STAAD.Pro is generally associated with the analysis and design of steel structures. However, add-on components that are available with the program make it an efficient and powerful tool for concrete design also. Tools such as  STAAD Foundation Advanced, and RCDC – FE give engineers the means needed to design and detail concrete structures. In many design offices, slabs and foundations are either: Included as part of the superstructure model and thus analyzed along with the beams and columns, or Modeled as an independent local structure for analysis and design using the Finite Element Method (FEM) In this article, we focus on the capabilities of various tools for handling these “planar” elements, namely, floor slabs and foundations, using STAAD.Pro, RCDC – FE, and STAAD Foundation Advanced. This article focuses on the following topics: Typical workflow for slabs and foundations Analysis considerations for concrete slabs and foundations Discussion on main design requirements Discussion on rebar detailing Generation of reports and drawings Choice of Software for Slabs and Foundations Two of the options available to STAAD.Pro users looking to design floor slabs and mat foundations are: Structural Element STAAD Foundation Advanced RCDC – FE Floor Slabs Cannot Handle See “Workflow for Design and Detailing Floor

STAAD.Pro structural analysis and design software from Bentley has been widely used for designing steel and concrete structures by engineers across the globe for decades.

Internal shrinkage restraint is associated with sources within the concrete floor surfaces. For a typical concrete design section, the bonded reinforcement is the primary source of internal shrinkage restraint.

RAM Structural System offers a complete solution for the analysis, design, and documentation of concrete and steel building structures. It includes many time-saving features designed specifically for the analysis and design of buildings that are not available in many general-purpose finite element analysis applications.