As in the case of Structural design the manual calculations are very much time

consuming and not reliable where as the Software packages came as a boon to an
Structural Engineer by making his work easier.

Here are some of the list of software's which were used in practice

Auto Cad by Auto desk ___ a Starter for all Engineers

STADD PRO ___ 3D structural analysis & design engineering software
ETABS by CSI ____ for advanced Dynamic analysis of buildings
SAP 2000 by CSI ____ for Earth Quake Analysis of structures
Diamonds____Structural analysis and design software
CompoSIDE____An integrated suite of web-based design and data management modules
dedicated for composites
AStrutTie____Strut-and-Tie Model Analysis/Design of Structural Concrete
Cloudcalc_____Cloud-based free AISC code steel analysis software
FEM-Design___An advanced modeling software for finite element analysis and design
of load-bearing concrete, steel and timber structures
PLAXIS 3D___For Foundation soil structure interactions.
GT STRUDL____Structural Analysis and Design Modeling Software
INDUCTA___Australian structural design software company
RFEM___3D structural analysis & design software
RISA___General 3D analysis/design software
VisualAnalysis___3D Structural analysis and design software
SAFI___3D Structural analysis and design software
SCIA Engineer___Multi-material structural analysis and design software
SkyCiv___3D Structural Analysis Software Online
S-FRAME____Integrated 3D structural analysis and design software suite
NEESA ___ Finite Element Software
ABAQUS___ Finite Element Software
These are the present leaders of the Software available.

Typically:

RC lateral force resisting systems - Etabs

RC/PT slabs - RAM Concept and/or RAPT
Steel/Timber - Microstran, SpaceGass and/or Strand7
I don't design using the software per se. I use the analysis results to design the
required sections/members/steel. I feel that calculations for members are more
easier to follow if you know what the design forces/moments are used among a sea of
load combinations. Yes, you could do envelope cases but always good to know which
are the governing cases/combinations instead of just a peak value.

Note other structural engineers may do things differently for any given structure.

Instead of giving you specific programs, I will tell you the names of some
companies that make them. This is not an exhaustive list, it's only the software
that I've encountered.

Autodesk (makers of AutoCAD and Revit)

CSI - Computers and Structures Inc. (makers of SAP2000, ETABS, SAFE, etc.)
RISA (makers of RISA2D and RISA3D)
Dassault Systemes (makers of Abaqus)
Bentley (makers of RAM, STAAD, etc.)
ADAPT (makers of ADAPT)

Originally Answered: what software does a structural engineer use to build a model
and design?
There are many analysis and design programs available. The one that is right for
you all depends on the the materials you’re designing for, the standards you’re
designing to, and so on. Some program will be better than others simply depending
on what your particular application is which requires some research beforehand.

Programs used throughout North America include products from CSI, RISA, Bentley,
Enercalc, IES, etc. What engineers may not be aware of is that Dlubal Software
which originates in Germany expanded to North America in July 2015. The nonlinear
program RFEM can be used as a general finite element program but also includes US
and Canadian standards for wood, CLT, steel, concrete, glass, aluminum and is also
capable of fabric tensile structures and cables. This can provide an all
encompassing solution for structural design for multiple materials.

The best approach is to find a company which can offer you a trial or demo version
to test out the program for an extended period of time. I know with multiple
project deadlines, it’s difficult to find this time. However, until you can get
your hands on a program and take it for a test run, only then will you know if the
program is a good solution for you. Dlubal does offer a free 90-day full version
trial of RFEM which allows engineers to do some hefty testing without being
restricted to model size limitations or running out of time

Originally Answered: what software does a structural engineer use to build a model
and design?
Engineers all over the world use different software packages. In my research, I
have found dozens of general structural engineering software packages, and that
does not include specialized software built to do one thing really well.

Count them all, and you would easily have over 100 different software applications
for design and analysis.

If you grow up as a typical structural engineer in North America, you’ll know all
the usual suspects: SAP2000, STAAD, RAM, RISA, ADAPT, and so on. I’d like to list
some of the pleasant surprises that I have come accross; applications that I had
rarely heard about, but that actually have significant user-bases.

Sofistik is a German software developer offering a sweet of modules of the design

and analysis of buildings. It is very popular in Europe. What’s awesome is their
extensive list of AutoCAD and Revit integrations to make the structural engineer
more productive.

This Swedish software firm offering a about a dozen products of building design and
analysis. Their flagship product, FEM-DESIGN is very popular in Europe, with links
to popular BIM software like Revit and Tekla.

Moving down to Australia, the program you’ll hear about the most is Space Gass.
This general analysis and design package is used everywhere from Adelaide up to
Sydney. It’s got a slick graphical interface and all the functionalities of similar
products like SAP2000 or STAAD.

Masterseries is used mostly in the UK, though it also supports Euro and South
African codes. It is BIM compatible.

SCIA, is popular through Europe, though it also supports North American building
codes. It is certified openBIM in addition to having dedicated links to software
like Revit and Tekla.
For more software like this, here is a categorized list of structural engineering
software for you to explore.

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write about structural engineering technology and productivity. */

Staad ro is the best programs for steel design and analysis, it contains more
international codes for design and make calculation sheets for design

Well if you ask me, I would say it depends on the type of structure which you are
going to design. As a matter of fact, there are lots of commercial softwares to
analyse and design of both steel and concrete structures. Here I can mention some
of them like: ETABS, SAP2000, STAAD PRO, ROBOT and etc. Obviousely, each one has
its own pro and cons. For design of Steel Buildings I prefer ETABS because this
software has many tools to design of a structure according to the international
codes and it can satisfy the various clauses of AISC code. However, STAAD PRO is a
more comprehensive software in compare to ETABS.

P-Delta Analysis is a type of analysis that is particularly important for laterally

displacing multi-story building structures experiencing a gravity load. In this
article, SkyCiv Online Engineering Software will discuss the simple theory behind
P-Delta effects and help you understand the importance of such an analysis when
modeling your structures.

What are P-Delta Effects?

Of course, any structural model will deflect when it is loaded. A deflected
structure may encounter significant secondary moments because the ends of the
members have changed position. To illustrate this, consider the simple cantilevered
column example shown below:

In this example, a column of length L is encountering an axial load (P) and a

lateral load (V). In a standard linear static analysis we would calculate the
lateral deflection (Δ) as:

[math] \Delta = \dfrac{ML^2}{3EI} = \dfrac{VL^3}{3EI} \text{ since M=VL} [math]

Notice that in the case of a linear static analysis the lateral deflection, Δ,
depends on the lateral load (V). However, if the column is encountering an axial
load (P), then wouldn't the column deflect even more? This is obvious because the
axial load would induce a secondary moment with a value of P×Δ. To illustrate this,
let's sum the moments about the base of the column: