Structural Analysis Interface

SAI-SP
User Guide
AVEVA Solutions Limited

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SAI-SP User Guide

Revision Sheet

Date Version Comments / Remarks

SAI-SP User Guide
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SAI-SP User Guide

Contents Page

SAI-SP
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Assumptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Features of SAI-SP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Guide Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1

Staad Pro Model Transfer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1

SCTN Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1
PDMS Model Extraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1

SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1

Units and Up Direction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1
Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1
Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
Justification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
Node Tolerance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3
Panels and Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4
Load Cases and Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:5
Catalogues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:5
Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:5

Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:1

Review of Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:1

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 SAI-SP User Guide

Settings .............................................................. 4:1

Designer Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:3
Analysis Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:4
Model Extraction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5
Other Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:7
Output a Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:7
Output Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:7
Designer Checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:8
Output Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:9
Engineer Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10
Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:11

Model Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1

Designer Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1
SCTNs - Zero Length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:2
SCTN/NODES - Duplicated Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:3
SCTN - Offset to SNODEs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:4
SCTNs - Spref Unset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:4
SCTNs - Ends Unconnected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:4
SNODs - Disconnected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:5
SNODs - Beyond SCTN Boundary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:5
SNODs - Close Proximity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:6
Engineer Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:6

Loads and End Conditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1

Loads and Release. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1
Load Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1
Member Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
Member Loads - Concentrated Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
Distributed Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Modifying Member Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:6
Nodal Loads and Displacements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:7
Nodal Load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:7
Nodal Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:8
Modifying Nodal Loads and Displacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:8
Member Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:9
Support Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10

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All rights reserved.
 SAI-SP User Guide

Other Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:1

Structure Simplification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
Working Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:3
Panel Meshing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:6
Import Model. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:9
Import Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:10
Import Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:11
Check STD Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:14
Import Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:14
Utilities ............................................................. 7:17
Merge ............................................................. 7:18
Update Model (Optional) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:20

Workout Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1

Model Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1
Settings of Hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1
Model Adjustment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:2
Designer Checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:2
Panel Meshing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:5
Output Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:9
Output Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:9
Output Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:10
Engineer Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:10
Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:10
Import Model. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:11

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All rights reserved.
 SAI-SP User Guide

© Copyright 1974 to current year. iv 12 Series

AVEVA Solutions Limited and its subsidiaries.
All rights reserved.
 SAI-SP User Guide
Introduction

1 Introduction

The Structural Analysis Interface (SAI-SP) is a two way interface. It outputs the structural
model in PDMS into a STD file, ready to be used by Staad Pro. The interface will also accept
a STD file and convert the information into a PDMS structural model.

1.1 Assumptions
This document provides guidance to the structural engineer on how to prepare the structural
models for successful transfer to Staad Pro using the Staad Pro STD format and how to
make use of a STD file to create the PDMS structural model. Workout examples are given
with steps for the user to follow.

1.2 Features of SAI-SP

The SAI-SP application has the following features:
• Ability to apply various structural loads;
• Use of mapping file to map PDMS profiles to Staad Pro profile;
• PDMS structural model check and correction tools;
• Output of Staad Pro STD file;
• Import a Staad Pro STD file into a PDMS structural model.
• Reading a modified Staad Pro STD file that is initially exported from PDMS to update
profile changes.

1.3 Guide Structure

The SAI-SP User Guide is divided into the following sections:

Staad Pro Model Transfer concepts of the model transfer.

SAI-SP Interface measurement units to be set for modelling.

Modelling Requirement

Getting Started a quick review of what is necessary to get a model output.

Model Preparation the Designer and Engineer Checks are used to check for
foreseeable output errors.

Loads and End Loads and members' end properties which can be created
Conditions and stored in the database.

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Introduction

Other Features explains more features.

Workout Example showing an output example.

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 SAI-SP User Guide
Staad Pro Model Transfer

2 Staad Pro Model Transfer

In this section, the concepts of the transfer of PDMS model to Staad Pro will be discussed.

2.1 SCTN Types

In PDMS, all SCTNs elements must be classified as COLUmns, BEAMs or BRACes for the
interface to work. These are set in the PURP attributes as COLU, BEAM, BRAC and ROOF
respectively. It can be set to individual SCTNs or to a higher level hierarchy. The reason for
setting these purpose attribute is explained in the next section.
COLUmns are for SCTNs which are the main supporting column for the structure. These are
usually the vertical columns in the model.
BEAMs are the major horizontal SCTNs of the structural model. These are normally the
SCTN in the E-W, N-S directions of the structure.
BRACes are the SCTNs that are used in strengthening the structure and are usually in non-
orthogonal directions.
A utility is provided by the interface to scan the hierarchy and set the SCTN with the default
purpose hence the user does not need to set this information manually.

2.2 PDMS Model Extraction

During the model extraction, the COLUmns are the first set of SCTNs that are scanned.
Hence their end points and secondary nodes are taken as the reference positions. Following
the COLUmns, the BEAMs will be scanned and BEAMs end points will be merged to the
COLUmns' reference node positions. The BRACes are the last SCTNs to be scanned. They
will take reference from the COLUmns and BEAMs nodal positions.

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Staad Pro Model Transfer

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 SAI-SP User Guide
SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

3 SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

3.1 Units and Up Direction

The software will only allow SI units (Meter/kN) to be used when the PDMS project is a
metric project, and Imperial units (Feet/KIP) when the PDMS project is an imperial project.
The Up direction output will be standard Staad Pro convention which is Y.

3.2 Connections
All SCTNs must be connected correctly. Staad Pro nodes are derived from PDMS SNODs
and PNODs for connected SCTN elements, and SCTN's POSS or POSE for free ends. For
Support in Staad Pro, Fixity attribute of the PNODs are set to FIXED or PINNED to define
the end as a fixed/pinned support for free ends.
When using the Beams & Columns application to create braces, care must be taken in
ensuring correct snodes creation. Braces is preferably be created by Bracing Configurations
which will ensure the correct snode creation.

