ETABS SOFTWARE FOR STRUCTURAL & ANALYSIS DESIGN
For nearly 30 years, ETABS has been recognized as the industry standard for Building Analysis and
Design Software. Today, continuing in the same tradition, ETABS has evolved into a completely
integrated building analysis and design environment. The system built around a physical object based
graphical user interface, powered by targeted new special purpose algorithms for analysis and design,
with interfaces for drafting and manufacturing, is redefining standards of integration, productivity and
technical
innovation.
The integrated model can include moment resisting frames, braced frames, staggered truss systems,
frames with reduced beam sections or side plates, rigid and flexible floors, sloped roofs, ramps and
parking structures, mezzanine floors, multiple tower buildings and stepped diaphragm systems with
complex concrete, composite or steel joist floor framing systems. solutions to complex problems such
as panel zone deformations, diaphragm shear stresses, and construction sequence loading are now at
your
fingertips.
ETABS is the solution, whether you are designing a simple 2D frame or performing a dynamic analysis
of a complex high-rise that utilizes non-linear dampers for inter-story drift control.
Graphical User Interface
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Simple Windows interface
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Menu and button driven
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Up to 4 simultaneous display windows
Grid Systems
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Support for Multiple Coordinate Systems
including rectangular, cylindrical, and
general grids
Extruded Views
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Smooth shading
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clear display of wall junctions
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Allows review of insertion points, local
axes rotations, geometry, etc
Dimension Lines
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Draw dimension lines at any location in
a plan view
Specify the units that are to be used to
display the dimensions s, etc
Accurate dimensioning with guidelines
and snapping
Modeling Templates
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Selection of templates for quickly
starting a new model
Edit spacing, story dimensions and
Units
Section Properties
 Concrete Sections
o Easy to define standard concrete shapes
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Section Designer
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Specialized sections
Allows users to create any
arbitrary shape and any user
defined material
Automatically calculates all
section properties
Generates biaxial interaction
diagram for concrete sections
Moment curvature diagrams
and rebar layouts
Steel Sections
Easy to define standard steel shapes
I/Wide Flange Channel
Double Channel
Tee Angle
Double Angle
Pipe
Tube
Steel Joist
Built up steel sections
Frame Elements
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The frame elements in ETABS are
defined as beams, columns or braces.
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Intermediate joints will automatically
be generated where other members
intersect with frame to ensure finite
element connectivity.
Shell Elements
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The Shell Element in ETABS are
defined as slabs, walls or deck
properties
 Use the Wall/Slab Section to define
the parameters for the wall or slab
section
 Deck Section properties can be
defined as filled or unfilled deck and
solid slab
 Area Shell Types:
o Shell
o Plate
o Membrane
Shear Walls
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Draw complex 2D and 3D shear walls
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Walls can interact with beams and
columns
Piers and Spandrels
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Pier and spandrel labels produce
integrated shears and moments for
design purposes, for walls modeled
with area finite elements.
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For example, an assemblege of 20X20
meshed shear wall areas could have
results displayed and reported as if it
were a single column.
Windows and Doors
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Draw command for windows and door
openings in walls
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Automatically meshes wall around
door/window openings
Link Properties
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ETABS has a many different link elements
available for users to accurately represent
the behavior of a structure.
Linear
Gaps
Hooks
Dampers
Friction
Isolators
Rubber Isolators
Hinge Properties
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Force-deformation relations for steel
and concrete hinges
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Frame hinges for axial, flexural,
shear and torsional behavior
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Capacity spectrum conversions
effective damping calculation
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Summary reports including plastic
hinge deformations
Meshing Tools
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ETABS automatically meshes area
objects that are assigned deck
properties or slab properties
Meshing helps distribute loads
realistically
User has full control of how mesh gets
generated
Reshaper tool can be used to reshape
and control mesh geometry
Automatic Line Constraint
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Automatic Line Constraint technology
for mismatched meshes.
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Line Constraints automatically appear
at the lines where the floor and wall
objects intersect.
