The Custom Roof option in MecaWind Ultimate will not solve all of your custom building problems, but it will handle some specific challenges that designers may face. The Custom Roof option is available for gabled, monoslope, and flat roofs in the Ultimate version of...
The image above is NOT the Jamaican flag; it is actually a graphical representation of the Components and Cladding (C&C) zones for a hipped roof. ASCE 7 has figures that define the C&C and the zones that are applicable for various roof types. The relative...
There are several changes included in the ASCE 7-22 'Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures' related to wind load calculations. This article will attempt to summarize the major changes to the wind load calculations.Chapter 26:...
Many times we have the difficult task of analyzing a structure that was designed long ago. In such cases, you may find that the wind speed used may appear significantly lower than the wind speed you would expect for that location using today's standards. In these...
This article will explain how to calculate wind loads per ASCE 7 on stacks/chimneys and similar structures. ASCE 7-16, Chapter 29 covers "Other Structures". This is a very broad section that covers a lot of different types of structures. Even if you don't design...
When I was a new Engineer my boss had his stack design questioned by a client. My boss responded "Sir, I will serve you tea on the downwind side of that stack on the windiest day of the year." That line (and disturbing image) has never left my mind. Designing tall...
It was Tom Cruise in "Top Gun" who once said, "I feel the need, the need for speed". I sometimes wonder if Tom Cruise is on the ASCE 7 committee, because it feels like they have the need to change the wind speed basis with every new release of ASCE 7. I'm not...
The ASCE 7-16 Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures was released in the Summer of 2017, and some jurisdictions are starting to reference this standard. MecaStack has a built in calculator for ASCE 7 wind loads on the stack, but Meca also offers a...