Errors in Brace modelling will result in the output on the right

Using Bracing Configuration with correct SNODE created

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SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

When a SCTN span through other SCTNs element, the split utilities must be used to split
the SCTN, otherwise the connections between the intersection points will not be created in
the Staad Pro output resulting in an error.

3.3 Hierarchy
The SCTN is set as COLUmns, BEAMs or BRACes by using the PURP attribute. During
output, the user can define the hierarchy used. The hierarchy may be defined as SCTN,
SBFR, FRMW or STRU. Only SCTN that have the 'purp of hierarchy' set as COLU, BEAM
or BRAC are extracted. The processing of the extraction is highlighted in the section on
PDMS model extraction.
For example, use FRMW as the hierarchy; the hierarchy setting should be like this:

Element Type Element Name Purpose Attribute Remark

FRMW /Columns COLU Hierarchy to store columns
FRMW /Beams BEAM Hierarchy to store beams
FRMW /Braces BRAC Hierarchy to store braces
FRMW /Panels PANE Hierarchy to store panels

3.4 Justification
The interface recommends that NA is used as the Justification of columns and braces. TOS
is used as the Justification of beams.
In Staad Pro, the centre line is used as reference. Hence the output from the model will have
all profiles string together assuming the line between nodes lies along the centre.
The offset switch will output with offset to compensate for the justification of the beam if
required. Only the height is compensated with offset. The following figure shows the Model
output without Output Offset.

The following figure shows Model output with Output Offset.

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SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

3.5 Node Tolerance

Nodes that are too close can be merged into one node while outputting the model. The user
can define the tolerance of the nodes in the Settings page of the SAI application.
For example, if there is a beam connected to a column and a brace connecting to the same
column but with a different SNODE, the 2 SNODEs will be merged if their distance is less
than the node tolerance. The following figure shows SNODs of Braces are merged to
SNODs of Beams.

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 SAI-SP User Guide
SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

The detail of the tolerance settings are in Settings.

3.6 Panels and Floors

Panels and floors will be output as Staad Pro plate elements.
When panels or floors are built at the corner of SCTNs, the distance between the point of
the plate and the centre line of the SCTN may be too big so that the output model of the
plate will be separated from the main structure. The Panel Tolerance in the main form of
the interface when set will cause the program to scan for the nearest node within the
thickness of the plate and use that node as the nodes for the plate.

Plates can be meshed manually by using the Mesh utilities provided in the Staad Pro
interface and they can be output as well.
If the Staad Pro Mesh Generator is used, the user will need to create the nodes along the
members supporting the plate manually. Using the Staad Pro interface manual mesh
generator, the extra nodes along the member is created during the output.

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 SAI-SP User Guide
SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

3.7 Load Cases and Loads

Load Cases must be defined for loads to be output. Loads with no load case information will
not be output.

3.8 Catalogues
Section profiles must be mapped correctly between PDMS and Staad Pro. Besides standard
profile, UPT and Prismatic profile can also be used by setting the design parameters and
mapping file accordingly. Refer to SAI-SP Administration Guide.

3.9 Materials
Refer to SAI-SP Administration Guide.

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SAI-SP Interface Modelling Requirement

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 SAI-SP User Guide
Getting Started

4 Getting Started

The SAI-SP Interface can be selected by Utilities > SAI-SP.

The interface consists of five pages. They are:

• Designer Check - a set of checks designated to be used by Structural Designer to
check for suitability of the model for output. This is explained in detail in the Designer
Check section;
• Settings - allows the setting of the output parameters;
• Analysis Information Input - a set of analysis information creation functions to create
loads to be output and to assign Release for Members;
• Model Extraction - is used to select the structure to be output, including an Engineer
Check section checks designated to be use by Structural Engineers to check for
suitability of the model for output based on Engineer's perspective which is explained in
detail in the Engineer Check section;
• Other Features - provides additional tools to simplify additional task required for
structural analysis model.

4.1 Review of Pages

Details of the various tags can be found in later sections. But this is a quick review of what is
necessary to do a model output.

4.1.1 Settings
The settings page consists of three sections. The sections are:

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Header Section
Information from this section will be output as the header information in the STD file. Current
only SI units and SPACE structure is supported.

Tolerances Section:
The Tolerances section consists of tolerance information. These tolerances are used for
node merging. Hence it avoids very short members in the exported STD file. Very short
members may cause problems in Staad Pro calculations.

Output Settings Section:

The Output Load option lets the user determine whether to output the loads or not.
The Output Offset option lets the user determine whether to output the offset. Offset is
explained in Justification.
Press the Output Load Case Setting button will show the Output Load Case Setting
form, lets the user decide which of the load cases are going to be output.

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4.1.2 Designer Check

The Designer Check consists of checks for foreseeable errors in the model that is to be
corrected by a structural designer. The details of the checks are in the section on preparing
the model. The checks are started by clicking on the buttons. The designer may go through
the full series of checks or do individual check.

Selecting the Check boxes will display more details on the errors and the user can go to the
problematic element by selecting the error and correcting them.

Details can be seen in Designer Check.

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4.1.3 Analysis Information

The Analysis Information allows the Engineer to set the supported analysis information in
the model. This makes sure that analysis information is stored in the model and the same
analysis information is used in every analysis of the model.

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4.1.4 Model Extraction

The Model Extraction allows the Engineer to select the structure to be output to the Staad
Pro STD file.

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Engineer Check
Unlike the Designer Check, this check focuses on the output. The Engineer checks for
correctness in Load definition, duplicate numbers of sctns and nodes if the model was
output previously. This page also allows the Engineer to set whether a SCTN is a Column,
beam or brace type if the hierarchy is not properly separated. These utilities scan the
elements in the Output List.

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4.2 Other Features

The Other Features consists of tools to simplify additional task required for structural
analysis model. Details on these tools are given in later sections.

