×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

ETABS vs RAM

ETABS vs RAM

ETABS vs RAM

(OP)
We have been using ETABS for a couple years - I find it to be a "buggy" program - I spend a lot of time messing with fixity at various points to get rid of errors, etc.

We had a RAM presentation yesterday - It seems to be an "easier" program to use - though I don't think it has the same capabilities as ETABs.

Does anyone have enough experience with both to make an impartial comparison, listing pros, cons, etc?

TIA

RE: ETABS vs RAM

We use both ETABS and RAM, and our office designs concrete and steel buildings anywhere from 1 to 60 stories.

RAM can be much more productive because it makes a distinction between gravity and lateral members, and only models lateral members as finite element.  Everything else is simple beam and statically determinate.  This makes the model run much faster and schematic studies are easier to carry out.  RAM also does a much better job implementing code provisions.

That being said, ETABS definitely has better analysis capabilities.  We tend to stick with RAM unless we are forced into ETABS due to analysis constraints.  For example, two-way slabs, sloping columns, cantilevers without backspans, and hangers cannot be easily modeled (there's messy work-arounds for these items).  Also, no time history, push-over analysis, or nonlinear elements (i.e. dampers) in RAM.  The column module (non-FEM) does give nice take-down loads based on tributary area which you cannot do easily in ETABS because of slab or bracing FEM behavior.

Lastly, RAM does not play well with REVIT.  I haven't tried ETABS and REVIT, but it can't be much worse.

RE: ETABS vs RAM

Completely agree with alexbzeta.

Few other advantages of RAM are: If you are designing concrete frame structures RAM has the capability of generating beam & column schedules.

RAM has incorporated all the seismic requirements in to their steel design module, where as ETABS is lagging in this area.

ETABS works better than RAM with REVIT.

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources