To produce a safe design within budget and approved by all stakeholders, structural engineers have to review multiple alternatives for structural elements, building materials and much more. This job requires analytical ability, vision, technical knowledge and experience.
Accurate data form the basis of the design work required to produce a structure capable of withstanding all applied loads without failure over its expected service life. Reliable design requires reliable data, as well as clear communication between architect and engineer. Mutual understanding throughout the construction process is essential to align stakeholders and bring the project to a successful conclusion.
1. Data is the first step towards a common understanding of what is needed.
An architect usually sketches the initial vision of what a building, bridge or other structure should look like, including the materials to be used. But it's the structural engineer's job to transform this vision into a workable design, compliant with current regulations and capable of withstanding all applied loads without failure over its expected service life.
The structural designer works with the information available, which may sometimes be incomplete. The risk is that the design is created on the basis of information that may later change radically, and the work then has to be redone.
Right from the conceptual phases - i.e. the initial design of the building - accurate data is needed to understand the architect's vision, meet structural design code recommendations and reduce risks. The experience and technical knowledge of structural engineers are essential to translate information and data into the knowledge needed to create a reliable design. Working with 3D design intentions can help structural engineers to better understand structures so they can do their job effectively.
2. Accurate data improves the productivity and speed of structural design work.
Despite the size and complexity of the project and its engineering tasks, structural engineers are often under pressure to work quickly, efficiently and on budget.
One of the structural engineer's main tasks during design work is to perform repetitive calculations at full speed. Manual calculations can go wrong at any time, or require manual modifications or a restart from scratch if the design changes. If spreadsheets are used, the ability to keep up with the latest building codes is limited, and there may be maintenance costs. Many projects are characterized by late design changes from owners and architects that need to be addressed quickly and consistently.
It's clear that traditional methods are tedious and time-consuming, and if the work is carried out by the same person, it's impossible to carry out the analysis and design simultaneously. Simultaneous structural analysis and design provides engineers with valuable information that can be used to prepare a more reliable design.
It's essential for engineers to be able to rely on accurate data to get the job done quickly and smoothly. When design work is based on accurate data, the risk of costly surprises and construction risks is reduced. There are also fewer requests for information from contractors or manufacturers. All this saves engineers time, allowing them to concentrate on the real challenges of meeting safety requirements, cost-effectiveness, sustainability and so on.
3. Precise data enables engineers to assess whether the structure is safe and can be built.
Architectural drawings may indicate that pillars should be round, or that beams should be kept to a minimum to achieve a certain aesthetic. All this is possible, but it's up to the structural engineer to determine what works. After all, he or she is responsible for designing a structural framework that meets the requirements of a given country's design code. Most importantly, the design must be safe. This means that structural elements must be able to withstand vertical and lateral loads, which the structural engineer carefully calculates.
Structural design is a long and meticulous process, often requiring experimentation with different alternatives, and upstream and downstream communication with the architect, client and other stakeholders. Traditional processes do not leave enough time to explore multiple alternative design options and to modify the design and documentation.
But the design model and the data from which the documentation is derived need not be separated when building information modeling (BIM) is introduced into the process.
Engineers want to take advantage of BIM to reliably use existing design intentions from architects or others to reduce modeling overheads. Unlike an old-fashioned analytical model, the physical model more accurately simulates reality and offers visualizations that are easier to understand.
BIM is also very useful for determining the interdependencies between different structural design elements, and for calculating the relative value of structural elements.
4. Accurate data allows us to make more informed decisions.
Whether the project focuses on more sustainable construction methods, pioneers the use of new building materials, or is about profitability, accurate data enables the structural engineer to design several alternatives and scenarios, and present them to the client for final decisions. With this information, and even the ability to simulate the building, the client can make better decisions. For example, he can decide on the material to be used (concrete, steel, wood) and estimate dimensions and quantities, or evaluate more sustainable solutions by calculating the structural carbon incorporated (i.e. the CO2 emitted during the production of the materials used to construct a building).
Make the most of your data with BIM
The global construction industry is in the midst of a vast digital transformation towards data-driven decision-making. With this comes increasing pressure to work quickly and cost-effectively, without sacrificing quality and safety.
Engineering services organizations need to remain competitive in a globalized industry, and therefore produce more accurate, consistent and higher quality work. The fact is, structural engineering firms that fail to exploit the full benefits of BIM will be left behind.
Engineers want to work more efficiently, i.e. quickly and collaboratively, to achieve better results and create higher quality structures. Reducing repetitive, labor-intensive tasks allows them to work more efficiently and shorten the time from tender to invoice (no RFI or rework). This is an arduous task, with much of the pressure at the start of the project resting on the shoulders of the structural engineer. He or she naturally wants to produce functionally outstanding structural elements, despite time and cost constraints.
BIM is the tool that gives the structural engineer the edge in terms of personal productivity and vision, recognized and appreciated by construction industry customers worldwide. Even if your design office can survive without the full power of BIM for some time, clients will eventually turn to those offices that have fully embraced this trend.
Discover our solutions for putting this BIM approach to structures into practice
