

“STAAD revolutionized the structural design process years ago, and even today, many years and versions later, it is still the most user-friendly solution and preferred by most designers.”
Technical Capabilities
General Footings
- Intuitive graphical user interface; the workflow is categorized and arranged to flow from top to bottom
- Foundation project environment that includes isolated, combined, strap, pile cap, octagonal footing, mat, and rotating/reciprocating machine foundations; it connects all the modules through a global layer
- Tabbed view, navigator tree ribbon control and custom skin style
- Spreadsheet import/export integration with detailed output
- Physical mat foundation modeling environment that saves time and reduces errors by considering openings, control regions, physical beam, and column lines; provides an option for both triangular and quadrilateral plates
- Physical loading—like point load on space, irregular quadrilateral load, circular load, or line load that allows users to simulate any physical loading such as tank and wall loading
- Wizard-based simplified input for rotating/reciprocating machine foundation that creates solid elements with dynamic loading
- Seamlessly integrates with STAAD.Pro to import/export loadings, reactions, column positions; users can import any set of analyzed plates to design; tracks changes made in STAAD.Pro model and can merge the changes with STAAD Foundation file
- Powerful OpenGL-based graphics that help visualize output like displacements, stress on displaced shape, combined beam stress, and entities such as plates and beams in 3D for a realistic rendered view
- Automatic pile arrangement
Output
Drawings can be exported to DXF or DWG formats to produce site drawings. The most popular feature is Calculation Sheet, which displays detailed output with relevant code clauses and equations. Calculation Sheet also includes dynamically generated to-the-scale plan, elevation, sectional views, soil bearing diagrams, and summary sketch.
- DXF export of detailed and GA drawing
- Detailed structural drawing with customizable drawing options and labels
- Base pressure and plate stress color contours
- Step-by-step detailed calculation sheet with code clauses and equations to verify output
- To-the-scale dynamic sketches in calculation sheet
- GA drawing with grid marks to help identify interferences
- Foundation grouping for production drawing and sample calculation
- Bending moment and shear force graphs for combined footing embedded in calculation sheet for critical load case
- Printable bending moment and shear force graphs for combined footing for all load cases
- Printable capacity graphs and analysis diagrams for laterally loaded drilled pier
Analysis and Design
The sophisticated mesh generation within STAAD Foundation Advanced automatically handles holes (cut-outs) as well as inner regions with different thicknesses or soil properties. Physical loading objects can be as diversified as irregular load, circular load, quadrilateral load, line load, and point load on space. The program automatically detects uplift and redistributes the force. For vibrational analysis of machine foundation, STAAD Foundation Advanced generates solid elements, dynamic loads, and analysis constraints based on user input.
- Support for both flexible and rigid methods. Optimize footing dimensions
- Sophisticated FEM static analysis for mat foundation and dynamic analysis for machine foundation powered by reliable STAAD analysis engine
- Support for an unlimited number of load cases and load combinations
- User-defined reinforcing zones and blocks for optimal reinforcement distribution
- Neglects design moments below columns for mat foundation
- Slab design along any cut line to simulate manual mat design technique
- Pedestal design
- Analysis for partial uplift caused by biaxial bending for all footing types
Design Codes
STAAD Foundation Advanced supports many concrete codes: ACI 318-2005, ACI 318-2008, ACI 318-2011, BS 8110, IS-456-2000, AS 3600-2004, CSA 23.3-04, GB50007-2002 and EN 1992-1-1-2004. It also supports more specialized codes such as API 650 and ACI 351.3R-04. The program performs all necessary design checks for most optimized foundation design. Load-generation capabilities include wind and seismic load as well as automatic and user-defined load combinations. PIP STC 01015 code is implemented for equipment foundation load generation. 3D graphics enable engineers to quickly identify and investigate displaced shapes, stress contour, soil pressure, and reinforcement layout.
- United States
- ACI 318-2005
- ACI 318-2008
- ACI 318-2011
- United Kingdom – BS 8110
- India – IS 456-2000
- Australia – AS 3600-2004
- Canada – CSA A 23.3-04
- Chinese – GB50007-2002
- Euro – EN 1992-1-1-2004
Plant Foundation Features
- Specific modules for the plant industry such as vertical vessel foundation, heat exchanger foundation, annular ring tank foundation and laterally loaded drilled pier analysis
- Generates load combination automatically based on several country codes such as ASCE-7 and PIP STC 01015
- Generates wind load and zip-code-based seismic load automatically based on ASCE 7, IS 875, IS 1893
- Creates different configurations of vessel foundations
Foundation Toolkit
STAAD Foundation Advanced offers accurate design capabilities powered with wizard-based input, automatic load (wind and seismic) generation and configurable load combination capabilities. A wizard-based foundation solution mode called Foundation Toolkit is available for spread footing, combined footing, pile cap, drilled pier axial analysis, and guyed tower foundations.
- Time-saving wizard-based input for isolated footings, combined footings, pile cap arrangement and design
- Drilled axial pier module supporting API and FHWA 1999 and alternative Vesic method
- Guyed tower foundation module based on ACI 318-05


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