Export to Tekla Portal Frame Designer

Tekla Structural Designer
2021
Tekla Structural Designer

Export to Tekla Portal Frame Designer

 

Export to Tekla Portal Frame Designer workflow

It is important to follow the correct definition, loading and design sequence when frames are to be transferred for design to Tekla Portal Frame Designer.

  1. Define frames/loading etc in Tekla Structural Designer.
  2. Run Analyse All (Static).

    Analysis is necessary in order for the loading to be included in the export to Tekla Portal Frame Designer.

  3. Export the frame to Tekla Portal Frame Designer to design it and check member stability.
  4. Return revised sections/grades and haunch geometry back to the Tekla Structural Designer model.
Note:

Only section sizes, haunch dimensions and steel grades are returned to Tekla Structural Designer. Any other changes to the model data and loading are not returned.

How loading, restraints and supports are handled in the export

Loadcases and combinations

When you open the Loadcases dialog in Tekla Portal Frame Designer the first four loadcases are automatically created and named as follows:

  • Self Weight
  • Frame Dead Load
  • Frame Service Load
  • Frame Imposed Load

The loading in these loadcases will be taken from Tekla Structural Designer loadcases (providing the loadcase names have been specified exactly as per the below table):

 
Tekla Structural Designer Loadcase Tekla Portal Frame Designer Loadcase
Self weight - excluding slabs Self weight
Dead Frame Dead Load
Services Frame Service Load
Imposed Frame Imposed Load

Every other Tekla Structural Designer loadcase that applies in-plane loading to the frame gets exported to Tekla Portal Frame Designer retaining it's original name. Care should be taken in Tekla Structural Designer to ensure that each loadcase name is unique. 

If a particular Tekla Structural Designer loadcase does not apply any in-plane load to the frame being exported, the loadcase is not exported and it is also removed from the Tekla Portal Frame Designer load combinations.

If the Tekla Structural Designer model does not contain loadcases named "Dead", "Services" or "Imposed"; the "Frame Dead Load", "Frame Service Load" and "Frame Imposed Load" loadcases are created regardless, (defaulting to the loading values specified in the Tekla Portal Frame Designer Preferences). However, since these loadcases are not included in any load combinations they will have no affect on the design.

If the Tekla Structural Designer model contains loadcases named "Dead", "Services" or "Imposed" which do not apply any in-plane load to the frame being exported; then in the same way as any other loadcase that does not apply any in-plane load, the loadcase is removed from the Tekla Portal Frame Designer load combinations. (In this situation the "Frame Dead Load", "Frame Service Load" or "Frame Imposed Load" loadcase is still created regardless (defaulting to the loading value specified in the Tekla Portal Frame Designer Preferences), but once again since it does not get included in any load combinations it will have no affect on the design.

Once loadcases that do not apply in-plane load have been removed from a load combination, if the resulting combination is empty, or if it only contains self weight, the combination itself is removed.

Any changes to loads, loadcases, or combinations made in Tekla Portal Frame Designer are not returned to Tekla Structural Designer.

Lateral Restraints

The Tekla Structural Designer lateral restraints are exported, strut restraints are ignored.

Any changes to restraints made in Tekla Portal Frame Designer are not returned to Tekla Structural Designer.

Note: The below mappings assume default rotations of the rafters and columns. (Changing the rotation by 180 degrees flips the restrained flange in Tekla Portal Frame Designer.)

Rafter Restraints

These are exported to Tekla Portal Frame Designer restraints as follows

 
Tekla Structural Designer Lateral Restraint Tekla Portal Frame Designer Restraint
Top Flange Bottom Flange
X X Torsional
X - Outer
- X Inner
- - No restraint

Column Restraints

These are exported to Tekla Portal Frame Designer restraints as follows

 
Tekla Structural Designer Lateral Restraint Tekla Portal Frame Designer Restraint
Face A Face C
X X Torsional
X - Outer
- X Inner
- - No restraint
Note:

The rafter top flange and column face A can be identified graphically, for details see: 1D member local coordinate system (general case).

Supports

The Fy, Fz and Mx Tekla Structural Designer support properties are used to configure the Tekla Portal Frame Designer base fixities as shown in the following table.

Any changes to base fixities made in Tekla Portal Frame Designer are not returned to Tekla Structural Designer.

 
Tekla Structural Designer Support Tekla Portal Frame Designer Base Fixity
Fy Fixed Horiz. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): Restrained
Fz Fixed Vertic. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): Restrained
Mx Fixed ULS: Rot. 100%, Cap. 100%
SLS: Restrained
Stability: Restrained
Fy Free-Release Horiz. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): 0kN/m
Fz Free-Release Vertic. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): 0kN/m
Mx Free-Release ULS: Rot. Free, Cap. 1%
SLS: Free
Stability: Free
Fy Free-Spring Linear: XkN/m Horiz. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): XkN/m
Fz Free-Spring Linear: XkN/m Vertic. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): XkN/m
Mx Free-Spring Linear: XkNm/rad ULS: Rot. XkNm/rad, Cap. 1%
SLS: XkNm/rad
Stability: XkNm/rad

Fy Free-Spring Non Linear:

-ve=XkN/m, +ve YkN/m

Horiz. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): Max (X, Y) kN/m

Fz Free-Spring Non Linear:

-ve=XkN/m, +ve YkN/m

Vertic. Stiffness (ULS, SLS, Stability): Max (X, Y) kN/m

Mx Free-Spring Non Linear:

-ve=XkNm/rad, +ve YkNm/rad

ULS: Rot. Max (X, Y) kNm/rad, Cap. 1%
SLS: Max (X, Y) kNm/rad
Stability: Max (X, Y) kNm/rad
Mx Free-Nominally Pinned: 10% ULS: Rot. Free, Cap. 1%
SLS: 20%
Stability: 10%
Mx Free-Nominally Pinned: X% ULS: Rot. X%, Cap. 1%
SLS: X%
Stability: X%
Mx Free-Nominally Fixed: X% ULS: Rot. X%, Cap. 100%
SLS: X%
Stability: X%

 

To export a single frame

Note:

Export requires a Tekla Portal Frame Designer licence.

  1. Right-click the frame in a Scene View.
  2. Choose Export (frame name) to Tekla Portal Frame Designer from the right-click menu.

    The Tekla Portal Frame Designer application opens to allow the selected frame to be designed.

To export multiple frames

Note:

Export requires a Tekla Portal Frame Designer licence.

  1. Select the frames to be exported in a Scene View.
  2. On the Home tab, click TPFD Export.

    The Tekla Portal Frame Designer application opens to allow the selected frames to be designed.

To return revised sections from Tekla Portal Frame Designer

If the section sizes have been revised in Tekla Portal Frame Designer they can be returned to Tekla Structural Designer as follows:

In Tekla Portal Frame Designer click Portal Frame> Return sections to model
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