4.3 Output a Model

This section provides a simple tutorial on outputting a simple model. Start the application by
selecting Utilities > SAI-SP in the Structure > Beams and Columns application.

4.3.1 Output Settings

Step 1:
Fill the information in the setting page

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4.3.2 Designer Checking

Step 2:
Select the Designer Check page, select the "/EQUIPRACK/MAIN" hierarchy and select CE.
Click the Check All button. The result should be all checks have passed.

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Model Warning and Error

In the SAMPLE project, there are some SCTN not properly defined. Both ends of SCTN /
E3E4-1/HA1-SUPP are connecting to the same SNOD. The start of this SCTN should be
disconnected to the connecting SNOD, otherwise the output for the SCTN will be zero
length.

The other reports can be safely ignored for this model.

4.3.3 Output Content

Step 3:
Select the Output page, select the "/EQUIPRACK/MAIN" hierarchy and select Add CE.

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4.3.4 Engineer Check

Step 4:
Click the Check All in Output List button. The result should be all checks have passed.
Select the Set SCTN Type to scan the hierarchy and set the SCTN purp to the correct
section type.

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Set SCTN Type will set the purpose attribute of the vertical SCTNs to COLU, horizontal
SCTNs to BEAM, and the oblique SCTNs to BRAC. SCTNs with angles with the horizontal
direction less than the input box besides the button will also set to BEAM.

The programme will read the purpose attribute of the selection of the Hierarchy list to judge
the type of the SCTN.

4.3.5 Output

Step 5:
Select Output to output and the Staad Pro STD file will be created.

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Prefix Setting
Prefix is the prefix of the output STD file. The name of the file will be the
prefix+outfrompdms.std.
Click the Q button to check what prefixes have already been used. All output will be sent to
the%xyzSAISP% or %SAISP% directory.

Query
The query panel allows the user to do a check on the SCTN and node numbers generated
by the output.

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The SCTN Numbers form allows the user to check the number of the SCTNs and their start/
end node numbers. Select the Select Current SCTN button to navigate to a SCTN in the
list.

The information shown in the SCTN Numbers form comes from the STD file with the prefix
input in the Prefix panel.

Files
The output from the tutorial can be read into Staad Pro using the Open STD File like a
normal Staad Pro Analysis file.

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Model Preparation

5 Model Preparation

During Model Preparation, the Designer Checks and Engineer Check is used to check for
foreseeable output errors introduced during modelling.

5.1 Designer Check

The Designer Check function consists of various check and option to correct the errors. The
checks can be made all at once with Check All or by using the individual check buttons.
Some checks require the user to specify check parameters.

The checks will be displayed in the following form and the user can navigate to an element
by picking a report item. Some of the checks allows the user to delete or correct the errors
found by selecting the options below. Errors are written to the errors.txt file, which can be
found in the output directory.

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5.1.1 SCTNs - Zero Length

This means that a particular section has its joint start and end having identical position or
the length of the SCTN is zero. These errors need to be corrected by deleting the zero
length section or updating the joint start and/or end reference.
If SCTNs of this type are found, the program will prompt a question form. If the user clicks
Yes, the program will delete all the zero length SCTNs found.

If the user clicks No, all the zero length SCTNs will be listed in the Checking Models form,
and the Delete Zero Length SCTN button is active. The user can click this button to delete
all the zero length SCTNs in the list, or click the lines in the list to navigate to the SCTN,
delete it manually.

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5.1.2 SCTN/NODES - Duplicated Numbers

When the model is output, the node or member numbers are stored with the model. In doing
a second output, the interface will maintain the numbers for the nodes.
This check the number attribute of the SCTN/SNOD/PNOD that are duplicated. The
numbers can be set to "0" so that the system can renumber the node or member while
outputting.
In this case, the Set Duplicated Number to 0 button in the Checking Models form is
active, the user can click this button to set the numbers of those SCTN/SNOD/PNOD
elements back to 0.

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5.1.3 SCTN - Offset to SNODEs

This checks the SCTN whose distance of the SNOD references and the position of the
SCTN vary more than the distance input.
This offset may be caused by the user moving the beam without adjusting the SNODs. This
will cause incorrect beam positions if it is output.

The user can use the function Position > Align Secondary Nodes in the Beams &
Columns Application menu to realign the nodes.

5.1.4 SCTNs - Spref Unset

SPREF not set for the SCTN element. The user needs to set the SPREF.

5.1.5 SCTNs - Ends Unconnected

This checks SCTN has no JOIS or JOIE references. The user needs to connect the SCTN.
In some case, errors of this type can be ignored. For example, if one side of a beam was
hanging in the air, this error should be ignored.

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5.1.6 SNODs - Disconnected

SNOD with no section connected or SJOI has error in cref.
The user can use the Delete > Tidy Joints function and the Delete > Tidy Nodes function
in the Beams & Columns Application menu to remove those nodes.

5.1.7 SNODs - Beyond SCTN Boundary

This checks for SNODs that lie outside the length of the owning SCTN. Such SNODs should
be corrected.

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5.1.8 SNODs - Close Proximity

These checks for secondary nodes which are within the value specified. In the Settings, the
user may choose to merge such SNODs so that it will output as a single node in the STAAD
file.

5.2 Engineer Check

The Engineer's Check function consists of various check and option to correct the errors.
The checks can be made all at once with Check All or by using the individual check
buttons.

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The various checks performed are as follows:

SCTN/NODES - When the output model is output, the node or member

Duplicated Numbers numbers are stored with the model. In doing a second
output, the interface will maintain the numbers for the nodes.
This check will ensure there are no duplicate numbers.
This function is the same as the one in the Designer Check.
Analysis Data - Incorrect This function will check and report the loads and release
Definition information errors for the following:
• Loads with no load case
• Loads with no values set
• Release for SCTN which is not found
SCTN - Spref Mapping This checks that all used SCTN spref are defined in the
mapping file.

