Designing slender, thin-walled, or open-section beams presents structural engineers with tough challenges. Traditional beam theories often fall short when confronted with complex torsional loads, non-uniform cross-sectional deformations, or warping effects. As projects become more ambitious, the consequences of overlooking these complex behaviors can be significant: inaccurate stress predictions, unexpected failures, and costly design revisions late in the process.
SCIA Engineer 2026 introduces a new type of finite beam element that can account for an additional degree of freedom (warping). It allows for accurate modelling of slender or thin-walled beams, open-section beams, and structures subjected to significant torsion or complex loading. This approach is important especially for bridges, steel girders, or structures with non-standard cross-sections, where warping and distortional effects play a significant role in the structural response.
As a result, engineers get more accurate predictions of stresses and deformations in cases where traditional beam elements are inadequate.
Join our webinar to learn more about this new functionality in SCIA Engineer 2026.

Tarek Chaiban
Tarek Chaiban is a Customer Service Team Lead at SCIA, with the main tasks of customer training and technical support. He has worked in research for IFSTTAR and the Lafarge Research Centre.