Risa Tips & Tricks: How to Use Our Structural Analysis Software

April 22, 2026

RISA-3D to RISAConnection: Making the Link Work

RISAConnection is designed to work directly with your RISAFloor and RISA-3D models, not as a separate “export‑and‑forget” tool. When the integration is set up correctly, RISAConnection can read your geometry, member sizes, connection rules, design method, and load combinations, then send connection results back into RISAFloor and RISA-3D for review. This article walks through how the integration behaves, what you can and cannot change in RISAConnection, and how to work with grouped connections efficiently. 1. What Actually Comes into RISAConnection When you integrate from RISAFloor or RISA-3D, RISAConnection creates a .rcn file with the same file name as your model in the same folder. You’ll see that the project is populated with all valid connections—only connection types that RISAConnection can design will be brought in. Data that is integrated: Geometry and member sizes Connection Rules from RISAFloor / RISA-3D (including bolted vs. welded settings) Design Method (ASD or LRFD) Applicable Seismic Design Rules from RISA-3D (for seismic connection types) Load combinations that have the “Connection” check‑box enabled in the RISAFloor / RISA-3D Load Combinations spreadsheet If a connection type or configuration is not supported by RISAConnection, it will not be added to the .rcn project and a warning will be…

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June 17, 2016

Why Do Seismic Brace Story Forces Change My Existing Code Checks?

It is possible for seismic (OCBF or SCBF) vertical braced connections to...

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May 25, 2016

SCBF Seismic Brace Connections

Vertical Diagonal Brace connections and Vertical Chevron Brace connections...

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April 22, 2016

Seismic Braced Frames in RISAConnection v6

This webinar shows users how to design and detail brace connections...

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April 19, 2016

OCBF Seismic Brace Connections

Vertical Diagonal Brace connections and Vertical Chevron Brace connections...

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March 31, 2016

OCBF & SCBF Seismic Brace Connections now Available

RISAConnection v6 has introduced the ability to design vertical brace...

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March 26, 2016

Improved Wall Panel Results

Wall Panel Forces Spreadsheet The power of RISA is the easy to access...

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March 18, 2016

How Do I Find A Failing Member in the Model?

You may find that when looking at the Code Check spreadsheet that a given...

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March 10, 2016

Importing Recorded Seismic Ground Motions

The Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research center (PEER) has a large...

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March 03, 2016

How to Thicken a Slab

RISAFloor ES allows you to model concrete slabs of any thickness. However,...

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