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Loads and End Conditions

6 Loads and End Conditions

Loads and members' end properties can be created and stored in the PDMS database.
These are analysis information and include the following:
• Member and Nodal loads;
• Member release
• Supports

6.1 Loads and Release

The Loads page is used for creating the Loads and Release for the members.

All loads created must be associated with Load Cases. Loads without load cases will not be
output.

6.1.1 Load Cases

Select the Load Case button to Create/Modify the load case set up. Load Cases are stored
in STRU element. The following form will be displayed.

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Load Case STRU

Select Load Case STRU to create or set the load case storage hierarchy. Load Cases are
stored are stored in STRU element. Select the Load Case STRU button and the following
form will appear.

Create will create a new STRU in the current hierarchy and Apply will set the storage area
to the selected STRU.

Create Load Case

The Load Case form will show the Load Case STRU selected. Input the Load Case
information and the Load Case will be created.

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The Load Case Name must be unique in the project. Load Case Type can be D for Dead
Load, L for Live Load and W for Wind Load. Load Case Description is optional.

Modify Load Case

Select Modify in the drop-down menu to modify load case. A Load Case List will be
displayed. Select the Load Case to be modified and select Apply.

Update the Load Case information and select Modify when done.

Delete Load Case

Select Delete in the drop-down menu, select a Load Case to be deleted in the Load Case
List form prompted and select Apply. Then select Delete in the Load Case form to delete
the load case.

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6.2 Member Loads

The following types of member loads can be created using the Member Loads Buttons.

6.2.1 Member Loads - Concentrated Load

Select the Concentrated Load button below:

The following Create Concentrated Load will be displayed.

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Select the Load Case and the SCTN using the options provided in the Select By.

The Start/End position and the global axis will be displayed on the SCTN selected. Input the
various values. "d1" is the distance from the connected SNOD to the Load point. Force and
Moments are based on the global co-ordinate system. Use Preview to check the position of
the Load created.

6.2.2 Distributed Load

Select the Distributed Load to create either Uniform or Trapezoidal loads. The Distributed
Load Form is as follows.

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The following steps can be used to create the loads.

• Select the load case;
• Select the SCTN;
• Set the distance where the load acts. If Whole SCTN is selected, the load adds on the
whole SCTN and d1 and d2 do not need to be input.
• Select the Load Type. Trapezoidal Load requires the input of W1 and W2.
• Select Apply to create the load, Preview to view the load.
Note: The user can input Uniform Load, Uniform Moment and Trapezoidal Load in this
form.

6.2.3 Modifying Member Loads

Select the Modify Button to modify the member loads.

To use this form, select the loads and then use the Modify, Copy or Delete button to edit the
load.

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The Load list is populated by selecting the Filter method.

The filter methods are as follows:

Pick: Allows the SCTN to be picked from the 3D view and the loads will be displayed in the
Loads list.
List: Selecting the List option will display all the list defined and the user can select the
required list which will load all the loads from the SCTN elements in the list.
CE: Selecting CE will collect all the loads from the current element into the Load list.
Load Case from CE: Selecting Load Case from CE option will display the Load Cases in
the system and the user can select the required load case and all the loads from the current
element will be loaded into the Load list.
From the List, the user can select to Modify, Copy or Delete the Loads.

6.3 Nodal Loads and Displacements

Nodal Loads and displacements are created on the SNODs or PNODs. Select the Nodal
Loads and Displacement buttons to create the nodal Displacement or Loads.

6.3.1 Nodal Load

Select Nodal Load and the following form will appear.

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Loads and End Conditions

Input the Force and Moments based on Global Co-ordinate and select the Load Case.
Select Apply and the user will be prompted to pick the SNODs. Press ESC to end the
consecutive picking will have the load created for the nodes.

6.3.2 Nodal Displacement

Select Nodal Displacement and the following form will appear.

Input the displacement and rotations based on Global Co-ordinate and select the Load
Case. Select Apply and the user will be prompted to pick the SNODs. Press ESC to end the
consecutive picking will have the displacements created for the nodes.

6.3.3 Modifying Nodal Loads and Displacement

Select the Modify Button to modify Nodal Loads and Displacement List.

To use this form, select the nodes and then use the Modify, Copy or Delete button to edit the
load.
The Load list is populated by selecting the Filter method.

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The filter methods are as follows:

Pick: Allows the SCTN to be picked from the 3D view and the nodal loads and
displacements will be displayed in the Loads list.
List: Selecting the List option will display all the list defined and the user can select the
required list which will load all the nodal loads and displacements from the SCTN elements
to the list.
CE: Selecting CE will collect all the nodal loads and displacements from the current element
into the Load list.
Load Case from CE: Selecting Load Case option will display the Load Cases in the system
and the user can select the required load case and all the nodal loads and displacements
from the current element will be loaded into the Load list.
From the List, the user can select to Modify, Copy or Delete the Loads.

6.4 Member Release

The user can create the member release information by the Member Release form.

The Release can be set as Partial or Fully Release. The user selects the SCTN element by
the different Select By. If the SCTN element has got release information, it will be displayed.
The user can modify the parameters and save the information. If it is not set already,
selecting Apply will create the information.

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6.5 Support Information

PNODs that are connected to columns can be set as Fixed or Pinned.

The user has four options:

• Change ALL PNOD to FIXED: this will change all PNODs in the current Hierarchy to
FIXED.
• Change ALL PNOD to PINNED: this will change all PNODs in the current Hierarchy to
PINNED.
• Change Selected PNOD to FIXED: this will prompt the user to pick PNODs and the
PNODs will be set to FIXED.
• Change Selected PNOD to PINNED: this will prompt the user to pick PNODs and the
PNODs will be set to PINNED.

