The new FEM-Design version has been released. FEM-Design 22 development process took almost a year, and suggestions and ideas from users were important. Klára Ledniczky, a development team member, talks about the process, from ideas to the final version.
Recently, StruSoft released the 22nd version of FEM-Design. Every year, we develop a new version. The process starts in January and ends in November of the same year, and the new version is released the following year.
FEM-Design was created more than 25 years ago when two software merged, one from Sweden and one from Hungary. Today, the main development of the software is based in Budapest, Hungary, where we meet Klára Ledniczky in the development team. The team consists of twenty-one engineers and specialists in Finite Element Analysis (FEA), mathematics and software coding specialists responsible for developing FEM-Design. It is a complex and creative process that engages the entire FEM-Design Development Team.
There are four groups in the Development Team, each with its particular area and expertise. Klára is a member of the general group of civil engineers and IT experts responsible for the interface, mesh, and design calculations. The other three groups are engaged in developing different analysis types, in data exchange with other software and testing and evaluating FEM-Design.
FEM-Design 22 development: important suggestions from users
Over the years, StruSoft has always listened to its users. The annual user conference, KCT, is a goldmine of suggestions to improve the program. This year’s KCT conference was not an exception.
It was quite fascinating to listen to the customers’ presentations of different projects and how they solved many problems with the help of FEM-Design, says Klára. For us in the development team, it was a rich source of many ideas.
Klára points out some brilliant ideas that emerged from customers in this year’s KCT conference, for example, how to improve the program’s features, requests to make the documentation process more efficient and to analyse substructures independently from the whole structure.
We also gathered suggestions on our API-interface and saw excellent examples of how it can be used to customize the documentation of analysis and design results, says Klára. By doing that, the generation of all kinds of documentation can be automatised for each special need and documentation type.
The usage of the API is truly developing, and the automation process could be transformed into new areas and new benefits for the users.
From ideas to the next version
During the entire year, suggestions are collected from the users’ working day, not only at KCT, by our FEM-Design support team.
From November, when the latest version is completed, to the next developing period, which starts in January, we gather the proposals that we consider suitable and interesting for the market. Then, we kick off the developing work, collect information, write project plans, and start programming and testing.
The workflow, until the new release is available, is highly creative.
My job is very dynamic and suits my passion for programming, Klára says. In our team, we work closely together, speak the same language literally and figuratively, and constantly discuss how we can improve FEM-Design with more value for the user.
As you see, the user experience of the program is substantial. The reason is simple. You, as a user of FEM-Design, have an essential role. Please contact your sales representative if you have any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions to make FEM-Design a better tool.
Here are Klára’s top five favourite features in version 22 of FEM-Design:
- Time-dependent analysis in Construction stages
- Possibility to remove objects in Construction stages
- Custom results
- RC shell fire calculation
- Single bar reinforcement in RC shell
Discover what’s new in FEM-Design 22
FEM-Design 22 development was an arduous process, but it paid off due to the added value it brings to the users. The new version includes many brand-new features and significant improvements in all areas of the software. Discover what’s new in FEM-Design 22.
The full list of new features and improvements (with technical explanations) can be accessed on our WIKI page.
If you wish to watch the support videos for FEM-Design 22, please check out this YouTube playlist.
FEM-Design 22 is live! It’s time to discover the enhanced calculations & effortless design and use them in your structural engineering projects.
