SOFiSTiK / Unidome
Parametric, easy and efficient optimization of sustainable voided slabs within a BIM workflow. Time and cost saving meets sustainability and quality.
Considering the ecological impact of the construction industry it is more than ever important to responsibly use the limited resources and to minimize the impact on the environment. New innovative products like the concrete shaper system from Unidome for flat slabs lead in this direction. They reduce the required amount of concrete by up to 30%, but these improvements come with new challenges in the design process.
There are additional structural conditions that need to be considered in the design. By using clever parametric features one can automatize the analysis, as well as the design process.
- Innovative product for building construction
- CO2 reduction
- openBIM workflow
- automated design
- time saving
Amongst other advantages SOFiSTiK FEA offers flexible parametric workflows for fast and reliable structural design. In a practical case study, the out-of-the-box tools were modified for the German based, but internationally active company Unidome. This special application shows how the design of 3D slabs in buildings can be optimized in a way that improves the design quality. Additionally, we automatize the design process and save time. The amount of saved time reaches days for each slab and weeks for a multi-story building.
The perfect match with Unidome is obvious. Innovation, sustainability and finding new workflows are values Unidome offers when developing their product range. Their concrete shapers are fabricated in various locations worldwide. They are used in many traditional and complex building constructions worldwide. Its growth rate shows, that Unidome is on a good track. Time and cost saving meets sustainability and quality.
Unidomes void formers are simply placed within the stress free area of a hybrid concrete slab. The occupied volume and thus the amount of concrete saved in the construction often reaches 30%. That comes along with more advantages, like less weight and smaller deformation. The reduced mass also results in higher eigenfrequencies being favourable for seismic design.
Finally, the CO2 balance of the projects improves by up to 20%!
When designing voided slabs the engineers needs to identify the zones, where the resulting vertical shear force in the un-voided slab allows for placing void formers. This has traditionally been done manually and as the number of iterations is limited, it has never been pushed to its optimization limits.
The clever parametric loop, that was developed in this collaboration between SOFiSTiK AG and Unidome automatizes this previously manual process.
In this webinar recording we show how it is done.
As results we get:
- Areas where void formers can be placed depending on the actual shear forces in the concrete deck.
- A one-stop iteration process without further need for
- An automated update of load and stiffness relations within the structural system.
- All results like deformations and internal forces are up-to-date and can be used further for other analysis purposes.
- The optimization loop is based on structural limits, identified and defined by the engineer.
Your speakers:
M.Sc. Felix Nowak
Co-founder of the Unidome group
Director Unidome Suisse GmbH
