Structural design & calculations for steel structures.

Structural calculations are the engineering record that shows a structure can carry the loads it will be subjected to. They establish the design actions, the sizes and grades of the members, the connections between them, and the checks for strength, stability and serviceability.

In Dubai they are normally required wherever a structure is submitted for permit or approval, and wherever a consultant or authority asks for the engineering basis of a steel structure before it is built. Building work is governed by Dubai Municipality's building publications, and whether a particular structure needs a submission, and by what route, is decided on the project. If you are not sure whether yours does, send us the drawings and we will tell you what we think is needed.

Yes, as part of the design of steel structures within our scope. Wind is frequently the governing case on the light and open structures we build most often: pergolas, canopies, roof extensions and louvre screens.

The assessment covers exposure and geometry, external and internal pressure, suction and net uplift, the member forces along the load path, overall stability against sliding and overturning, connection and support reactions, base plates and anchors sized for uplift, deflection under serviceability wind, and the foundation reactions that the party responsible for the substructure needs. Which of those apply depends on the structure. See Wind Load Calculations in Dubai above.

• Dead load, the permanent weight of the structure, cladding, decking and finishes;
• Imposed and live load, for the intended use of the floor, platform or walkway;
• Wind load, including pressure, suction and uplift for the exposure and geometry;
• Any other action the specification calls up, which depending on the structure can include equipment and plant loads, temperature effects, handrail and barrier loads, or seismic actions where the project requires them.

These are then combined into the load cases the design has to satisfy, because the governing case is usually a combination rather than any single action on its own.

The steel structures we design, fabricate and install: pergolas and canopies, mezzanines and platforms, staircases and walkways, villa extensions and roof additions, warehouse and industrial framing, balustrades and handrails, and the strengthening or modification of existing steel.

We scope our engineering to steel structures. We are not a general reinforced-concrete or foundation design practice, and where a project needs substructure design we report the reactions and that work is done by the party appointed for it.

Yes, and this is the case where the engineering most often surprises clients. A pergola is light, so wind uplift rather than downward load usually governs, and the critical elements are the post bases, the anchors, and the fixing back to the host structure rather than the beams themselves.

The calculation covers the uplift case through the full load path and sizes the bases and anchors for tension. See pergolas & canopies.

Yes. A mezzanine calculation covers the imposed load for the intended use, the beam and column design, deflection and, where the use warrants it, vibration, along with the bracing or other arrangement providing lateral stability.

The part clients most often overlook is the effect on what the mezzanine stands on. Column loads have to go somewhere, and where they land on an existing slab or frame the capacity of that existing structure is part of the problem. We report the reactions and flag it when the existing structure needs checking. See mezzanine structures.

Yes. For a villa extension or roof addition the new steel is usually the straightforward half. The harder question is what it is being supported by, and whether the existing walls, slab or frame can take the new loads.

For modifications to existing steel, such as cutting an opening through a beam, extending a member or adding load to an existing frame, the existing member is checked in its modified condition and the reinforcement is designed to suit. This normally needs a survey of what is actually there, because record drawings and reality often differ. See villa extensions and strengthening & modification.

Yes, these are the core of the member design. Beams are checked for bending, shear, lateral-torsional buckling where the compression flange is not restrained, and deflection under serviceability loads. Columns are checked for axial load, buckling about both axes, and the combined effect of axial load with any bending applied to them.

Strength and serviceability are separate questions. A member can satisfy every strength check and still deflect more than the finishes or the user will accept, which is why both are reported.

Yes, where connection design falls within our scope on the project. Connections are designed for the forces they actually carry, which means shear and tension for simple connections and moment as well where the joint is continuous.

The checks cover the bolts, the welds, and the local behaviour of the plates and the connected members. Connection design is also the point where calculations and detailing meet: where a project delegates connection design to the fabricator, the results drive the shop drawings, and where the consultant designs the connections, the detail follows their design.

Yes. Base plates and holding-down bolts are sized for the reactions at the support, which means compression and shear, and tension wherever uplift can occur.

On light structures this is often the governing check on the whole job. Anchors also depend on what they are fixed into, so the design has to account for the supporting concrete or host structure, and the foundation reactions are reported for checking by the party responsible for it.

• Architectural or layout drawings showing the geometry, spans and levels;
• The intended use, which determines the imposed loading;
• The location and exposure of the structure, for the wind assessment;
• Any project specification, consultant's requirements or authority correspondence that sets the design standard;
• For work on existing buildings, a survey or record information for the existing structure, and access to verify it.

A sketch and a site photograph are often enough to start a conversation. We will tell you what else is needed before we quote rather than after.

Building work in Dubai is governed by the Dubai Building Code, issued under Decree No. (45) of 2021. Compliance is mandatory for public and private entities and individuals, and the Code applies to building designs permitted after the Decree took effect across the Emirate, including free zones and Special Development Zones.

For structural loading the Code’s structural part references the ASCE/SEI 7 minimum design loads standard, including its 2016 edition, alongside Dubai-specific provisions. The design basis for a given structure follows the applicable authority requirements together with the project’s approved specification, including the editions and amendments that apply to that project. Amendments are approved by the Director General of Dubai Municipality and published on the Municipality’s website, so the version that applies is the one in force for the project rather than simply the most recent one published.

We work to the design standards required for the project under those applicable Dubai Municipality requirements.

Detailing and execution standards are a separate matter. A code of standard practice or an execution standard governs how steel is detailed, fabricated and inspected; it does not set the design resistance of a member or a connection. Those are covered on the shop drawings and detailing page.

Calculations establish the design: the actions on the structure, the member and connection requirements, and the resistance and serviceability checks that show it works. The output is an engineering case.

Shop drawings translate approved design information into what the workshop and the erection team build from: assemblies, single parts, erection and GA drawings, anchor plans and the associated fabrication files. The output is production information. On most projects the two are sequential, and connection design is where they meet. See shop drawings & detailing.

Yes. We accept standalone enquiries for structural calculations, including for steelwork that another company will fabricate.

Each one is taken case by case. We review the scope and the project requirements first, and the scope and deliverables are agreed before we proceed. Our engineering principally supports the steel we fabricate and install, so send us the drawings and the specification and we will tell you what we can take on for your project.

The report is prepared so that it can be read and checked by others, including the customer’s consultant or engineer of record.

What that does not mean. We do not manage that review, obtain a stamp, or secure an approval. A consultant’s stamp is applied by the appointed consultant under their own appointment. Submitting the report to Dubai Municipality or another authority, and handling the approval process, are outside this service and sit with the party appointed for them. We do not present ourselves as an independent engineering consultancy, and no approval outcome can be promised in advance.