In my previous blog post about Peikko Designer® BOLTED CONNECTION, we explored the core benefits of this groundbreaking design tool. Since then, Peikko’s very own Software Engineering team has been working hard, continuously evolving the software further.
We’re excited to share that over the last three major versions, the focus has been on streamlining user workflows—with smarter object selection tools and refined user-friendly dialogues. But that’s not all. Powerful new features like Freeform geometry for Pedestal & Support and Custom-length headed bolts ensure that even your most complex use cases are supported.
You can always find the full list of improvements in Release Notes available in our official designer forum at www.peikkodesigner.com, but here’s a quick snapshot of the latest upgrades and enhancements:
Intuitive 3D object selection and redesigned dialogs
Working in 3D just got easier. With our new intuitive object selection feature, selecting elements within the 3D component view is now faster and more natural. Combined with a fresh, modern design for dialogues, the interface is not only more visually appealing but also more user-friendly—making it easier to access key parameters and settings.
3D view of grout once it has been selected.
Introducing Pedestal
Want to improve your connection efficiency? We’ve introduced Pedestal as a new object type, allowing you to model real-world base conditions more accurately. This enhancement enables you to handle a wider range of structural scenarios with greater precision and confidence, all within the same intuitive design environment.
3D view of rectangular Pedestal once it has been selected.
Freeform geometry for Pedestal and Support
Modeling just got more flexible. In addition to Column, you can now also define freeform geometries for both Pedestals and Supports, enabling more creative and complex design possibilities. Whether you’re adapting to site-specific conditions or just exploring optimization possibilities, the right tools for these needs are now at your fingertips.
3D view of polygonal Support once it has been selected.
Please note that the Circle, Stadium, and Polygon shapes are still considered experimental features, so we recommend users critically evaluate the results when using these geometries.
Custom-length headed bolts
Not keen on Cone rebars? You can now define custom lengths for the headed bolts, making it possible in some use cases to totally eliminate the need for complex Cone rebars and rendering the work on-site more efficient.
Customized HPM39L-800 anchor bolt selected.
Please note that defining a custom anchor length results in a non-standard (modified) product, which may lead to extended delivery times.
Next-generation rebars
We’ve made significant improvements to supplementary rebar handling, boosting the accuracy and reliability of your reinforcement layouts. Now, rebars automatically conform to standardized bending radii, ensuring compliance and constructability. Additionally, new bottom-surface rebars have been introduced, enabling more capacity for Splitting failure calculations in some scenarios.
Surface rebar placement in the Stadium-shaped Support.
Clearer, more detailed results
Understanding your calculation results is critical. That’s why we’ve refined the detailed result outputs—they’re now even easier to follow, helping you trace exactly how calculations are made. This transparency instills more confidence in your results and supports better-informed engineering decisions.
Enhanced hollow cones in 3D with more detailed results for the active rebars.
General improvements
There is a new, more robust database structure built to support greater flexibility for modeling complex geometries, especially as your projects scale in size and detail.
We have also implemented numerous bug fixes, ensuring smoother, more stable design workflow across the board.
In summary
To conclude, this latest version of Peikko Designer® BOLTED CONNECTION brings a comprehensive set of new features and enhancements aimed at improving both the user experience and the technical capabilities of the software. Below you can find a summary of the key updates:
- Intuitive 3D object selection and redesigned dialogues
- Improves the modeling workflow by enabling faster and more natural selection of elements within the 3D view and showing only the properties of interest at one time
- Pedestal as a new object type
- Enables more accurate modeling of base conditions and supports a wider range of structural scenarios
- Freeform geometry for Pedestal and Support
- Allows greater flexibility in modeling non-standard shapes to better reflect real-world design needs
- Custom-length headed bolts
- Offers enhanced design optimization by enabling the removal of Cone reinforcement or the adjustment of concrete volume through anchor-length customization
- Next-generation rebar generation
- Delivers more consistent and reliable reinforcement layouts across various use cases
- Improves the accuracy of reinforcement layouts through standardized bending radii and the addition of bottom-surface rebars for splitting failure calculations
- Improved detailed results
- Offers clearer, more transparent result outputs to help users better understand and validate calculation logic
New database structure
Introduces greater flexibility and scalability for handling complex geometries and advanced project requirements
These latest updates represent our ongoing commitment to providing engineers and designers with powerful, flexible, and intuitive tools for connection design. We encourage all users to explore the latest version and take full advantage of these new capabilities.
Stay tuned for new versions and tutorials and, as always, we welcome your feedback, which can be accessed in the software through our feedback button (shown below) or via this link.