6.6 Display
The Display panel allows a graphical display of the members and nodes information.

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7 Other Features

The following features are explained:

• Structure Simplification - replaces a structure with a single member to simplify analysis.
This can be used for roof structures, as an example.
• Panel Meshing - this is a meshing tool allows interactive meshing of plates. Such
meshes will enable nodes along the SCTN members to be created and connected to
the SCTN.
• Import Model - this function will allow the user to import an existing Staad Pro model
into PDMS.
• Read STD file - this function makes use of the intermediate file created when extracting
model and the STD file that is modified in Staad Pro. With these files, the SCTN profiles
that are changed can be updated.

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Other Features

7.1 Structure Simplification

Structure simplification is used by the Engineer to substitute a complex structure with an
equivalent SCTN of similar rigidity and strength. The following example shows that the user
may want to replace the structure in red colour with a simple beam.

Select Structure Simplification and the following form is used for this simplification.

The following steps are required:

• Select the Storage Area to store the replacement SCTNs.
• Select the Structure which is to be replaced.
• Model the replacement SCTN.
The software will check if there are replacement SCTNs when adding elements to the output
list. If replacement SCTNS are found, the user will have an option to output the original or
the replacement SCTN.

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7.1.1 Working Example

The following is an example of replacing a roof structure with a simple beam. The roof is the
structure below.

Navigate to the area to storage the replacement SCTN. Click CE to set the storage area.

Note: The storage area should use a hierarchy whose Purpose attribute is set to BEAM.

Select all the SCTNs in the roof graphically. Click the Add Selection button in the form. All
the SCTNs selected are listed in the SCTNs list.

Define the Start and End position of the replacement SCTN.

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Click the Derive points from graphic picks button and then pick the upper end of one of
the columns connecting to the roof.

Select End in the Positioning SCTN drop-down list.

Pick the upper end of another column connecting to the roof.

The Start and End position of the replacement SCTN is now listed in the SCTN's Position
list.
Press Escape on the keyboard to escape the EDG mode.
Click the Create button to create the replacement SCTN.
The replacement SCTN uses the default specification chosen in the Beams & Columns
Toolbar.

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Connection SCTN
The replacement SCTN will not connect automatically. So the user needs to use the
Connect > Connect function to set the connection between the replacement SCTN and the
columns.

Output
Enter the Output page and add the roof structure to the output list, a Question form will
display.

If the user clicks Yes in the form, the hierarchy of the roof will be added to the output list.

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If the user clicks No in the prompt form, this replacement SCTN will be added to the output
list. Now the roof hierarchy cannot be added to the output list any more.

7.2 Panel Meshing

Plates need to be meshed into three or four node elements in Staad Pro. The Panel
Meshing Tools help the user to create these plate elements for Staad Pro.
Select Panel Meshing and the Meshing form will be as shown.

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Select the PANE or FLOOR in PDMS, using the Pick Panel button, after selecting the PANE
or FLOOR, the Height and Thickness will be read from the attributes into the form.
Click the Create button on the Meshed PAND List panel to create a new meshed plate
element;

Each plate element is stored in the database as DRAWI element.

Snap the vertexes of the plate element

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Note: When the user selects Projection to Panel in the Vertex Position list, the elevation
of the meshing points will be at the position projected to the panel. Otherwise they
will be at the position picked by the user.

Click Confirm to add the plate element to the Meshed Panel List.

Note: The number of Meshing point must be 3 or 4.

Note: If the plate is at the edge of a column, the user can pick the point at the position line
of the column to avoid the node of the plate to be an orphan node when it is too far
away from the position line of the column.

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Note: In the output function of SAI, the original PANE or FLOOR will not be output if the
plate elements (DRAWI) are found.

To modify the position of a meshing point, the user can select the points in the Meshing
Point list, snap a new vertex and then click Confirm to modify

7.3 Import Model

Structure engineers can make use of Staad Pro to build a structural model. The model can
be saved to a STD file and this file can be used to import to PDMS.

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7.3.1 Import Information

To import a Staad Pro model, some information should be set:
Select the STD file output from Staad Pro.
Input the SCTN Prefix, the SCTNs import later will be named according the prefix, SCTN
number and the node numbers of the stand and end of the SCTN. Please note that one
prefix should be used only once.
Choose a FRMW or STRU hierarchy as the model storage area. When the user chooses a
FRMW, four SBFR hierarchies will be created by this function later to storage the columns,
beams, braces and panels. When the user chooses a STRU, the function will create four
FRMW hierarchies to store the model.

Do the mapping of the load cases between Staad Pro and PDMS if the user wants to import
the Staad Pro loads. Select the Staad Pro and PDMS load cases in the Lcase in STD and
Lcase in PDMS lists, click the Match button to indicate which load cases in the STD file will
be imported as which PDMS load case.

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The load cases without mapping in the STD file will not be imported.

The mapping result can be saved to the file with the path input and be restored next time.

7.3.2 Import Options

There are some import options in the form:

Ignore errors while inputting - if this option is not chosen, no model will be import if there
is unmatched specification in the Staad Pro model.
Trim to Pline - this option allows the user to determine whether the imported model will be
trimmed to the connecting SCTNs or not.

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Trim to Pline - No Chosen Trim to Pline - Chosen

Section Pline Realign Rule Definition - click this button to open the Section Pline
Realign Rule Definition form, this form allows the user to set the justification line of the
imported SCTNs to the Top/NA/Bottom Pline of the SCTN
Adjust SCTN Position while updating Pline - while the beams are updating the
justification line according to the Section Pline Realign Rule, the appearance of the beams
will change (See Picture 1).
If this option is chosen, the position of the beams will be also changed to keep the beams
looking the same when the justification line of the beams are changed (See Picture 2).

Note: This will make the position of the model different from the one in Staad Pro.

Braces Connect to NA of Beams - if this option is chosen, the braces will connect to NA of
the beams. Otherwise the braces will connect to the justification line of the beams.

