The features of FEM-Design
Characteristics:

Advanced 3D Modelling
FEM-Design’s specialty is advanced 3D modelling and design of finite elements for load-bearing concrete, steel, timber, and foundation structures. Everything is done according to Eurocode with NA. It also has an intuitive working environment that is based on popular CAD tools for structure editing and model creation. Consequently, FEM-Design is a natural choice for various tasks in the construction industry due to its wide range of modelling options. That makes it a structural engineer’s best friend.

Cross Laminated Timber
- Based on Laminated Shell Theory
- Point based stress detailed results
- Shell based stress detailed results
- Design checks according to Eurocode 5
- Torsional check & shell buckling

Precast concrete
- Elastic and plastic connections
- Detach connection per direction & component
- Connection forces and resultants
- Overturning of walls
- Sliding of edge connections

Geotechnics - 3D Soil
- Nonlinear 3D soil model: Mohr-Coulomb plasticity
- Soil-structure interaction and their nonlinear effects
- Bedding modulus automatic calculation
- Cantilever retaining walls
- Slope stability

Parametric design
FEM-Design contains a parametric model option that allows you to streamline workflows. With this tool you can easily enter and modify standard structures. Moreover, you can build parametric structural frame-, shell- or complex-systems.

IFC, Revit and API support
With FEM-Design it will be easy to read IFC models. Native and editable analytical model elements can be created equally as easily. Through the StruSoft StruXML Revit Add-In, FEM-Design has a direct communication link with Autodesk Revit Structure. As such, the transfer of the analytical model and its properties between FEM-Design and Revit is done in a fast manner. Another one of FEM-Design’s features is an API used for task automation and parametric design. This application programming interface (API) works on extensible markup language (XML), which allows the user to fully control the software. Moreover, FEM-Design makes use of toolboxes, such as Dynamo and Grasshopper.

Masonry Design
The Masonry Design module in FEM-Design offers definition of brick material but only for plane wall objects. To calculate the effect of the mortar on design, the user can look at the masonry brick + mortar combination or specifically at the masonry unit brick. Afterward, using Wall Strips, the user can calculate the masonry design, with input of a wall strip width. The results provided by the Masonry Design module are the utilization rate and the internal and detail forces per strip.

Composite column design
Check composite columns with FEM-Design, according to Eurocode 4 (EN 1994-1-1 6.7.3). This is called the “Simplified method”, whereby relying on the theoretical interaction surface you can design reinforcement and cross-sections.

Construction stages
In FEM-Design you can create as many construction stages as your project requires. Then, you can assign them the structural elements you need. The construction stages can either be generated automatically or set manually by storeys. Similarly, initial stress state property can be set for each of the stages.

Steel shell design
Do you want to model a steel bar as a real 3D element made of steel plates? You can do that with one click in FEM-Design. Use the steel shell model to insert holes, add plates, stiffener elements, buckling support or even cut parts out.

PREFAB Print
With the built-in PREFAB Print module, you can automatically generate a report of the horizontal and vertical load descent, as well as stability check for the whole concrete structure. The report is interactive, comes as a PDF format, and it has clickable elements, contains load distribution, wall geometry, material information, and Eurocode verification checks.
FEM-Design Case Studies

Atlassian Tower
Rising almost 180 metres into the city skyline, the Atlassian tower in Sydney, Australia, will be the highest commercial hybrid timber building in the world. The CLT module in FEM-Design was used to calculate and design the structural system, a combination of timber and steel.

Underwater Restaurant
The underwater restaurant “Under” in southern Norway offers the guests an incomparable view with fish swimming through the fjord. The project is spectacular and had several challenges in which FEM-Design played an important role. The main calculation file in FEM-Design contained up to 1200 load combinations based on the eight worst wave types that have the greatest impact.

Carlsberg Tower
A 100-meter-tall tower has been designed in Copenhagen using the structural design software, FEM-Design. The impressive tower is the first of multiple high-rise buildings, which contains 16,000m2 of apartments and classrooms. FEM-Design was used to determine the load transfer from columns and walls for the Carlsberg tower.

Kineum Tower
One of the most impressive high-rise buildings was built in Gothenburg. The twenty-seven storey Tower, Kineum, was designed using FEM-Design and WIN-Statik structural engineering software. FEM-Design models were used to calculate cumulative loads, analyse linear stability with reduced elastic moduli and second-order effects.

Victoria Tower
Victoria Tower in Stockholm is a 120m high building with 34 storeys. The advanced structural design software FEM-Design was used for both the static and dynamic analysis of the project. The engineers involved in the project used FEM-Design to do the stress analysis for the two stabilising cores, one for the stairs and one for the lifts.

King’s Court
FEM-Design structural analysis software was a fit for designing the concrete elements of King’s Court in London. Due to many load combinations required by Eurocode, FEM-Design has been very useful to analyse the structure with only selected load combinations considered in each analysis run.

Glitne Apartment Building
An innovative new Apartment Building has been constructed in central Umeå, Sweden. FEM-Design has been instrumental in studying the interaction between wood and steel. The work in FEM-Design was carried out through a global analysis, but also, local analysis.

Sky Park
Sky Park in Slovakia was produced with the façade cladding, mounted on a steel frame, with wall ties. FEM-Design was used for more than 2 years to analyse the force distribution in the GRC elements. By combining polygonal shell elements in FEM-Design and FEM-Design’s feature to import DWG-files from AutoCAD, it was possible to create a structure with a static behaviour.

Designing DELTABEAM
Designing DELTABEAM in FEM-Design with the help of a calculation feature provided many advantages: time saving, quick evaluation of different size options, improved design of the building structure, and increased quality of the construction project.

Axel Towers
Axel Towers, a spectacular structure consisting of five round towers is currently one of the most exciting reinforced concrete design projects developing in the heart of Copenhagen. In the Axel Towers project, FEM-Design has been used for lateral and horizontal load analysis, stability and design calculations of slabs and columns.

Våghuset Building
Våghuset is a beautiful building built in Göteborg, Sweden. Its modern design has wave-shaped glass façade and cantilever concrete slabs. FEM-Design was used as an important tool for analysis to ensure the building stability, in all situations. FEM-Design supported the calculations for the horizontal shear forces obtained in the slab and the tension forces obtained in the trusses.

Norra Tornen
Norra Tornen, an exclusive residential building project has been completed in Stockholm, Sweden and it is the tallest residential building in the city, at 125 meters. FEM-Design was used to achieve advance design work and extensive analysis of load distribution, both at a local and global level.

Ceres Panorama
An impressive high-rise apartment building project Ceres Panorama rises 68 meters above the ground in the city of Aarhus. FEM-Design was used in direct connection with Revit 3D modelling program. FEM-Design brought a big advantage to the design of concrete plates and shells: efficiency to control the edge connections’ properties and the precast concrete structures.

Ramboll Project
The Consulting Engineering Firm, Ramboll from Stockholm had to house shipping containers of 24m high warehouse. The ineffective height to span ratio was a big challenge, so FEM-Design was used to perform a sensitivity analysis, to run multiple calculations automatically and explore in-depth solutions.