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

September 1, 2026

Celebrating RISA Since 1987

1987 was the year President Reagan told Gorbachev to “tear down this wall” and the New York Giants won their first Super Bowl. Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” and The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” topped the charts. While Pope John Paul II’s visit to Los Angeles drew national attention, the engineering world was also getting exciting news out of Southern California. RISA was founded there in September 1987. For nearly four decades, RISA has partnered with engineers to turn vision into structure. RISA-2D started it all, offering a simplified and straightforward software for the analysis and design of 2D structures. Today, that foundation has grown into a family of 10 products that support engineers throughout the design process from a single steel connection to a multi-story, post-tensioned concrete building. Through every stage of our company’s growth, RISA’s focus has remained the same: put the engineer first. RISA develops practical software with intuitive interfaces and efficient workflows, helping engineers spend less time on redundant tasks and more time applying their expertise to complex design challenges. We are grateful to the engineers who have been part of the RISA journey. Your trust, feedback, and challenging projects have helped shape…

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September 22, 2015

Why Did the Wood Design Values Drop?

You may notice discrepancies in the wood design values when comparing RISA...

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September 16, 2015

How RISA-3D Calculates Member Deflection Ratios

After solving a model, you will see in the Member Deflections spreadsheet...

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September 09, 2015

Why don’t the Beams in my Frame have axial force?

The beams in a lateral force resisting system, such as a braced frame or...

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September 02, 2015

How should I model beams in Revit to make them import into RISAFloor…

Revit offers two options for setting the elevation of beams. The way these...

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August 25, 2015

What does the Include Structure Weight Checkbox Do for Seismic Loads?

In the Seismic Loads dialog there is a checkbox for “Include structure...

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August 20, 2015

Residual Rigid Response (Dynamics)

When running a Response Spectrum analysis for seismic design, the response...

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August 11, 2015

What Loads Transfer from RISAFloor to RISA-3D?

RIAFloor designs the gravity system and then integrates with RISA-3D to...

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August 08, 2015

How do you add Shear Caps to columns?

Per the ACI, you can add a Shear Cap to your column to increase the shear...

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August 07, 2015

How to Create a Custom Shape in RISA-3D

There are multiple options in RISA-3D and RISAFloor to create a custom...

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