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Braces Not Connect to NA of Beams Braces Connect to NA of Beams

Save Logic SCTNs to file While Adjusting - In Staad Pro, the sections are split by the
nodes. These sections will be merged into a whole one according to some rules while they
are importing to PDMS.

In this case, there will be only one section number store in the PDMS database. This option
will let the user store those numbers of the merged sections into a text file.

When the user outputs the model imported previously, the user can check the Read Logic
SCTNs box, and input the text file of the numbers of the merged sections. Thus the output
function can read and output the model with the number same as the STD file imported.

Note: When outputting the model, the program will judge the numbers of the split SCTNs
by their start and end nodes. If the SCTN is changed, the SCTN may renumber.

Import Group - the group information in Staad Pro could be imported when this box is
checked. Groups will be stored in a GPSET element in PDMS. The user should create the
GPWL and GPSET elements by the Create > Group function in the PDMS menu before the
STD model is imported.

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When the user outputs the model import previously, the user can also output the groups
after choose the GPSET element imported before.

Note: The logic SCTN number file and the GPSET must be the ones that import with the
same model.

7.3.3 Check STD Profile

While importing, the program will do a search in the mapping file to validate specifications
according to the profiles in the STD file. The Spref attribute of the imported SCTNs whose
profiles are not found in the mapping file will be left unset.
This function will check and report whether the profiles in the STD file already exist in the
mapping file. Refer to SAI-STP Administration Guide on how to fill the mapping file.

7.3.4 Import Types

There are three import actions:
Import STD - Import the SCTNs and Panels model only, no connection information or load
cases are imported. This will import the very original model, allowing the user to modify the
model manually.
Adjust Imported Model - Adjust the model imported by the Import STD function, the
software will create connection, merge SCTNs in the same line and adjust the justifications.
Member loads, nodal loads, member release and support information will also be import in
this step.
Import and Adjust Model - Perform the Import STD and Adjust Imported Model
functions together.
If the storage area is a STRU, the program will create four FRMW to storage the columns,
beams, braces and panels. If the storage area is a FRMW, the program will create four
SBFR. The purpose attribute of those hierarchies will be set to "COLU", "BEAM", "BRAC",
"PANE" and "PNOD".

Section Pline Realign Rule Definition

When the import function adjusting the justification of the SCTNs, the programme will follow
the rules defined by the Jusline Rule Definition form prompted by the Section Pline
Realign Rule Definition button.

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In the Jusline Rule Definition form, the user can define the rule of all kinds of sections, the
programme will process the rules to find the matching rules for the import sections, and set
the Justline for the sections accordingly.
The Create and Remove button can add or remove a rule.

Seq define the sequence of the rule in the rules. The programme will process the rules in
the ascending order and stop when find the first matching rule.

A rule can use the Styp attribute of the SCTN, the Spref attribute of the SCTN, or the name
of the Spec hierarchy of the Spref attribute of the SCTN. The text box left bank means the
condition is ignored.

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UD Express is a user defined expression that returns true or false. The programme will
navigate to the SCTN element (means the Current Element is the SCTN) and run the
expression. The expression could be a PML expression or a PML Function. For example, in
the picture above, " !!PLCMMJLIsHorizontal() " is a PML Function, and " purp of owner eq
'BRAC' " is a PML expression. Here is an example of a PML Function to check if the SCTN
is a vertical one:
define function !!PLCMMJLIsVertical() is boolean
!element = !!ce
if(!element.badref() or !element.type neq 'SCTN')then
return false
endif
!Posstart = !element.Posstart
!Posend = !element.Posend
if(!Posstart.north eq !Posend.north and !Posstart.east eq
!Posend.east)then
return true
else
return false
endif
endfunction
Note: These example functions will be provided with SAI in the %PMLLIB% folder.

Select which Pline is going to use for this profile. The user can select TOP/NA/Bottom and
the programme will check and set the appropriate Pline for the SCTN according to the Pline
of the SCTN. Or the user can input a specific Pline name in the text box.

Note: If there is a SCTN doesn't match any of the rules in the list, its jusline will be set to
NA as default.

Rules of Import
While importing the model, the program will follow some rules:

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Horizontal braces will be imported into the BEAM hierarchy when the angle between the
direction of the brace and the orthogonal directions are less than 15 degrees.
When the bottom of a vertical SCTN is connecting to a BEAM, this SCTN and the
connecting vertical SCTNs will be imported to the BRAC hierarchy.
When merging SCTNs, the programme will follow the following rules:
• First merge all the columns.
• Secondary merge all the beams connecting to the columns.
• Then merge the rest of the beams. The beams with bigger size will be first merged, and
the smaller beams will connect to the bigger beams.
• Finally merge the braces.
Braces will connect to the column if the node is belonged to a column, even if it's at column/
beam connections.

Computer works may not cover all of the situations of the structural model. Some of the
model may need to be modified manually.

7.3.5 Utilities
The Utilities page provides some additional features to help the user modify the imported
model.

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Align Beams - The user can click the Align Beams button to adjust the justification line of
the SCTNs after import the model. The adjust action will follow the rules defined in the
Jusline Rule Definition form. The Adjust SCTN Position while updating Pline option in
the Settings page will also affect this function.
Retrim Sections to Pline - The SCTNs will be trimmed to the connecting Pline again when
this box is checked.
Import Load - Read the STD file and create the member and nodal loads to the imported
model. To use this feature Save Logic SCTNs to file While Adjusting must be checked
when importing the structure model. Otherwise this function will not run.
Import Release - Read the STD file and create the member release information to the
imported model. To use this feature Save Logic SCTNs to file While Adjusting must be
checked when importing the structure model. Otherwise this function will not run.
Import Support - Read the STD file and create the PNOD elements at the bottom of the
columns in the imported model, and add the support information to the PNODs. To use this
feature Save Logic SCTNs to file While Adjusting must be checked when importing the
structure model. Otherwise this function will not run.
Merge - The feature to update the model. Refer to Merge.