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Displacement compatibility enforced
when mesh geometries do not match
Extrusion Tools
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Linear or radial extrusion available
for points and lines
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Generate a cylindrical surface from
radial extrusion of a single line
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A two-dimensional object, area or
shell, can be generated from a onedimensional object, the line object
Rigid, Semi-Rigid and Flexible Floor Diaphragm
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Apply diaphragm constraints to all
corner points of area object
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Diaphragms can be assigned to joints
objects
Developed Elevations
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Elevations along gridlines
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Developed elevations along strips
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Editing and assignments in elevation
view
Automatic Code Based Seismic Loading
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ETABS will automatically generate seismic
loads based on various domestic and
international codes including but not limited
to:
UBC 94; 97
BOCA 96
NBCC 95
2005 IBC 2003; 2006
Chinese 2002
ISI1893 2002
NEHRP 97
User coefficient
User loads
Special Seismic Load Effects
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ETABS can automatically calculate
the Rho factor, which is a
reliability factor based on system
redundancy
ETABS calculates the Rho factor
in accordance with Section 1617
of the 2000 International Building
Code
The Rho factor is only calculated
when there is lateral load present
in the model.
Display loading values
Color contoured area loading
diagrams
Automatic Code Based Wind Loading
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Automatic permutation of wind
directions and eccentricities
ETABS will automatically generate
wind loads based on various
domestic and international codes
including but not limited to:
o UBC 94; 97
o BOCA 96
o ASCE 7-95; -02; -05
o NBCC 2005
o Mexican
o Chinese 2002
o IS875 1987
o User defined
Open Structure Wind Loading
Load Cases and Combinations
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Unlimited number of load cases and
combinations
Automated design combinations
based on selected design code
Strength and service combinations
User-defined load combinations
Linear add, envelope, absolute add,
SRSS, and rang combinations
Area, Line, Point and Thermal Loads
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Uniform or non-uniform surface
loads (surface loads can be assigned
in any direction, not just gravity)
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Point loads can be assigned in any
direction, including skewed angles
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Uniform or trapezoidal loads on lines
in any direction
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Thermal load can be assigned to
joints, lines and/or areas
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Automatic Live Load Reduction
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Live load reduction options:
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Tributary Area
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Influence Area
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User parameters
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Chinese
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User defined by stories
supported
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Option to apply
reduction factors to
axial load only or all
forces/components
Imposed joint support displacement
Response Spectrum Analysis
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Response-spectrum analysis is a
statistical type of analysis for the
determination of the likely
response of a structure to seismic
loading.
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Response-spectrum analysis
seeks the likely maximum
response to these equations
rather than the full time history.
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The earthquake ground
acceleration in each direction is
given as a digitized responsespectrum curve of pseudospectral acceleration response
versus period of the structure.
Time History Analysis
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Modal frequency analysis using Ritz
or Eigen vectors
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Linear Time History Analysis
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Nonlinear Time History Analysis with
the Wilson FNA Method
P-Delta Analysis
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P-Delta analysis option accounts for the
effect of large compressive or tensile
loads upon the transverse stiffness of
members in the structure
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Specify as combination of static load
cases
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Automated mass calculation applied
Sequential Construction
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Model Effects of Construction or
Demolition
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Specify Active Structure by Stories or
Groups
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Geometric Nonlinear P-Delta and Large
Displacements
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Sequential Construction Load Cases for
Design
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Pushover Analysis
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FEMA 273, ATC-40
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Force-Deformation relations for
steel and concrete hinges
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Modal, uniform, or user defined
lateral load patterns
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Capacity spectrum conversions
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Effective damping calculation
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Demand spectrum comparisons
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Performance point calculation
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Summary reports including plastic
hinge deformations
Steel Frame Design
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Automatic member sizing – No
