STAAD User Tool: Extract Support Reaction from STAAD

User Tool: Extract Support Reaction from STAAD

Created by: Surojit Ghosh

Description:

          This is an excel based OpenSTAAD macro which can extract support reaction values directly from STAAD model. If you open any complete STAAD model with proper modelling information (load, support, section property, analysis command etc.), analyze the model and run this excel macro, then depending on the selected inputs, reaction forces are extracted in the excel for selected supports and load cases.

This User Tool can extract support reactions for –

  • All or selected load cases
  • All or selected support nodes
  • All 6 force components or selected force values

 

Pre-requisites:

  1. You need MS Excel to open and run this macro.
  2. This macro is supported only in STAAD.Pro CONNECT Edition V22 or higher version. It is locked for all other STAAD.Pro versions.
  3. Before using this user tool, check whether a single STAAD model is opened or not. If multiple STAAD files are opened, then from the first instance of STAAD, support reaction values are extracted. If no STAAD model is opened, then process terminates with error message.
  4. Analysis data must be available. If analysis is incomplete, then support reaction forces are not available, and extraction process terminates with warning.
  5. OpenSTAAD functions work with Base unit setup. Check and select Base unit from STAAD for the unit of extracted reaction forces.

How to Use:

          Step 1: Open a STAAD.Pro model first.  

          Step 2: Open the Extract Support Reaction from STAAD_v1.1.xlsm file (macro enabled excel file).  If prompted, enable the macro, and enable the content.

          Step 3: In the user tools interrace, first provide the inputs in the Input Block, then click on the Get Support Reactions tab to extract all the support reactions values from a STAAD.Pro Model.

                      You can clear the extracted results before the next run using Clear Results tab.

                      For more information about this user tool, click on the Help tab.

Video Tutorial:

Check the following video tutorial to know more about this code and about different inputs and output values.

User Tools: Extract Support Reaction from STAAD

Check the following video tutorial to know more about excel based macro.

Linking STAAD to Excel: An Overview

Help document file is uploaded in the following location.

Help Manual

Warnings:

          I have included several warning messages to inform the user about any possible incorrect input values. Check the warning and accordingly specify input values or modify STAAD model.

Note that, if any incorrect inputs are provided, then extracted support reaction forces will be incorrect.

Revision History:

Version 1.0 – Publish date: 4th July 2021.

Version 1.1 -- Publish date: 18th July 2021. (Minor update -- STAAD.Pro file name is now reported in the excel sheet)

 

Disclaimer

This macro is not a part of the standard Bentley implementation process and has not gone through the standard QA procedures. This macro has been created by technical team for their own purposes and sharing for the benefit of the Bentley Structural Users. User of this tool should validate the results produced by the macro with their own test cases and responsibility of results produced by this macro does not rest with the technical team.

Parents Comment
  • OpenSTAAD functions work with the base unit. I presume that base unit for your STAAD model is selected as English. Please change that to Metric (from STAAD welcome screen, Configuration > Base unit) and re-run the code. For more information, you can check the video tutorial or help document file.
    If there are more number of requests for flexible unit setup, I can update this code and provide an additional option to edit the force unit.

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