14 May 2025
Fixed asymmetric load rating for short pin-roller 3-sided culverts.
Fixed calculation error in trapezoidal bottom slab reaction force.
Addressed issues with AREMA load distribution by limiting the 5ft distribution width to E80/E90 vehicles only.
Corrected the minimum eccentricity check by excluding LRFD 7th Edition or later specifications.
Clarified the temporary reinforcement distribution logic for AREMA specifications.
Vertical box culvert water pressure calculation is corrected.
Improved accuracy of member moment calculation where slight error was resulting from integrating the shear diagram as if the shear diagram was always linear (incorrect for trapezoidal loads like EH).
Fixed "shear and moment" release structural analysis issues.
Added agency compliance checks for maximum slab thickness and ensured the inclusion of specific truck types in the analysis.
Fixed flexible spring foundation spacing issue for multi-cell culverts.
Corrected various minor errors in ds and As values for corners when corner bars are not included.
Modified the tandem axle selection logic for the text report to ensure a tandem truck is consistently selected for display.
Addressed minor issues related to CHBDC and AREMA specifications in the output report generation process.
Added note to report for pin-roller 3 sided culverts indicating positive moment at the corners that isn't checked when performing the load rating at that location.
16 January 2025
Removed check for "always distribute wheel load" analysis option for AREMA specifications.
19 September 2024
Fixed default resistance factors for LRFD in default/startup files.
Resolved input error for CE1 epoxy bars.
15 August 2024
Resolved the issue that caused the input panel to be partially blocked.
9 August 2024
Removed the beta value from the AREMA shear output, as it was not intended to be included.
Fixed an error in the C1/CE1 reinforcement input.
Bugs related to the support of epoxy-coated mesh bars have been fixed.
30 July 2024
Expanded and revised load factor and load combinations dialog box for AREMA.
Added load factor for joint tested boxes (AREMA designs only).
Fixed the issue to show additional horizontal and vertical loads correctly in the report for inverted three-sided culverts.
Fixed an issue for ‘Reactions Applied to Structure’ tables results.
Fixed an issue that CE1 bar weight was not reported correctly.
Fixed the issue of CE1 bars disappearing from the bar schedule when ‘only epoxy top slab’ was selected.
Add support for AREMA group. (dead, live, impact, earth pressure and earthquake), noting that earth pressure refers to horizontal soil loads while vertical soil loads are included in D loads.
Fixed an issue that MID - value was not reported correctly for design with span under 5ft.
Set default fy to 60 ksi for rebar designs and default earth redundancy factor to 1.000.
WSDOT Agency Updates:
For top slabs, the minimum thickness should be the maximum of 10”, Table 2.5.2.6.3-1 (Slabs with main reinforcement parallel to traffic), or Article 4.6.2.10.4 (if the length of the culvert is less than 4’). For bottom slabs, the minimum thickness should be 10”.
Added a span-to-thickness ratio check per LRFD 4.6.2.10.4 for top slabs.
Allowed a 3’ lay length for the short side of skewed boxes.
Unchecked the ‘always distribute wheel load’ analysis option.
Ensured all 8 seismic combinations are checked.
Included Inventory and Operating load ratings in the summary.
Added an additional concrete weight to be used for dead load calculations, one for dead load and one for elasticity.
ACPA Agency Updates:
Updated top cover = 2”
Updated the live load surcharge in the Manual for Bridge Evaluation for rating, reflecting the latest MBE terminology for approaching wheel load. The approaching wheel load can be modeled by a trapezoidal load using the Eq. 6A.10.10.3c-1.
Unselected the ‘use eq. 12.10.4.2.4a-1’ option for the NYSDOT agency.
Fixed a type 3 culvert issue where two releases in a single member did not function correctly.
Removed the option to include haunches in shear critical sections, as the program was not checking the point where the haunches ended, leading to unconservative top slab shear designs.
Fixed shear check using 5.12.7.3 for simply supported slabs.
Fixed the issue where short and narrow culverts were showing a mid- failure and the program was showing 0 reinforcement at that mid- check.
