How Tekla Structures makes rebar design easier?
Tekla Structures helps you detail any rebar project in 3D – no matter how large or complex. With features for model sharing, too, it is the smart and efficient choice for rebar design.
Tekla Structures is the most developed Building Information Modeling (BIM) software on the market today, making it possible to accurately design any structure in 3D – including rebar.
The live 3D models built in Tekla Structures are of great benefit to all stakeholders in the construction chain, as reviews and checks can be made effectively ahead of issuing final drawings and on-site work.
One of the long-time users of Tekla Structures is the UK-based Solve Structural Design. The team has used Tekla Structures as a rebar-design tool in many major London construction projects, including Marble Arch Place, One Nine Elms, and the Battersea Power Plant Redevelopment. Managing Director Greg Johnson says their team appreciates that Tekla Structures is an all-around solution: “Tekla Structures can be used throughout an entire construction project – from the tender, design and construction stages, through to model sharing. This is why it has been our software of choice for so long.”
Among the many advantages of Tekla Structures, the Solve team lists a much better visual overview of the complete project than is possible with 2D drawings. They also appreciate the software’s ability to centrally store all incoming data and link it to the relevant parts of the 3D model. This brings improvements in their internal tasking and workflow, too.
Tekla Structures offers benefits to rebar modelers at each phase of a construction project, as detailed below:
1. Correct estimates at the tendering phase
When tendering, Tekla Structures helps you to make very accurate rebar tonnage estimations – within 3% of the final tonnage. Designers can easily pull together the preliminary total bar diameter quantities for pre-ordering, and at this phase, can already start to plan fixing sequences and constructability. All these benefits come from being able to see the whole plan as a live 3D model.
2. Modeling that combines intuition and automation
Modeling rebar using Tekla Structures is very intuitive, with several features for productivity gains. Designers can save predefined configurations for a specific project and can reduce the modeling time of any repeating structure by using intelligent custom components. Libraries can be created and shared with colleagues to standardize and streamline work.
Many of the advantages of Tekla Structures are linked to its ability to make use of automation. For instance, designers can avoid errors by automating repetitive rebar detailing, numbering, and documentation tasks. Automation helps to reduce the risk of errors when inputting data to rebar processing systems, too.
Tekla Structures also allows automatic data export to rebar Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), as well as cut-and-bend and mesh-welding systems. And all the information required for reporting is available at the touch of a button.
3. Enhanced communication and collaboration
When using Tekla Structures for rebar detailing and planning, the whole project team can view the 3D model via the Tekla Model Sharing tool or the Trimble Connect online collaboration platform. These communication tools allow the design team and any partners to work on the same Tekla model at the same time – regardless of location, time zone, or internet-connection speed.
Thanks to enhanced communications, the full project team can see real-time progress, with visual color-coded status models making it much easier to track changes than with traditional lists and spreadsheets. The design intent can be regularly checked against constructability, and all reviews are faster and more transparent than with 2D design tools. The project team can easily make their comments and change proposals – even at a detailed level – before any final drawings are issued.
4. Changes made easy
As a modeler, you can smoothly adapt to any changes and make the needed adjustments. For instance, detected and reported design changes are automatically revised in the model. You can adjust rebar placement and modify settings easily by interacting directly with model objects. And you need to make updates only once, as any linked drawings and schedules can be updated automatically when the model changes.
Tekla Structures can also automatically generate placement and production drawings complete with bar marks, pull-out pictures, bar-bending schedules, and material lists for bars and meshes. Rebar designers can produce documents with correct and consistent information throughout the entire process.
5. Advantages on-site
During the construction phase, the benefits of close collaboration early on in the project and the possibility of checking the design against constructability become even more evident. There are fewer on-site delays and less cutting and bending.
As all the drawings by different trades can be imported into a single 3D model, any clashes on-site between rebar and, for instance, mechanical and electrical design or temporary works can be identified beforehand so they can be avoided on-site. Clashes with neighboring rebar and at lapping points can also be avoided.