About the author ⁄ Samuel M. Rubenzer, P.E., S.E.

Samuel M. Rubenzer is the founder of FORSE Consulting and assists with designs on a variety of projects and building types. He has also been the structural engineering consultant to Structural Masonry Coalitions in several states. He can be reached at sam@forseconsulting.com.

Masonry FEM/FEA 2.0

Next Step in Incorporating Masonry in Your FEM

Demonstrating the need for utilizing finite element modeling (FEM) and analysis (FEA) to accurately model, analyze, and efficiently design masonry wall systems was the subject of a STRUCTURE article in May of 2016. Hopefully, the reader used the information in the article and is well on their way to building FEM that include structural masonry elements. With that background, they should be ready to advance their design of masonry with the aid of FEM. …

Oct, 2017 By Samuel M. Rubenzer, P.E., S.E. In Structural Design Comments 0

Lateral Analysis

Part 2: Right Way, Wrong Way with Software

Last month’s article (Structural Analysis, STRUCTURE, July 2017) was devoted entirely to model generation, the critical first step in an accurate analysis and design using the Finite Element Method (FEM). Remember, FEM is broken up into three basic steps: …

Aug, 2017 By Samuel M. Rubenzer, P.E., S.E. In Structural Analysis Comments 2

Lateral Analysis

Part 1: Right Way, Wrong Way with Software

The increasing ease of performing a Lateral Analysis of a structure is becoming a double-edged sword: there are many benefits, but it can also be quite dangerous. A fair share of presentations and articles from seasoned engineers warn about colleagues losing a sense of the real behavior of structures, or that engineers today simply do not know how to design structures without a computer. …

Jul, 2017 By Samuel M. Rubenzer, P.E., S.E. In Structural Analysis Comments 0

Finite Element Modeling, Analysis, and Design for Masonry

Software programs for structural engineers continue to escalate in complexity, as engineers become increasingly reliant on those tools to increase accuracy in analysis and efficiency during design. To solve complex problems efficiently, and to gain a more in-depth understanding of the elements being analyzed, structural engineers are using Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Of course, each of the different FEA programs has their idiosyncrasies, all of which require designers to pay close attention when using these programs. …

May, 2016 By Samuel M. Rubenzer, P.E., S.E. In Articles, Technology Comments 2

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