5.32.4.

3 Floor Load Specification

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[Link] Floor Load Specification

Used to distribute a pressure load onto all beams that define a closed loop assuming a two way
distribution of load.
The Floor Load specification be applied to groups and can also use live load reduction per IBC or
UBC codes.

General Format
FLOOR LOAD
YRANGE f1
(INCLINED)

f2

FLOAD f3

(XRA

f4

f5

ZRA

f6

f7) { GX | GY | GZ }

XRANGE f1
(INCLINED)

f2

FLOAD f3

(YRA

f4

f5

ZRA

f6

f7) { GX | GY | GZ }

ZRANGE f1
(INCLINED)

f2

FLOAD f3

(XRA

f4

f5

YRA

f6

f7) { GX | GY | GZ }

or

or

or
_FloorGroupName FLOAD

f3 { GX | GY | GZ } (INCLINED) }

Where:
f1 f2 = Global coordinate values to specify Y, X, or Z range. The load will be calculated
for all members lying in that global plane within the first specified global coordinate
range.
f3 =
The value of the load (unit weight over square length unit). If the global
direction is omitted, then this load acts parallel to the positive global Y if command
begins with YRA and based on the area projected on a XZ plane. Similarly, for
commands beginning with XRA, the load acts parallel to the positive global X and based
on the area projected on a YZ plane. Similarly, for commands beginning with ZRA, the
load acts parallel to the positive global Z and based on the area projected on a XY
plane.
f4 f7 = Global coordinate values to define the corner points of the area on which the
specified floor load (f3) acts. If not specified, the floor load will be calculated for all
members in all floors within the first specified global coordinate range.
GX,GY,GZ = If a Global direction is included, then the load is redirected to act in the
specified direction(s) with a magnitude of the loads which is based on the area
projected on a plane as if the Global direction was omitted. The Global direction option
is especially useful in mass definition.
FloorGroupName = Please see section 5.16 of this manual for the procedure for creating
FLOORGROUPs. The memberlist contained in this name will be the candidates that will
receive the load generated from the floor pressure.

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INCLINED This option must be used when a FLOOR LOAD is applied on a set of members that form
a panel(s) which is inclined to the global XY, YZ, or ZX planes.
The SET FLOOR LOAD TOLERANCE command may be used to specify a specify the
tolerance for outofplane nodes to be included in a floor load. See "Set Command
Specification"

Notes
a. The structure has to be modeled in such a way that the specified global axis remains
perpendicular to the floor plane(s).
b. For the FLOOR LOAD specification, a twoway distribution of the load is considered. For the
ONEWAY and AREA LOAD specification, a oneway action is considered. For ONE WAY loads, the
program attempts to find the shorter direction within panels for load generation purposes. So,
if any of the panels are square in shape, no load will be generated for those panels. For such
panels, use the FLOOR LOAD type.
c. FLOOR LOAD from a slab is distributed on the adjoining members as trapezoidal and triangular
loads depending on the length of the sides as shown in the diagram. Internally, these loads are
converted to multiple point loads.
Figure 540: Members 1 and 2 get full trapezoidal and triangular loads respectively. Members 3 and 4 get
partial trapezoidal loads and 5 and 6 get partial triangular load.

d. The load per unit area may not vary for a particular panel and it is assumed to be continuous
and without holes.
e. The FLOOR LOAD facility is not available if the SET Z UP command is used (See Section 5.5.)
f. If the floor has a shape consisting of a mixture of convex and concave edges, then break up the
floor load command into several parts, each for a certain region of the floor. This will force the
program to localize the search for panels and the solution will be better.
The attached example illustrates a case where the floor has to be subdivided into smaller
regions for the floor load generation to yield proper results. The internal angle at node 6
between the sides 108 and 111 exceeds 180 degrees. A similar situation exists at node 7 also.
As a result, the following command:
LOAD 1
FLOOR LOAD
YRANGE 11.9 12.1 FLOAD 0.35
will not yield acceptable results. Instead, the region should be subdivided as shown in the
following example
LOAD 1

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[Link] Floor Load Specification

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FLOOR LOAD
YRANGE 11.9 12.1 FLOAD 0.35 XRA .01 15.1 ZRA 0.1 8.1
YRANGE 11.9 12.1 FLOAD 0.35 XRA 4.9 10.1 ZRA 7.9 16.1
Figure 541: Subdivide floor area to avoid convex angles

g. The global horizontal direction options (GX and GZ) enables one to consider AREA LOADs,
ONEWAY LOADSs and FLOOR LOADs for mass matrix for frequency calculations.
h. For ONE WAY loads, the program attempts to find the shorter direction within panels for load
generation purposes. So, if any of the panels are square in shape, no load will be generated on
the members circumscribing those panels. In such cases, one ought to use the FLOOR LOAD
type.

