Other enhancements and fixes
In addition to the major features, there have been other improvements made to modeling, design and many other areas. All the following are implemented/introduced in Tekla Structural Designer 2023.
General & modeling
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A number of additional fixes which are not detailed explicitly here are also made to improve general performance and stability. An example of this is given directly below:
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[TSD-12812, 13213] - Interactive Concrete Column design - exception applying changes to grouped members
Following edits to a concrete column in the interactive design dialog- such as to section size - and confirming these with OK, the change can be applied to all other members in the same design group by selecting “Yes” in the prompt dialog displayed (by default) at this point - or automatically on closing interactive design by enabling the “Apply changes without asking…” option in this dialog - as shown in the picture below. In some circumstances a program exception could occur at this point causing the program to close. This could be worked around by making edits via the properties window for the group selected via the “Groups” Window of the Project Workspace. This issue is fixed in this release.
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Steel Sections Database
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[TSD-1581] - Plated Sections - 130mm plate thickness limit revised
In previous releases, the plate thickness for Plated beam and column sections was limited to 130mm. Plated sections can now be defined with plate thickness up to 250 mm across BS, Eurocode, India, Australia, and USA metric Regional codes (the USA customary units limit remains at 5 in). Fabsec plated beams and Westok plated beams can also have plate thickness defined up to 250 mm under BS and Eurocode head codes. Note the following:-
The facility to define increased plate thickness > 130mm does not automatically imply design will be carried out where the Regional Code does not give design strengths for the greater thickness specified. E.g. for the BS code the upper thickness limit for S275 and S355 grade design strengths is ≤ 150 mm.
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Consequently, where standard steel grades from the Material database are used which do not cater for thicknesses > 130mm specified, the section(s) will be Beyond Scope in design. In such cases, to obtain design results it will be necessary to create your own user defined steel grade in which you specify the design strength for thicknesses > the code range limit.
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[TSD-12629] - New British Steel Advance sections added - BS and Eurocode
The UK sections for the UB, UC, ASB, PFC, EA and UEA section types have been updated to match the new British Steel catalogs published in 2022. All existing sections of these types not in the 2022 catalog are marked with a # symbol with associated Footnote "Check Availability". Note the following:-
For some existing sections the root radius (r2) has changed which has resulted in (small) changes in some other properties. Consequently in existing models, small differences in analysis results and design resistance may occur in some cases. The following design checks are potentially affected; Moment, Combined Axial & Bending, LTB, or Combined Buckling.
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New models created in this release will use the revised values automatically. For existing models it is necessary to update the section properties in these from the new database via the Materials dialog; on the Model page select all UB, UC, ASB, PFC, EA and UEA sections then select “Update from Database”
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[TSD-12744] - Single Angles - Revised Torsional Constant values - BS and Eurocode
The calculation of the Torsional constant (termed J in BS and Itin the Eurocode) for single angles is revised in this release to be more accurate and the steel section database values are updated accordingly. This has resulted in a relatively small change in value compared to previous releases. The Torsional constant is not used in analysis but is used in the design checks for angle section members subject to moments in the checks for; Moment, Combined Axial & Moment, LTB, and Combined Buckling.-
New models created in this release will use the revised values automatically. For existing models it is necessary to update the section properties in these from the new database via the Materials dialog; on the Model page select all single angle sections then select “Update from Database”.
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Interoperability
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[TSD-13407] - IDEA StatiCa Export - error on export fixed
An issue introduced in release 2022 SP4 which prevented the export from working is fixed in this release.
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Remoting API Enhancements
There have been some enhancements to the Open API with this release - for information about these see the Tekla Structural Designer 2023 Open API Release Notes page.
Analysis & results
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[TSD-12711] - Foundation Reactions - improved reporting where meshed walls meet
This issue applies to both the Model & Results > Foundation Reactions results table and the associated Report item. In previous releases the manner of report of these at the intersection of two walls varied depending on the alignment of the walls as follows: where both walls aligned with global XY - this was treated as a special case and half the reactions at the common node were reported at each wall using the local coordinate system of the appropriate wall. For all other cases (e.g. non-orthogonal walls, or orthogonal walls that did not align with global XY), half the reactions at the common node were reported at each wall using the global coordinate system. This treatment was inconsistent hence is addressed in this release as follows:-
The options for reporting wall reactions have been significantly enhanced - for more details see the new/ updated Help Topic Working with foundation reaction axis systems.
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When reporting foundation reactions (in a tabular data view, report, or drawing), if the local coordinate system is used: at the shared wall node at the intersection of two walls, the local coordinate system of each wall is now used regardless of the orientation of the walls.
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Design - general
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[TSD-13283] - Slab Design - Patches - incorrect maximum design moment for panel edge
In previous releases, for the less common circumstances of slab patches with 1) a boundary exactly coincident with a slab item edge and 2) the patch Strip(s) (perpendicular to the edge) design force option set to Maximum, it was possible the exact maximum nodal design force along the patch boundary would not be identified. This could be worked around by extending the patch area slightly beyond the slab item edge. The process of identifying patch boundary maximum values in this circumstance is enhanced in this release to reliably identify the maximum and the workaround is no longer required.
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[TSD-11985] - Design Section Order - no need to specify when not required
An issue was introduced in release 2022 SP4 preventing the specification of member types that are not designed directly in the program (such as plated members for some characteristics) without also specifying a design section order for them. This has been addressed in this release and design section orders are no longer required in such instances.
Design - Eurocode
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[TSD-244] - Punching Shear checks - Slabs, Pad Bases and Pile Caps - revised column loaded perimeter length
Column punching shear checks for slabs, pad bases and pile caps have been revised to automatically take account of the upper limit on column loaded perimeter length for the cases of edge and corner columns, as prescribed in EN1992-1-1 Clause 6.4.5(3). The new limit is imposed before any further user reductions are considered.-
In previous releases to comply with the upper limit it was necessary to calculate the limit value yourself and specify an appropriate user reduction in the punching check Properties window as previously advised under the "User perimeter reductions" heading in the Punching Shear Perimeters Help Topic Section. This is no longer necessary following the enhancement in this release.
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The revised method does not apply to wall, pile and column drop loaded perimeters.
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Design - USA regional code
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[TSD-13256] - Composite Beam Design - incorrect change of characteristic to non-composite fixed.
The following issue introduced in release 2022 SP4 is fixed in this release; when the option “Attempt non-composite if auto solution fails” (previously titled, “Allow non-composite design”) was enabled and a check run, if the beam was not valid for composite design (e.g. was not pin ended or was subject to uplift), the beam characteristic would incorrectly change to non-composite. This change of characteristic no longer occurs in this circumstance in this release. This issue affected the USA Regional code only.
Note: The number in brackets before an
item denotes an internal reference number. This can be quoted to your local Support
Department should further information on an item be required.