Lawson-Fisher Associates P.C. - Streamlining Design Process Using Tekla Tedds

The challenge

Founded over 40 years ago, LawsonFisher Associates completes a broad range of civil and structural engineering projects for both public and private sector clients.

A traditional company with a regular and loyal client base, it used a combination of hand calculations, spreadsheets and various computer software programs to complete its everyday calculations.

Using a variety of tools meant that calculation output looked disparate and unprofessional which proved to be prohibitive. Inefficiencies in time were apparent while the calculations were being re-styled to look consistent; any changes would lead to further delays as the process had to be repeated each time.

The solution

It was through a demonstration from CSC that Lawson-Fisher Associates discovered Tedds. Tedds is structural engineering software, used by companies all over the world, to automate the day to day calculations carried out by structural engineers.

Tedds contains a huge library of structural and civil calculations for a range of design materials. Exporting branded reports and documents is quick and simple, creating a consistent and professional image. All calculation workings are shown so that they can be checked and understood, just like hand calculations.

Lawson-Fisher Associates quickly saw time savings that would come from replacing their existing methods with Tedds. Changes could now be made quickly and easily, within one piece of software and reports would be more consistent and professional, especially critical when submitting reports for review.

Lawson-Fisher Associates was particularly interested in the integrated calculation writing feature within Tedds. By simply using Microsoft Word its engineers could write their own unique  calculations just like the ones in Tedds. Calculations can be written directly into Word or customized from existing calculations already in the software. Calculations can be saved to use multiple times on regular projects, by any engineer.

Tedds has made a significant impact on the way Lawson-Fisher Associates works, Structural Engineer Richard Chapman ll explains, “Tedds has streamlined our design process tremendously. We spend far less time making revisions now we don’t rely on hand calculations and spreadsheets; we complete work faster and more efficiently, which allows us to be even more competitive in our proposals.”

The result

Lawson-Fisher Associates has already completed a number of successful projects, including a single storey medical office building that required the design and detail to be completed within aggressive timescales. This project was the first opportunity to work with a major new client so it was imperative that the job was completed accurately and on time, despite having to fit this new project around existing workloads.

Lawson-Fisher Associates used Tedds for the entire project design and all of the required documentation including: loading, foundation design, steel frame analysis and masonry shear wall design. Even with several late changes to the project, Lawson-Fisher Associates could confidently commit to completing the project on time. Using Tedds actually provided such impressive efficiencies that LawsonFisher Associates could investigate items more critically than would have been possible in the past, providing a Value Engineered solution to the client.

Tedds has improved workflow, increased business efficiency and expanded the scale of projects it can undertake, making it much more competitive than before.

Chapman concluded, “Tedds is the most straightforward, simple and powerful design tool we use today.”