Changed shear analysis option label to say 5.12.7.3 rather than 5.14.5.3.
Fixed an issue with three-sided culverts using two sheet layouts where two mesh inputs (AS3 & AS4) were involved.
28 December 2023
Added negative moment mid-span critical section for the top slab.
3 November 2023
MPF array now limited to max index of 4 to prevent program crash if 5 or more lanes are used.
Fixed an issue where the Design legal load factor input in the Load and Resistance Factors dialog box was not saving user inputs.
Fixed a printing error where the Reinforcement Summary and Rating Summary were not printing.
Fixed the issue where LS load generation was not using K factors when requested by the user.
Fixed the issue where the EHmin load factor was not using the code load factor when K factors were requested by the user.
For LRFR, load ratings will now be calculated even when there are no vertical LL force effects but there are LS force effects.
Special care is taken for the mid-span bottom slab critical sections when calculating load ratings for LRFR.
Fixed the issue that exterior water pressure head was not applying correctly for inverted three-sided culverts.
Add bottom slab MID- critical section for inverted three-sided culverts.
12 May 2023
Added negative moment mid-span critical section for the bottom slab
Misc. UI improvements
11 Apr 2023
Resolved issue causing files using Service Load Design (SLD) to crash
04 Apr 2023
Corrected reading of all user-defined default library folder locations
Corrected interface issue preventing users from entering bottom slab thickness for inverted three-sided culverts in analysis mode
Corrected interface issue when fill depth increment was set to 0.0
27 Feb 2023
Added option to include AREMA 1A load combination
Added option to include LRFD min/min load combination
Updated ACPA agency settings
Corrected B3 mesh horizontal leg dimensions when 4-sheet layout is selected
Modified minimum steel default options for AREMA designs
Allow input of 0.0 rating factors
Misc. Text Report and UI improvements
23 Jan 2023
Automatically changing specification to AREMA when ASTM 1433 agency is selected
Automatically changing specification to LRFD when ASTM 1577 agency is selected
Modified all default start files to reflect ACPA preferences
Modified options to neglect LL
Added warning to Text Report stating that force effects from stripping and handling are not considered
Misc. Text Report improvements for vertical boxes
Corrected surcharge calculation for vertical boxes
Corrected A400 calculations for inverted three-sided culverts when experiencing a large, negative moment
29 Nov 2022
Corrected discrepancies in displayed As,prov on Main View and Text Report for epoxy-coated, longitudinal mesh reinforcement
Corrected spelling error in wing wall report
18 Nov 2022
Misc. UI improvements
Corrected error in B2 bars when “epoxy all bars” option is selected
10 Oct 2022
Bug Fixes:
Corrected error causing program to crash for 3 and 4 cell culverts
Corrected sign of reported EV shear force at the wall joints of type II culverts
Corrected minor interface issues for inverted 3-sided culverts
26 Sep 2022
New Features:
WSDOT agency
Ability to calculate EH loads through the following methods:
Soil equivalent earth pressure (used in all designs prior to v6.0.0)
Active earth pressure
At-rest earth pressure
Ability to model culvert on flexible foundation
Allow user to select ASTM steel for automatic calculation of gamma factor 3 (on Material Properties window)
New options for when the effects of LL can be neglected
New options for how vertical and horizontal seismic forces combine
Allow users to define free-field ground strain for the seismic analysis
Allow both internal and external water to be analyzed in the same design
Allow the input of negative pressure heads (for when the water level is below the top slab)
Added new option to epoxy all steel in top slab
Displaying unfactored seismic analysis results in the results graphs
Bug Fixes:
Corrected reported midspan deflection, for cases when 1/9999 was displayed
06 May 2022
New “type III” culvert type (joints at both top and bottom of walls)
New optional “design limits” on Project Settings window
Note: this will only alert you if your design exceeds these input limits, it does not effect the auto-design algorithms.
