Oasys releases GSA 9.0

Oasys GSA 9.0 for structural engineers introduces a new-generation interface, reporting, graphics and import/export options to support key new features. These new features include steel section design, non-linear dynamic analysis, and better BIM functionality.  GSA 9.0 also features new 3D Solid, damper, and contact elements.

The last major GSA release (GSA 8.7) introduced non-linear shell elements, new curved and explicit members and the idea of assemblies to combine multiple elements for analysis. GSA 9.0 continues that work, aligning the software tools with evolving architectural designs, materials, and working practices, while continuing to ensure that the software delivers the performance and confidence in results required by users.

Interoperability with third-party programs is now focused on IFC across the industry, and for the new release of GSA, import/export has been tested with Tekla, Autodesk, Bentley, and Solibri products. The GSA dedicated Revit GSA link has also been enhanced.

The GSA developers have also advanced compatibility with other Oasys programs. In some cases, core functionality has been built into GSA 9.0 as new tools: Oasys AdSec analysis of sections has been adopted for defining sections, for instance.

Key new features of Oasys GSA 9.0 include the following:

Interface — The redesigned interface will streamline workflow, and refined graphics improve interrogation of the results. This is no mere cosmetic makeover, behind the new home menu page and subsequent screens is an upgraded library of controls.

A new status bar makes it easy to modify units and choose design codes. New dockable panels in the object builder can be pinned on a second screen for instant reference access. These panels are tools in themselves, enabling engineers to modify graphics or data without needing to navigate in and out of additional dialogue boxes.

The toolbars are all customizable. Working chart views have also been addressed, so that results are more easily updated or exported to web pages. New reporting styles of analysis and design tasks offers more flexibility with layout and easier readability. All analysis reports are preserved, maintaining a complete audit trail of all queries and design changes.

Design — New automated steel design tools make it easier to optimize a structure. Tools to create job-specific Section Pools created from the Section Library also streamline workflow.

Explicit solver — GSA now includes an explicit time history solver to allow nonlinear dynamic analysis of buildings and bridges under seismic loads.  Explicit Analysis techniques are typically adopted for events of short time span, high frequency, dynamic nonlinear situations which often result in large deformations.  These events can often be associated with seismic events, blast or impact.  Couple this capability with the contact and damper elements implemented and higher-level problems can be solved in more detail with GSA than ever before.

New Element Types — 3D Solid, Contact & Damper elements. GSA 9.0 implements 3D Solid elements for use in the linear and explicit time-history solver, and contact and damper elements for use with the explicit solver allowing a range of new problems to be tackled.  The 3D Solid elements allow for modeling of problems where the stress state varies in all three directions, such as large concrete components. The damper element is essentially a dashpot and will be useful when looking at damped vibration problems. Contact elements and damper elements will allow a range of problems to be solved such as building base isolation in seismic problems, shock absorption and damped vibration type problems (e.g. long span cable supported footbridges), concrete filled steel sections, a buried tank within soil, composite deck and a whole host more.

Non-linear analysis — While previous releases and this current release of GSA have powerful nonlinear analysis sufficient for most users’ requirements; the new v9.0 now provides for deeper analysis where required. A wizard for creating LS-DYNA models uses selected LS-DYNA materials commonly associated with structural problems.

Beam sections — GSA 9.0 includes an enhanced beam section feature, which will enable greater integration between GSA and the other Oasys programs. The Oasys AdSec analysis, which can handle sections made from concrete, steel or fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) sections, has been adopted as the basis for a new way of defining sections in GSA 9.0.

This approach is now being rolled out across other Oasys structural analysis tools including, Oasys ADC for concrete beam and column design and Oasys Compos for beam analysis and damping.

Soil settlement analysis — Modeling soil as 3D Solid elements has been incorporated into GSA 9.0 to give a faster and more advanced analysis of soil-structure interaction. Oasys envisage other uses for GSA 9.0’s 3D Solid elements such as detailed models of concrete and steel structural components.

IFC Support — GSA 9.0 will now support IFC v2x3 for import and export of structures, so you will now be able connect to more modeling packages, especially Tekla Structures and Structural Designer through this capability.

GSRevit — The link between Revit and GSA has improved, making GSA even more compatible with the latest release of Revit.  Two productivity improvements include the ability to only import the selected elements in GSA into your Revit model as well as importing 2D elements, such as wall and slabs, from GSA to Revit, including voids if present.

APIs — GSA’s powerful application programming interface makes it a popular platform for solving complex engineering problems and integrating it into different workflows to enhance productivity. Enhancements to the API in v9 include direct objects for Members which lead to faster access and more productive code development; expansion of existing objects for Sections and Elements; and the ability to run automated design from the API using the new Design Task functionality. Oasys is also now offering training in the use of the APIs.