Software for Designing Building

[MMuukkhh]

Hello everyone

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I planning to learn new softwares which will help me in the future. As a part of my education system, I learned how to design the columns, beams and slabs for reinforcement. I know how to create the Excel sheet and design the proper dimensions using it. But I'm curious about one thing. Is there any software where I can draw the structure and assign the loads which are acting on it, and maybe some other parameters. As a result the software will give me automatically the design of column and beams and their dimensions ?

I did some research but I was not successful. I would really appreciate it, if anyone of you will help to find the software.

 

[dik]

Risa is a very good program for that.

 

[Shotzie]

I agree with dik about Risa. It's very user friendly and the general reference (help) guide is written really well. You'll probably learn a lot just by reading the general reference as you work through practice problems. They also have excellent tutorials that come with the software and lots of video tutorials/webinars on their website/youtube.

You may want to contact your University and find out what design software they have loaded on their computers, as getting a student version of that for the summer could give you a head start on any design classes you might have in the future that require the use of it.

 

[delagina]

I have not used ETABS but I thought that was better for concrete buildings, no?
Is RiSa the most recommmeded here for concrete buildings?

 

[delagina]

And at OP, ALL structural softwares do that.
Some are just more user friendly than others.

The more popular are Risa3d, Staadpro, Ram, Etabs and sap2000

 

[JoshPlumSE]

Most companies with have a feature limited demonstration version or a time limited trial version you can download for free.
For RISA (the company I work for), it's a feature limited demo version. With limits on printing, importing, exporting, and how large of a file you can save.

[URL unfurl="true"]http://www.risa.com/forms/demo_request.php?3D[/url]

I believe some companies will require you to speak to a sales engineer prior to getting a copy of the demo. At RISA, we just require that you give us contact information so that our sales engineers can send you a follow up e-mail after a couple of weeks to see how you liked the demo.

 

[rapt]

I think engineering students should be staying away from software until they have commenced work and have had experience designing by hand under proper supervision. Then progress to using software under that supervision after showing that they understand all of the relevant concepts.

And they should definitely not be looking at software that automatically sizes everything (and presumably provides final drawings) as requested in the initial posting.

But then I am an old fashioned structural engineer/software engineer/sales engineer and domestic engineer!

 

[txeng91]

Risa is a great one to start with as others have mentioned, also the free trial gives you close to full functionality. In addition to the tutorials, I would also attempt to solve some of the more complex problems in your textbooks using the software.

That being said, I think one of the biggest hurdles young structural engineers face when entering the workforce is learning how loads are applied and distributed through structural systems, and how to approximate those loads. If you are looking to get ahead of the curve, I would recommend researching different structural systems including wood, steel, concrete, and masonry. Read up on how walls, roofs, and floors are framed and how gravity and lateral loads are distributed and resisted by the system. Google is your friend, there is not much you can't find online these days.

 

[klaus.]

next one on the list is
RSTAB and RFEM from Dlubal

look here


best regards
Klaus

 

[molibden]

I vote for Dlubal also.

 

[KingKongdoor]

In my experience Risa3d is very powerful and diverse program. The concrete beam design is not as fluid as steel design but you can find a way to work around most issues. The only feature i wish it had was the ability to suggest column and beam sizes based on a deflection criteria. If someone knows how to make the program do that it would be great. I typically result to limiting the stress or setting a minimum member depth to force risa to over design when I'm concerned with deflection.

 

[MMuukkhh]

Thank you to all those who contributed.