preliminary design required
 Virtual work based
optimization for lateral
deflections
 Grouping of members for
member sizing
 AISC-ASD & LRFD, UBC,
British, Canadian, Italian,
Indian and Euro Codes
 Design for static and dynamic
loads
User Defined Loading
Concrete Frame Design
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ACI, UBC, British, Canadian, New
Zealand, Italian, Indian, Mexican
and Euro Codes
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Design for static and dynamic loads
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Grouping for design envelopes
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Automatic or user defined loading
combinations and design groups
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Automatic calculations of live load
reduction factors
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Design for biaxial-moment/axialload interaction & shear
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Automatic calculation of moment
magnification factors
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Magnification override option with
the evaluation of P-delta effects
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Integrated section designer for
complex concrete sections
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Interactive options for design and
review
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Design for effects of rorsion
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Virtual work based optimization for
lateral deflection control
Composite Beam Design
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Recognizes similar nature of
typical floors
Orthogonal and skewed deck
systems
Composite design for transfer
girders
Design of cantilevers and their
backspans
Automatic member Sizing – No
preliminary design required
Optimization for minimum weight
or price
Camber and stud requirements
User specified stud distribution
Wet and dry loading combinations
Code dependent or user defined
loading combinations
Automatic calculations of live load
reduction factors
User controlled deflection criteria
Virtual work based automatic drift
Shear Wall Design
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Steel Joist Design
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Recognizes similar nature of
typical floors
Standard (K) or Envelope (KCS)
design types
Total load and live load design
parameters
Orthogonal and skewed deck
systems
Automatic member sizing – No
preliminary design required
Code dependent or user defined
loading combinations
Automatic calculations of live load
reduction factors
Virtual work based on automatic
drift control for steel frames
Grouping of members for member
sizing
AISC-ASD & LRFD, UBC, British,
Canadian, Italian, Indian and
Euro
Codes for steel frame design
Design for static and dynamic
loads
Integrated Section Designer for
composite & built-up Section
Deformed Geometry
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3D perspective graphical displays
Static deformed and mode shapes
animation of deformed shapes
Users can display deformed geometry
based on any load, or combination of
loads.
Calculates reinforcing requirements
for overturning & shear
American, Canadian, British and
Indian codes
Reinforcing requirements for 2D
planar walls
Reinforcing requirements for 3D
elevator core with openings
Reinforcing requirements for curved
shear walls
Reinforcing requirements for
spandrels & link beams
Design includes torsional effects
User controlled interactive design
and review
Accurate capture of shear lag
Automatic Integration of forces for
piers and spandrels
2D wall pier design
2D wall spandrel design
3D wall pier check for provided
reinforcement
Moment, Shear and Axial Force Diagrams
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Force diagrams and stress contours
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Story vertical loads, shears and
overturning moments
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Selective results displayed on-screen
with right-button click
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Tabular display of model input & output
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ETABS has the ability to generate video
(.avi) files to visually display a set of
analysis results that vary over a
particular time period, such as in a time
history analysis.
Output plot functions include:
 Base functions
 Energy functions
 Frame functions
 Generalized Displacement functions
 Joint functions
 Link functions
 Load functions
 Section Cut functions
 Shell functions
Section Cuts
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Graphical section cut definitions for
forces and stresses
The resultant (free-body) forces and
moments across any cut in the
structure can be defined using section
cuts.
A section cut can have any shape, and
can be used to compute story shears,
connecting forces, design forces in
shear walls, and for many other
purposes.
Section cut results can be obtained for
all types of load cases and
combinations.
Video Animations
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Import and Export Formats
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ETABS SYSTEMS REQUIREMENTS :
ETABS will work on any Windows-based (Windows XP,
Vista and Windows 7 only for network installation), IBMcompatible personal computer with at least the following
configuration:
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Pentium 4, 2.4 Ghz processor or better
A minimum of 512 MB of RAM (1.0 GB is
recommended)
At least 6 GB of free hard disk space. The
remainder is needed for analytical scratch files.
Large projects may require much more disk
space.
Windows XP or higher operating system
Windows-compatible graphics card and monitor
supporting at least 1024 by 768 resolution and 16
bits colors. The graphics cards should also be
capable to support OpenGL compatible.
Export model to MS-access
database
Export stories to SAFE for
foundation analysis/design
Cut & paste portions of model to
Excel spreadsheet for editing
Import/Export model in CIS/2 STEP
file format
Steel buildings detailed in ProSteel
3D using an import/export link
Import/Export project data with
Autodesk Revit Structure
Export steel models in the Steel
Detailing Neutral File format
Import/Export data using IFC
standards
Import files in the following
program formats:
AutoCAD
FrameWorks Plus
IGES
STAAD
STRUDL