Limitations and what sazeh does not do

This page lists what sazeh has not yet verified, what is deliberately outside its scope, and the assumptions that are printed on the calculation sheet. The aim is that, before relying on any number, the engineer knows where the number comes from and where it stops.

Unverified items

These items are implemented but have not yet been compared with an external reference. Until they are verified they should be treated with caution.

Comparison with a reference program

The analysis results of sazeh have not yet been formally compared with the output of a reference program. The sheet is therefore a review aid, and the engineer must verify the result with their own method.

The design base acceleration A

The design base acceleration A has four steps (0.20, 0.25, 0.30 and 0.35), and the neighbouring step makes an error of 17% to 75% in the base shear. In sazeh you choose A yourself, and no later check can detect a wrong choice. The engineer must take the value from the seismic hazard of the site and confirm it against the printed code.

Clause 3-3-8, overturning

The present reading of clause 3-3-8 has not yet been compared with the printed text of the code. The present condition is a safety factor of at least 1.0 against a resisting side of 0.9D, and the factor of 1.75 of the earlier edition is reported only as a recommendation.

The present scope

Shear walls

The in-plane shear, the flexure and the reinforcement ratio of the wall and the boundary element are checked, but the wall flexure is computed with the vertical reinforcement spread evenly, so the result is an upper bound and not a final verdict. A wall without a pier label in ETABS receives no force, and its row stays "deferred".

Dual wall-frame system

For this system, the row of table 3-4 for an intermediate reinforced-concrete moment frame with special shear walls is used. The model does not state which row of table 3-4 the design was based on, so the other rows (special frame with special walls, or intermediate frame with intermediate walls) must be confirmed with the engineer.

Composite sections

A real composite section, such as a CFT column or a steel beam that acts compositely with the slab, is not covered. A composite frame with steel beams and concrete columns is checked, and each member is checked against the rules of its own material, but the row of the structural system stays "not met", because table 3-4 has no line for a composite frame.

Irregularities

The irregularity clauses that are read from the analysis results (such as torsion, soft storey and weak storey) are checked. Six geometric clauses that are read from the drawing are not yet checked. If the engineer has declared an irregularity on the model, the tool does not remove it and prints both rows.

Seismic analysis

The seismic load is applied by the equivalent static method of the seismic code and, for a model whose structure allows it, a spectral analysis is also run. The factors ρ and Ω0 and the height limit of table 3-4 are not yet checked.

Wind and snow

The wind pressure and the snow load of the site are printed for information, but they are not applied as loads in the analysis.

Assumptions printed on the sheet

These assumptions change the answer, so they are not hidden and appear beside the result in the calculation sheet.

The diameter and the number of legs of the stirrups are designed and printed in the sheet. If the diameter or the number of legs differs on site, the permitted spacing changes too.
The reinforcement quantity is a lower bound. The amount of reinforcement comes from the reinforcement required by the governing moment and is not a bar schedule. Stirrups and part of the beam steel are not in it, so this number is always printed with the label "incomplete".
Second-order factors. In the second-order moment amplification K = 1.0 and Cm = 1.0 are assumed.
Lateral bracing of a steel beam. A floor steel beam is checked on the assumption of continuous lateral bracing by the slab, and lateral-torsional buckling is not checked.
Compatibility torsion is taken into account only when the engineer has declared it, because nothing in the model says in which beam the torsion can be redistributed.
The penthouse is declared by the engineer and sazeh does not guess it.

What is not covered

The following are deliberately outside the present scope.

Other countries' codes. Only one national set of codes is applied; ASCE 7, ACI 318, AISC 360, the Eurocodes and the codes of other countries are not supported.
Foundation design and generation of a SAFE file. The support reactions of every joint are printed with the governing combination.
Shop drawings of reinforcement and bar schedules.
Design of steel connections.
Slab design and punching shear checks.
Time-history analysis.
Seismic retrofit of an existing building.
Sheds, shoring structures, timber structures and light steel frames.

Responsibility for the signature

sazeh proposes sections and prints the result of the checks, but it is not a legal stamp. Every number of the sheet comes from the analysis and the tables of the codes, and every assumption that changes the answer is written on the sheet. The final decision nevertheless rests with the engineer who reads the sheet and signs it. Artificial intelligence does not stamp drawings, and the tool does not take over the responsibility for the design.

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