Applying FLOOR LOAD onto a Floor Group

When applying a floor load using XRANGE, YRANGE and ZRANGE, there are two limitations that one
may encounter:
a. If panels consist of members whose longitudinal axis cross each other in an X type, and if the
members are not connected to each other at the point of crossing, the panel identification and
hence the load generation in that panel may fail. A typical such situation is shown in the plan
drawing shown in the next figure.
Figure 542: Load generation on a panel with members not connected at a point of crossing (members 24
and 24)

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[Link] Floor Load Specification

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b. After the load is specified, if the user decides to change the geometry of the structure (X, Y or Z
coordinates of the nodes of the regions over which the floor load is applied), she/he has to go
back to the load and modify its data too, such as the XRANGE, YRANGE and ZRANGE values. In
other words, the 2 sets of data are not automatically linked.
The above limitations may be overcome using a FLOOR GROUP. A GROUP name is a facility which
enables us to cluster a set of entities nodes, members, plates, solids, etc. into a single moniker
through which one can address them. Details of this are available in section 5.16 of this manual.
The syntax of this command, as explained earlier in this section is:
FLOOR LOAD
Floor-group-name FLOAD

f3 { GX | GY | GZ }

Where:
f3 = pressure on the floor
To create equal loads in all 3 global directions for mass definition or other reasons, then enter
direction labels for each direction desired; GY first then GX and/or GZ.

Example
START GROUP DEFINITION
FLOOR
_PNL5A

21 22 23 28

END GROUP DEFINITION

LOAD 2 FLOOR LOAD on intermediate panel @ Y = 10 ft
FLOOR LOAD
_PNL5A

FLOAD 0.45 GY

_PNL5A FLOAD 0.45 GY GX GZ

LOAD 5 LOAD ON SLOPING ROOF

FLOOR LOAD
_SLOPINGROOF FLOAD 0.5 GY INCLINED

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Live Load Reduction per UBC and IBC Codes

The UBC 1997, IBC 2000 and IBC 2003 codes permit reduction of floor live loads under certain
situations. The provisions of these codes have been incorporated in the manner described further
below.
To utilize this facility, the following conditions have to be met when creating the STAAD model.
1. The live load must be applied using the FLOOR LOAD or ONEWAY LOAD option. This option is
described earlier in this section of this manual, and an example of its usage may be found in
example problem 15 of the Examples manual.
2. As shown in section 5.32, the load case has to be assigned a Type called Live at the time of
creation of that case. Additionally, the option called Reducible, also has to be specified as
shown.
LOAD n LOADTYPE Live REDUCIBLE
Where:
n is the load case number
The following figures show the load generated on members for the two situations.
Figure 543: Distributed load on beams without live load reduction per IBC

Figure 544: Distributed load on beams of a floor after live load reduction per IBC 2003

Table 529: Details of the code implementation

Section of code which

Code Name

has been implemented

Applicable Equations

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Section of code which

Code Name
UBC 1997

has been implemented

1607.5, page

Applicable Equations
Equation 71
R = r(A150) for FPS units
R = r(A13.94) for SI units

IBC 2000

1607.9.2, page 302

Equation 162
R = r(A150) for FPS units
R = r(A13.94) for SI units

IBC 2003

1607.9.2, page 277

Equation 1622
R = r(A150) for FPS units
R = r(A13.94) for SI units

In the above equations,

A = area of floor supported by the member
R = reduction in percentage
R = rate of reduction equal to 0.08 for floors.

Notes
a. Only the rules for live load on Floors have been implemented. The rules for live load on Roofs
have not been implemented.
b. Since the medium of application of this method is the FLOOR LOAD or ONEWAY LOAD feature,
and since STAAD performs load generation on beams only, the rules of the abovementioned
sections of the code for vertical members (columns) has not been implemented. The
distributed load on those members found to satisfy the requirements explained in the code
would have a lowered value after the reduction is applied.
c. Equation (72) of UBC 97, (163) of IBC 2000 and (1623) of IBC 2003 have not been
implemented.
d. In the IBC 2000 and 2003 codes, the first note says A reduction shall not be permitted in
Group A occupancies. In STAAD, there is no direct method for conveying to the program that
the occupancy type is Group A. So, it is the users responsibility to ensure that when he/she
decides to utilize the live load reduction feature, the structure satisfies this requirement. If it
does not, then the reduction should not be applied. STAAD does not check this condition by
itself.
e. In the UBC 97 code, the last paragraph of section 1607.5 states that The live load reduction
shall not exceed 40 percent in garages for the storage of private pleasure cars having a capacity
of not more than nine passengers per vehicle. Again, there is no method to convey to STAAD
that the structure is a garage for storing private pleasure cars. Hence, it is the users

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responsibility to ensure that the structure satisfies this requirement. If it does not, then the
reduction should not be applied. STAAD does not check this condition by itself.
f. Because all the three codes follow the same rules for reduction, no provision is made available
in the command syntax for specifying the code name according to which the reduction is to be
done.

Related Information
1.16.3 Area Load, Oneway, and Floor Loads

Reference Materials
5.32 Loading Specifications
[Link] Oneway Load Specification

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