7.3.6 Merge
When the model in the Staad Pro is changed, the user can import the new model to PDMS
again, and save the new model in a different hierarchy. This model will be the "reference
model" in PDMS. The user can use the Merge function to update the original PDMS model
to match the new Staad Pro imported. With this function, the user can always maintain the
origin model, to keep the consistency of the structural model.
Click the Merge button in the Import Model from to show this form.

Select the origin model and the update model, compare model and then the program will list
the changed elements, the user can choose the elements to accept update.

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Note: The Origin Model this function compares should be a model import by the Import
Model Function, or a model which has been output by this interface once (this means
the SCTNs and the nodes are already numbered).

When CE option has been selected on the form, the program will search the hierarchies with
Purpose attribute set to "COLU", "BEAM", "BRAC" and "PANE". If CE is a STRU, the
program will search the FRMW hierarchies below. If CE is a FRMW, the program will search
the SBFR hierarchies below.
When comparing the two models, the program will only compare the elements with Purpose
of hierarchies are set.
With this function, the user will always maintain the original PDMS model. The new model
imported will be treated as the reference model.
This function will update the information as follow:
1. New SCTNs;
2. SCTNs whose position, specification or beta angle changed;
3. SCTN loads;
4. Member Releases;
5. Supports;
6. New panels;
7. Panels whose position or thickness has changed.

Rules of Comparing
The rules of comparing the SCTNs are:
1. If there is a SCTN in the origin model has an identical number (number attribute) is the
reference model, these two SCTNs will be considered as matched.
2. If the number attribute of the SCTN in the origin model is 0 or there's no SCTN with the
same number in reference model, then the program will search a SCTN in reference
model whose orientation and the start or the end position is the same as the one in the
origin model.

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3. If a pair of SCTNs match the situation in 1) or 2), the program will compare the start and
end position of those SCTN, as well as beta angle, specification and design
parameters to see if it needs updating...
4. If a SCTN in the origin model does not have a match the situation in 1) or 2), the SCTN
will be consider as a "Deleted" SCTN. When doing the update, this SCTN will be
deleted.
5. If a SCTN in the reference model does not have a match the situation in 1) or 2), the
SCTN will be consider as a "New" SCTN. A new SCTN will be created when doing the
update.
For the member loads:
1. The program will check each concentrated loads and distributed loads between the two
matched SCTNs. If the load case and position of the two loads are identical, these two
loads will be considered as matched. Then the program will compare the force and
moment of these loads.
2. If a load in the origin model has no matched load, the load will be considered as a
"Deleted" load.
3. If a load in the reference model has no matched load, the load will be considered as a
"New" load.
The member releases and support information are similar to the member loads.
For the panels:
1. If there is a panel in the origin model has an identical number (number attribute) in the
reference model, these two panels will be considered as matched.
2. If the number attribute of the panel in the origin model is 0 or there's no matched
number in the reference model, then the program will search if there is a panel with an
identical origin and identical positions of three consecutive points. These two panels
will be considered as matched.
3. If a pair of PANELs match the situation in 1) or 2), the program will compare the
thickness and the positions of the corners
4. If a panel in the origin model does not match the situation in 1) or 2), the panel will be
consider as a "Deleted" panel.
5. If a panel in the reference model does not match the situation in 1) or 2), the panel will
be consider as a "New" panel.

7.4 Update Model (Optional)

The engineers can make use of Staad Pro to change the profile of the sections. The
changes can be saved to a new STD file and this file can be used to update the PDMS
model.
This function can be replaced by the Import Model and Merge function to update the model.
Select Update Model to start this process.

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Select the original STD file output and the SCTN file (prefix SCTN) from PDMS and the
modified file. The files will be compared and profiles that are modified will be shown in the
Modified SCTNs' list when the Compare Files is selected.

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The Modified SCTNs' List shows the following:

• Member number - the member number set during output.
• Profile Number - the number of the profile;
• Modified - whether the PDMS model has been modified with the information from
Staad Pro.
• The profile information besides the Compare Files button is the current specification of
the select SCTN; the Alternative Spec list shows the new updated specs set in Staad
Pro.
If the profile is UPT, the parameters will be list in the Parameters in STD. If the selected
specification in Alternative Spec has design parameters, they will be list in the Design
Parameters list and can be modified by selecting the Properties button.
By using one of the modification buttons, the profile of the SCTN will be modified and the
status in 'modified' column will be updated to 'Yes'.
The SCTN list allow long list to be filter according to the various criteria.

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When the new profile modified in Staad Pro has no matching profile, the SCTN status may
be manually marked as Modified or Unmodified.

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Workout Example

8 Workout Example

This chapter will output the structure /EQUIPRACK in the SAM project as an example.

8.1 Model Preparation

The user should setup the UDA for SAI before using the project. Details are given in the
SAI-STP Administration Guide.

8.1.1 Settings of Hierarchy

The hierarchy of the structure is like this.

To output this model, setup the Purpose attribute to indicate which hierarchy is used for
columns, beams, braces or panels respectively. (Refer to Hierarchy for more information).
Set the Purpose of these SBFR as follows:

SBFR Element Purpose Attribute

/EQUIPRACK/MAIN/COLUMNS COLU
/EQUIPRACK/MAIN/BEAMS BEAM
/EQUIPRACK/ACCESS/BEAMS BEAM

Panels of this model will also be output. So set the Purpose of their owner. However, the
type of the owners of the panels is FRMW. In this example, SBFR is chosen as the
hierarchy to classify SCTNs, it is best to output all elements under the same owner type as
SBFR. So create two SBFR elements, set their Purpose attribute to PANE, and use the
Include function to move the two panels into those two SBFR elements.

