2d documentation in Rhino isn't great, but depending on what you're doing, it might work or it might not - you may be able to completely side-step all of it's flaws. You'll have to experiment with it. Unfortunately, not a lot of structural designers use Rhino so you'd be what I call a "workflow...
In my area we need the competition provided by people like this. Most all of the residential engineering firms in my area are.... not great. They operate more like an oligopoly. I suspect that is why they have become not only inefficient, but also the quality of design work is rock bottom.
If an...
This topic got interesting fast!
Similar thing happened in my area. CAD guy basically stopped one step short of taking the server's hard drive with him. Stole (almost) all the CAD standards. Some of it was broken (he must have missed one folder) or he didn't set it up correctly. Instead of...
The firm I worked for had "stolen" all their details from a principal's former employer. Like CTRL-C'd CNTRL-V'd them... didn't even try to hide it.
Some firms have based their details off the connection supplier's catalogue; Simpson Strong Tie for example. Much of the framing requirements...
Hi Sheer Force Engineer and thanks for sharing all that useful information. Also enjoying some of the articles on your website (even though I don't have the time haha). Those tonnages will be super useful! - I'm actually developing ways to take-off reinforcing quickly and will be able to...
I've read more than a few texts on 2-way slabs. Most of them just closely follow code and therefore focus on the direct design method as well as the equivalent frame method (if I recall correctly?). What most texts tend to lack is any info about how to detail the slabs themselves, aside from...
Could be by way of a textbook or paper/thesis on the subject. I have a couple texts but they really only skim the surface of flat plate slabs. I'm really dying to see some good design examples in practice.
From what I've seen it almost feels like flat plate slab design is regressing (at least...
Builders also preferred their way of doing things as well. They intentionally designed their top mats in a way that allowed them to easily be lifted into place. Staggering bars also provided better crack control (so I'm told by a pretty smart detailer - but that's over my head... probably a good...
RJC was "better" than many of the other firms in my opinion. But some of their latest drawings aren't looking to great. Their general notes and details have even degraded somehow... I don't know why they just don't retain what they had on older drawings. RJC is said to be the ones who pioneered...
One firm in my area has a neat take on drawing review: They simply don't.
Bluebeam is awesome, almost too good. It doesn't replace a CAD program as you can't draft quite as quickly in it and as seen above it's not always as accurate. If fractions of inches don't matter than the later is...
I guess they figure they're just going to use high-flow concrete. The pressures will be immense.
It looks strange to have 'clusters' of smaller vertical zone bars close together like that and makes me think "why not just less larger diameter bars". I'm sure there's a reason but I also know that...
You're correct in most cases, depending on how you define risk. When something does go wrong it can be really hard to prove it was the temporary works engineer's fault. It usually doesn't cost a heck of a lot extra to simply increase the factor of safety. And since many components are of very...
Structural Engineering isn't a dead end by any means. I think things will improve. You'll see me on here often preaching about more efficient designs and working more closely with Architects/builders/blah blah blah... I think there's actually lots of money left on the table. Much of it being...
It came as a huge surprise to myself when I first learned of it but there is little incentive on the typical Structural Engineers part to make the structure as economical as possible, especially with real estate being as crazy as it is right now. Developers want it built and there hands clean of...
