CADS

10/08/2026

🎉 Celebrating Long Service at CADS

Earlier this summer, we had the pleasure of recognising colleagues who have reached significant long-service milestones with CADS.

Congratulations to:

🏅 Dave: IT & Technical Support Manager– 20 years

🏅 Rebecca: Finance Assistant– 10 years

🏅 Jon T: SMART Scaffolder Product Owner– 10 years

🏅 Bogdan: Structural Engineer – Development Team 10 years

Together, they represent 50 years of service to CADS.

Their knowledge, dedication and commitment have played an important role in supporting our customers, developing our software and helping the business grow over the years.

Thank you all for your continued hard work and congratulations on reaching these fantastic milestones. Here's to many more years of success! 👏

29/07/2026

How much time is spent recreating reinforcement information that already exists elsewhere in the project?

For many reinforced concrete projects, moving from design intent to detailed reinforcement models can be a time-consuming process.

CADS RC3D for Revit helps engineers and detailers enhance the placement, annotation and bar marking of reinforcing steel, while supporting the production of detailed reinforcement drawings and automatic bar schedules.

Built on the heritage of CADS RC, RC3D extends Revit's reinforcement modelling capabilities to help teams produce accurate, coordinated reinforcement information more efficiently.

Learn more today: https://okt.to/uoxlsU

27/07/2026

5 retaining wall design mistakes that can create problems later...

Retaining walls often appear straightforward.

In reality, they're heavily influenced by ground conditions, drainage, loading and construction details.

Some common issues engineers still encounter include:

1️⃣ Underestimating drainage requirements: Water pressure can significantly increase loading behind a wall. Effective drainage is often one of the most important design considerations.

2️⃣ Assuming ground conditions are uniform: Small changes in soil properties can have a major impact on wall behaviour.

3️⃣ Ignoring surcharge loads: Traffic, storage areas, nearby structures and temporary construction loads can all affect performance.
4️⃣ Focusing only on sliding and overturning: Global stability and overall ground behaviour can be equally important depending on the site.
5️⃣ Not considering construction sequencing: Temporary conditions during excavation and construction can sometimes govern design requirements.

Retaining wall projects are rarely just about the wall itself.

Understanding the interaction between the structure, the ground and the construction process is often where the real engineering challenge lies.

What's the most overlooked retaining wall design consideration in your experience?

22/07/2026

💷 Engineering software costs can add up quickly.

Many platforms charge per user, per seat, or require multiple subscriptions as your team grows.

CADS Hub takes a different approach.
✅ Access multiple engineering applications through a single platform
✅ No pay-per-user pricing
✅ Flexible payment options to suit different business needs
✅ Predictable costs as teams expand
✅ New applications are continually being added

The result? More capability for your team without continually increasing software costs.

📩 Get in touch to find out more: https://okt.to/XoeKOJ

20/07/2026

Landmark Projects That Changed Construction Methods❗

Does anyone remember the opening of London’s Millennium Bridge in 2000? The project that changed how engineers think about pedestrian bridges...

Thousands of people crossed it on its first day. Then something unexpected happened...

The bridge began to sway laterally.

The issue wasn't a structural failure.

It was a dynamic behaviour that engineers hadn't fully anticipated at that scale.

As pedestrians adjusted their movements to the bridge's motion, the movement became amplified, a phenomenon now widely known as synchronous lateral excitation.

The bridge closed just two days after opening while engineers investigated the cause.

The solution involved installing dampers to control movement and improve performance.

Today, engineers routinely consider these effects when designing lightweight footbridges and similar structures.

It's a reminder that even highly innovative projects can reveal behaviours that advance engineering knowledge for decades afterwards.

What project do you think has most influenced modern structural engineering?

https://okt.to/HqD2aF

'On This Day 2000: 'Wobbly' Millennium Bridge Closed Days After Ope...

15/07/2026

Structural engineering software has changed dramatically over the last 50 years.

From command-line analysis tools and green-screen computers to BIM, cloud collaboration and AI-driven workflows, technology continues to reshape the way engineers design and deliver projects.

Yet despite all the advances, the goal remains the same: helping engineers create safer, more efficient and more sustainable structures.

Looking back, which development do you think has had the biggest impact on structural engineering?