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Workout Example

8.1.2 Model Adjustment

In this model, all the beams use NA as the justification line except the beam /C4C5-1. To
keep the consistency of the model, adjust the justification line of /C4C5-1 to NA and realign
the top of which to the top of column /C-5.

8.1.3 Designer Checking

First check for the model to make sure it is ready for outputting.
Select the Designer Check page, select the "/EQUIPRACK/MAIN" hierarchy and select CE.
Click the Check All button. The checking results are shown below. Then fix the problems
reported.

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Click the third line in the checking report: "Error: Stand and End of /E3E4-1/HA1-SUPP
connect to the same node." The 3D view will navigate to the SCTN /E3E4-1/HA1-SUPP.
Both ends of this SCTN are connecting to the same SNOD, use Connect > Disconnect to
remove the connection of the start of this SCTN.

In line 7 to 14, it is reported that the 8 SCTNs listed have displacement between the end of
the SCTN and the connecting SNOD that the distances are over the value in the input box in
the Designer Check.

For example, in line 13 it's report that "/E3E4-2 has displacement at START, value is 103.4
mm". In the picture below, we can see the SNOD is on the top of the column. However, the

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beam in red is actually using NA as the positioning line. So use the Position > Align
Secondary Nodes of the Beams & Columns Application to realign the SNOD to the beam.

The next error reported is 2 SCTNs unconnected. These two SCTNs are actually hanging in
the air, this error can be ignored.

Then the program reports there are empty SNODS or SJOIs that are not connecting to
SCTNs. Use the Delete > Tidy Joints and Delete > Tidy Nodes function to remove those
SNODs and SJOIs

The last thing reported is there is an SNOD outside its owning SCTN. But this SNOD is
already deleted.

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Now click the Check All button again. The checks fixed above are passed. Now another
error reports: 3 SNODs have a very near SNOD in their owning SCTNs, all of the
displacement are less than 1.

In this case, use Modify > Hierarchy > Include to move the SJOIs from one of the SNOD
into the nearing SNOD. Then select Tidy Nodes again to remove the empty SNODs.

8.1.4 Panel Meshing

There are two panels in this model. Plates need to be meshed into three or four node
elements in Staad Pro. So use the Panel Meshing Tools to mesh those panels for Staad Pro.
Select Panel Meshing to show the Meshing form.
Select the PANE in FRMW /FLR-PLT1 in PDMS, use the Pick Panel button to select this
PANE

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Select Position picked in the Vertex Position drop-down menu. Click the Derive points
from graphic picks to pick the meshed points for this PANE.
The panels should be meshed according to the frames of the model. In this example, the
panel should be meshed into four parts.

When output the panels, the program will scan for the nearest node within the thickness of
the plate and use that node as the nodes for the plate.
If there are beams under the panel, the nodes of the meshed panels should be created at
the position of the SNODs of the beams connected. Then the nodes of the panel output can

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be merged to the nodes of the SCTNs. Otherwise the nodes of the panels maybe output as
an orphan node.
So, when selecting the points of the panels, always use the position of the SNODs If
possible. In this example, four SNODs of the beams connecting are picked.
Here use type Element in the Positioning Control for picking SCTNs.

Pick the SCTN near the SNOD, the program will get the position of the SNODs and add to
the point list.

Note: If the user selects Projection to Panel in the Vertex Position drop-down menu, the
elevations of the vertexes are still on the panel, not the SNODs.

Similarly, add the other three meshed panels to the list:

In the fourth panel, there is a penetration for staircase. An enclosed panel is drawn for
simplification.

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Note: The elevations of the beams of PANEL 4 are higher than the others. And there are
two SNODs in the column that connecting to those beams. In this example, choose
the lower SNODs for PANEL 2 and PANEL 3, and choose the higher SNODs for
PANEL 4.

Similarly, mesh the panel on the second floor into three panels.

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8.2 Output Model

After model preparation, output this model to an STD file.

8.2.1 Output Settings

Enter the information in the setting page

Note: Set the Panel Tolerance to 200 so that the program can scan the SNODs in the
columns. Because the elevations of the vertexes created in the Panel Meshing tool
are not the same as the SNODs.

Click the Output Load Case Setting button to add the load case just created to the Output
Load Case list.

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8.2.2 Output Content

Select the Output page, select the "/EQUIPRACK/MAIN" hierarchy and select Add CE.
Also, select the "/FLR-PLT1" and "/FLR-PLT2" to add the panels.

Select SBFR in the Hierarchy drop-down menu.

Note: The Hierarchy can also set to SCTN here. Select the Set SCTN Type to scan the
hierarchy and set the SCTN and PANE purp to the correct section type.

8.2.3 Engineer Check

Click the Check All in Output List button. The result shows that all checks have passed.

8.2.4 Output
Input the prefix of the output file. Select Output to output and the Staad Pro STD file will be
created.

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8.3 Import Model

If the model is updated in Staad Pro, it can import the new model to PDMS, and then use the
Merge function to update the original model.
Import the model using the Import Model from STD files form.

Now there is a reference model, the model displays two new braces.

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Select Merge in the form to show the Merge Imported Model form.
Because there are new braces in the imported model, create a new SBFR under the "/
EQUIPRACK/MAIN" hierarchy, and set the purpose attribute of the SBFR to BRAC to
storage the updated brace.
Click the CE button to set the Origin Model and Update Model in the form, and click
Compare Model, the compare result is as shown:

In this example, the panels in the origin model are on the top of the beams. The nodes of the
panels are merged to the nodes of the beams where first outputted. But the beams are
output using the NA Pline, so the nodes of the panels imported will also be on the elevation

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of the NA of the beams. So the nodes of the panels are not the same with the origin model
in PDMS. The panels will not be updated here.
Select the 1st, 2nd and 3rd lines and click Update Selected to update those three lines.
Then, check that the two new braces in the SBFR have created, and the specification of the
column /A-3 is updated.

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Workout Example

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