New analysis option to include approach slab
Note: if this is selected, live load surcharge will be neglected
New option for users to define the free field displacement in the seismic analysis
New option to apply horizontal loads at the top of the walls to inverted three-sided culverts
Added ability to define additional analysis points
Allow more letters for designer name
Corrected bug in which impact factor could not be input if using the CHBDC design specification
Corrected conservative units error in calculation of exterior water pressure
Misc. interface improvements
07 Mar 2022
Expanded input options for when seismic analysis is to be included
Added option to input free-field ground strain for seismic analysis
Added option for how vertical and horizontal seismic forces are to be combined
Added input of live load factor for extreme event load combinations
Modified vertical seismic analysis to include uniform load on bottom slab
Added “fabricated height” value to Text Report
Misc. minor user interface improvements
02 Dec 2021
Corrected negative axial force envelope for horizontal seismic analysis results
Corrected flexural critical section location for the bottom of exterior wall member critical section when “face of support” location is selected
Fixed display bug on Culvert Properties window
27 Oct 2021
Added ability to apply an external water load while using the CHBDC specification
Added new table to text report to show leg displacements for three-sided culverts with pin-roller boundary conditions
Modified environmental durability calculations for ACI-350, see example document in Knowledge Base for details
Resolved icon issue when using 4k monitors
Fixed issue with overlapping text on Main View window
14 May 2021
LRFD 9th edition specification
Added ability to enter exterior water table height
Added ability to run vertical and horizontal seismic analyses individually
Added table of applied bottom slab loads for all static load cases
Separated unfactored seismic results into results from vertical and horizontal analyses
Updated shear capacity equations for the top slabs of type I culverts to be in compliance with LRFD (6th) section 5.14.5.3 and Standard (17th) 8.16.6.7
Corrected drawing on Main View with missing bottom-right haunch
Corrected issue with selection of longitudinal steel not staying applied
Corrected crash in strip footing module
10 Dec 2020
Enabled seismic analysis for CHBDC specification
Added the ability for users to create legal and permit loads for CHBDC specification
Add “cancel”, “apply” and “recalculate” buttons to all input windows
Added color-changing input
Fixed potential error in A100 bar stress calculations for 3+ cell culverts
30 Oct 2020
Fixed transfer of reaction forces between culvert and strip footing module
Added new .dll file for exporting to AASHTOWare
16 Oct 2020
Added database of truck files (access through Vehicle Library)
Fixed reported metric units error in Text Report
12 Oct 2020
Added option for trapezoidal bottom slab loads
Added option to apply ACI-350 environmental factors in Standard specification
Fixed metric units in “truck results that cause maximum results” table
Resolved issue with “include haunch depth for all critical sections” option for three-sided culverts
Misc. minor improvements to Main View section drawings
03 Sep 2020
Added new boundary condition options for wall joints
Added/modified critical section location options
14 Aug 2020
Added additional optional load combinations for BNSF
Added option to joint test vertical boxes
Removed fatigue check for vertical boxes
Misc. minor improvements to the text report
09 Jul 2020
New Moving Loads input window
Added legal live load factor
Resolved iterative beta algorithm when As is 0.0
29 Jun 2020
New web-based User Manual
Added help buttons to all input windows
Changed units of M-dimension to ft-in
12 Jun 2020
Added capability to analyze shear steel in the walls
Resolved EH loading issue for vertical culverts
08 Jun 2020
New ‘vertical box’ culvert design type
New ‘Ratings Summary’ tab on main window
New ‘Reinforcement Summary’ tab on main window
Added option to apply an additional vertical load to the slabs of the culvert
Added option to apply an additional horizontal load to the walls of the culvert
Added new analysis options to ‘use M-dimension for bar length calculations’
Added multi-tab report printing
Improved splice length table for precast boxes
Modified M-dimension calculations
Modified ‘combine all axles’ axle combination algorithm
Corrected ‘coincident bottom slab load’ displayed in text report
15 May 2020
