LimitState:GEO uses new technology to identify the critical ultimate limit state failure mechanism for a wide range of geotechnical engineering and foundation design problems.

Today’s desktop PCs would be regarded as supercomputers by 1990’s standards, yet much of the geotechnical software we use today doesn’t take advantage of this. However, LimitState:GEO makes use of modern computing power to identify in seconds failure mechanisms that cannot be identified using conventional ultimate limit state analysis software, and which might take a lifetime to identify manually. To achieve this, the powerful and efficient numerical analysis procedure ‘Discontinuity Layout Optimization’ (DLO) is used to provide an automatic means of identifying very accurate limit analysis solutions. LimitState:GEO can handle problems with any geometry or loading conditions, which means that the engineer no longer needs to resort to application-specific ‘hand-type’ calculations, or the plethora of in-house spreadsheets and/or software applications that attempt to automate these. However, unlike other general analysis methods (e.g. non-linear finite element analysis), problems can be set up quickly and solutions can easily be checked by hand using the free-body diagrams output in the report.

The LimitState:GEO user-interface is designed to be intuitive, modern and fully interactive, allowing even novice users to build a model from scratch in a matter of minutes. Predefined wizards are also available to enable commonly encountered geotechnical problems to be setup and analyzed even more rapidly. Once a model has been created it is easy to then change any aspect of the problem geometry, loading, materials or partial factors.

LimitState:GEO users can quickly explore a large number of ‘what if’ scenarios, each time viewing the corresponding failure mechanism and building up an increasingly clear understanding of both the likely mode of response and the key parameters influencing overall safety.

Fully interactive modeling environment that allows models to be created and modified quickly on screen

DXF import capability

Work in Metric or Imperial units

Built-in library of standard materials and the capability to define others, including those using Mohr-Coulomb, Rigid and Tension Cutoff models

Soil-nail and sheet-pile wall modeling capability

Context sensitive help system

Facility to solve for multiple partial factor sets and drainage conditions in one analysis using the built-in ‘Scenario Manager’

Solver engine able to identify translational and/or rotational failure mechanisms

Ability to display animated and 3D rendered views of the failure mechanism.

Generate post-analysis normal and shear stress diagrams for all solids

Comprehensive report output facility