13/07/2026

🚨 Last Chance to Register: CADS Geotechnical Software Webinar This Wednesday!

Join our live CADS Geotechnical Software Webinar on Wednesday, 15th July at 11:00 am, hosted by Keith Evans, one of our specialists with over 40 years of industry expertise.

In this session, we’ll provide an overview and live demonstration of a range of time-saving geotechnical design solutions, including:

✔️ CADS Piled Wall Suite: design and analyse sheet pile, secant pile, bored pile, and king post walls with stability and deflection checks

✔️ CADS Bearing Pile Designer: design single piles and pile groups under vertical and lateral loading, including piling mat design to industry standards

✔️ CADS ReSlope: perform slope stability analysis using multiple methods, including reinforced earth design and non-circular slip circles

✔️ CADS Retaining Wall Designer: design reinforced concrete, masonry, and gabion retaining walls within one flexible solution

At CADS, our Geotechnical Software is designed to be intuitive, quick to learn, and easy to use, backed by professional support and affordable permanent licences with no subscriptions.

👉 Secure your place today: https://okt.to/iYJ7n9

08/07/2026

Famous Engineering Failures: The Tacoma Narrows Bridge 🌉

What the Tacoma Narrows Bridge taught engineers about wind

When the Tacoma Narrows Bridge opened in Washington State in 1940, it was the third-longest suspension bridge in the world.

Just four months later, it collapsed. Nicknamed "Galloping Gertie", the bridge became famous for its dramatic twisting and oscillation in relatively moderate winds.

https://okt.to/dKiNh2

For many years, people assumed simple resonance was the cause.

The reality was more complex.

Investigations later identified aeroelastic flutter, a dynamic interaction between wind and the structure itself, as the primary failure mechanism.

The collapse fundamentally changed bridge engineering. It led to:
✔ Greater understanding of aerodynamic behaviour
✔ Increased use of wind tunnel testing
✔ More advanced dynamic analysis methods
✔ Improved consideration of torsional stability in long-span structures

Perhaps the biggest lesson? Structural design isn't only about strength.

Understanding how a structure behaves under real-world dynamic loading can be just as critical.

Which engineering failure do you think had the biggest impact on modern design practice?

Was Tacoma Narrows Bridge the wobbliest bridge in the world? Check ...

06/07/2026

Designing portal frames in 3D can be a complex task without the right tools.

CADS Smart Portal 3D simplifies this process for both single and multi-bay portal frame buildings. By defining key parameters like span and roof slope, you can quickly create full 3D models, including essential elements like purlins and framing.

With Smart Portal 3D, you will have the ability to:
✔️ Generate full 3D portal frame building models
✔️ Apply load cases and combinations
✔️ Carry out structural analysis of portal frames
✔️ Design associated elements, including purlins, rails, bracing and framing
✔️ Produce calculation outputs for checking and documentation

The Quick Mode allows for rapid initial designs, while the Advanced Mode accommodates more detailed work. You can utilise the Autodesign feature or choose your own steel sections for analysis.

For engineers focused on portal frame structures, Smart Portal 3D provides a practical solution for both initial and detailed designs.

👉 Get in touch to find out more.

01/07/2026

Are you looking for faster, more efficient ways to approach geotechnical design?

Join our live CADS Geotechnical Software Webinar on Wednesday 15th July at 11:00am, hosted by Keith Evans, one of our specialists with over 40 years of industry expertise, where we’ll provide an overview and live demonstration of a range of time-saving geotechnical design solutions.

In this session, we’ll cover:

✔️ CADS Piled Wall Suite: design and analyse sheet pile, secant pile, bored pile, and king post walls with stability and deflection checks

✔️ CADS Bearing Pile Designer: design single piles and pile groups under vertical and lateral loading, including piling mat design to industry standards

✔️ CADS ReSlope: perform slope stability analysis using multiple methods, including reinforced earth design and non-circular slip circles

✔️ CADS Retaining Wall Designer: design reinforced concrete, masonry, and gabion retaining walls within one flexible solution

At CADS, our Geotechnical Software is designed to be intuitive, quick to learn, and easy to use, backed by professional support and affordable permanent licences with no subscriptions.

👉 Register now
https://okt.to/PMmE2B