Fixed environmental durability factor for type I culverts
Fixed As when corner bars are included in type I culverts
Fixed read error of v2 ETCulvert files
08 May 2020
Modified wire lengths for 4-sheet mesh layouts
Fixed case where incorrect controlling mode was being reported
Misc. minor interface improvements
05 May 2020
Modified user inputs in Analysis Options window
Added more LL distribution options
Added ASTM bar labels to Main View tables
Fixed boundary conditions for three-sided culverts
Misc. minor changes to text report
29 Apr 2020
3D rendering performance improvements
Bug fix for three-sided CHBDC culverts
Changed internal pressure head units
21 Apr 2020
Modified linear solve for performance
Improvements to FEM structural model
25 Nov 2019
Modified default start-up files
Interface improvements for inverted three-sided culverts
Minor changes to buoyancy check section of text report
30 Oct 2019
Added prospective LRFD 9th edition specification
Improved mesh auto-design algorithm
Improved ds calculation for two layers of mesh
08 Aug 2019
Modified effective depth calculations for two layers of mesh
Improvements to the auto-design algorithm
31 Jul 2019
Added inverted three-sided culvert type
15 Jul 2019
No longer flagging Mcr as an error for the LRFD 7th or 8th editions
Resolved issue with “distribution slab has been provided” option
Misc. minor text report changes
10 Jul 2019
Added type I and II examples to the QC document
Improvements to the ‘As Bar Marks’ table in the text report
Improvements to the ‘export to AASHTOWare’ feature
Improvements to the reported ‘controlling case’
Added user option to modify the max steel ratio coefficient
Refined M-dimension calculations for mesh
Modified MnDOT agency settings
Flagging bar overstress as a deficiency in the text report
Misc. minor interface improvements
16 May 2019
Resolved sign error for type II horizontal earth loads
Fixed bug for multi-cell culverts when “always check deflections” is selected
03 May 2019
Modified default agency settings in analysis mode
17 Apr 2019
Fixed ‘always check deflections’ analysis options for multi-cell culverts
Refined horizontal earth load calculations for type II culverts
Modified type II ratings, and added design notes to Critical Section tables in text report
Fixed plotting error in Results Graphs window
Misc. interface improvements
11 Apr 2019
Added option to restrain deflection in the walls for type II culverts
Added option to model boundary conditions as fixed-fixed for three-sided culverts
Fixed case of negative ratings for type II culverts
Fixed “removed corner bars” options when the A1/A2 bars are U-shaped
Fixed visualization error in strip footing module
21 Mar 2019
Refined interpolation routines
13 Mar 2019
Fixed displayed shear diagram for seismic analysis
11 Mar 2019
Refinement of CHBDC code implementation
Modified structural model of type I culverts, when a deflection check is required
Fixed metric units error in input of user-defined additional point loads
05 Feb 2019
Added analysis option to always perform a deflection check
29 Jan 2019
Resolved moment interpolation issues for culverts with unusual cross sections
15 Jan 2019
Added more detailed seismic analysis results to text report
Fixed input of B1 and B2 bars for type II culverts
28 Dec 2018
Added more detailed seismic analysis results to text report
Fixed issue with ‘epoxy all bars’ analysis option
Fixed deletion of LicenseInfo file with available network seats
Made network path on License Selection window editable
17 Dec 2018
Added option to use individual member thicknesses for minimum steel calculations
Added alternative m-dimension calculation
Misc. improvements to Static Loads window
10 Dec 2018
Added more descriptive error messages when exporting to AASHTOWare fails
Misc. improvements to Analysis Options window
Improvements to floating network licenses
27 Nov 2018
Resolved issue in type II culvert structural model for CHBDC specification
06 Nov 2018
Added foundation module icons to toolbar
Updated user manual
Updated help manual
Fixed ‘support types’ drop-down to allow users to select pin-pin
Added automatic calculation of Ec when fc is entered
23 Oct 2018
Added ability to export files to AASHTOWare BrR
Fixed inconsistencies in axial force sign displayed in text report
17 Oct 2018
Fixed an issue in the static loads input window
16 Oct 2018
Support for LRFD 8th edition
Support for ACI 350
New type I and II culverts
Buoyancy check
Ability to add internal pressure head
Ability to apply external pressure head
Seismic analysis
Expanded detailing options