completed, the structural engineer
can start detailing.
Structural detailing consists of 2 parts:
1. Where should the details be placed and where should structural
connections and overlaps be made? For example, beam or column spliceso
For other details like beam-column or column base connections, the
placement cannot be discussed.
2. The specifications of reinforcement, bolts, and welds, that is the number of
reinforcement bars, bolt grade, number of bolts, weld throat thickness, end
plates etc.
The detailing goes hand in hand with the ductility of the structures. In the
case of concrete, for example: If we provide the reinforcement in a balanced
way in beam and columns, we can increase the ductility of a structure.