Structural Loads

Buildings, Bridges, Wind Turbines and any other structure are designed to withstand loads.

If the structure can’t withstand the loads acting on it, it fails.

In this section you’ll learn about the different types of loads, how to calculate them, how to apply them and much more.

What Are Loads?

Structural loads are the representation of actions/influences on structures that are caused by nature, humans, machinery etc and the structural elements must be designed to withstand those actions. In general, the most used loads when designing a building are:

In structural design, different load types are used depending on the element and the load itself. We differentiate between:

  • Area load (on slabs, walls, facades, etc.)
  • Line load (on beams, columns, frames, etc.)
  • Point load (on columns, etc.)
  • Others like triangular load

Load direction

The snow load is applied differently on a rafter roof than the wind load. Learn in this guide how to apply snow, wind, live and dead load on structural elements.

What Are Load Combinations?

Check out our In-Depth Guides on How To Calculate Different Loads for different geometrical conditions…

Wind Load Calculation Examples

Snow Load Calculation Examples