Time-saving tips and tricks to optimise structural design at Calcs.com (AU)

Project defaults: entering common values once

Every project in Calcs.com has a project defaults sheet where you set values that apply across the whole job. Rafter spacing, stud height, bearing length, wind class, and load assumptions can all be defined there once and applied automatically to each new calculator created using the relevant preset.

The key point Brooks emphasized is that project defaults are not just a starting point for new calculators. If you change a value after calculators have already been created, the update propagates through the existing calculators too. Change your rafter spacing mid-project and every rafter calculation in that project updates. This avoids the manual transcription step that creates errors in spreadsheet-based workflows.

One specific example called out for Queensland coastal practice: the k6 factor for timber needs to be set to 0.9 in many coastal Queensland locations. Setting it once in project defaults means you never have to remember to enter it in each individual timber calculator.

Project defaults also support custom serviceability load combinations. If you want to check a 1 kN point load at mid-span across all beams, you can configure that combination in project defaults and it will be available in every calculator in the project.

Wind loads: choosing between AS 4055 and AS/NZS 1170.2

Calcs.com gives you two paths for wind input. For straightforward projects where you already know the wind class, you can set the AS 4055 class directly in project defaults and it flows through to all calculators. This is the faster option for practices that design repeatedly in the same area.

For a more precise result, the AS/NZS 1170.2 calculator runs a directional wind analysis. One of the summary outputs from that calculator is an AS 4055 equivalent wind class. The intended workflow is to run the 1170.2 calculation to get the accurate governing wind class, then enter that equivalent class back into project defaults. This lets you carry out the rigorous calculation once and use the simpler class-based input everywhere else in the project.

Preferred sections and the auto-size button

Preferred sections are a list of member sizes your practice actually uses, and they serve two purposes. First, they appear at the top of the member selector with a blue star so you can find them quickly without scrolling through the full database. Second, they are the pool that the one-click auto-size feature draws from.

Auto-size checks every section in your preferred list and selects the one closest to 100% utilization without exceeding it. Brooks noted that the platform can only identify the most structurally efficient option from the preferred list, not the cheapest. A small LVL might be the most efficient choice, but a larger F5 section could be cheaper to procure. Reviewing the auto-size result and overriding it if economics warrant is part of the expected workflow.

Preferred sections can be copied from another project. Calcs.com uses this internally for template projects, and practices can do the same to maintain consistent section preferences across all jobs.

Linking loads and changing materials

Load linking connects the reaction output of one calculator directly to the load input of another. When an upstream load changes, every downstream calculator in the chain updates automatically. Brooks described this as the core advantage over manually copying numbers between spreadsheets: complex chains involving beams, columns, and footings stay synchronized without any manual transcription.

Material changes work in a similar non-destructive way. A change material button in the upper right of any calculator switches the material while keeping the same preset, support locations, and loads. Duplicating a calculator and then switching material on the copy lets you present a client with two options, such as a large timber beam versus a smaller hot-rolled steel section, without rebuilding either calculation from scratch.

User formulas and unit awareness

Any input field in Calcs.com accepts a formula rather than a plain number. Standard mathematical functions, constants including pi and gravity, and variable references from elsewhere in the same calculator are all supported. Variable names are consistent across calculators where possible, so the variable l represents beam or column length in most calculators and can be referenced in other fields.

The platform is fully unit aware. Typing 4 feet into a millimeter field converts the value instantly and displays the result in the correct unit. This extends to more complex expressions: Brooks demonstrated typing 4 feet / cos(30 degrees) into an input and having the platform resolve it to millimeters automatically. This is useful when working with measurements from other sources that arrive in imperial units.

Calculation upgrades and the Excel export

When Calcs.com updates a calculator, a yellow notification bar appears in the sidebar for any open project that contains that calculator. Clicking the change log shows every change since the version currently in your project, including whether it is a feature addition, a minor fix, or a critical bug fix. Critical bug fixes trigger the upgrade screen automatically; other upgrades are opt-in.

After upgrading, a compare results view shows the previous and new utilization values side by side. If the results differ unexpectedly, a revert upgrade option returns the project to the pre-upgrade state. The original version is preserved in the database and never deleted, so revert is a safe operation.

For submittal documents, the Excel export produces a table listing every member in the project with its length, maximum utilization, and reactions. This is designed to be imported into AutoCAD or another summary document rather than to replace the PDF calculation package.