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Digital Structural Engineering for Resilient Saudi Infrastructure: Integrating ETABS, SAP2000 and BIM-Based Analysis for Retrofit and Expansion Projects
Subject area: Science,Engineering and Technology · Area of research: BIM-Based Structural Retrofit Analysis
DOI: 10.64388/IREV10I4-1724166
Abstract
Expansion and adaptation of existing Saudi infrastructure require credible analysis of changing structural capacity without sacrificing construction safety or operational continuity. This critical review examines how ETABS, SAP2000 and building information modelling can be combined for the assessment, strengthening and extension of buildings and associated civil assets. Thirty DOI-linked publications from 2020–2025 were synthesised through an evidence-led thematic method covering model exchange, existing-condition intelligence, nonlinear response, construction staging, monitoring and organisational implementation. The reviewed evidence indicates that digital integration is valuable only when geometric and analytical models remain distinguishable, transfers are verified, and uncertainty in as-built conditions is explicitly retained. A proposed assurance framework links survey evidence, controlled model translation, independent structural checks, stage-specific design and measured performance. The paper contributes practical decision gates for Saudi retrofit programmes and identifies unanswered questions concerning interface validation, model ownership and locally calibrated performance benchmarks. Findings are interpretative rather than the results of a new simulation or field trial.
Keywords
digital structural engineering; ETABS; SAP2000; building information modelling; structural retrofit; staged construction; Saudi Arabia; infrastructure resilience
How to cite this paper
@article{1724166,
author = {Mohammed Abdul Rahman},
title = {Digital Structural Engineering for Resilient Saudi Infrastructure: Integrating ETABS, SAP2000 and BIM-Based Analysis for Retrofit and Expansion Projects},
journal = {Iconic Research And Engineering Journals},
year = {2026},
volume = {10},
number = {4},
pages = {3090-3104},
issn = {2456-8880},
url = {https://www.irejournals.com/formatedpaper/1724166.pdf},
abstract = {Expansion and adaptation of existing Saudi infrastructure require credible analysis of changing structural capacity without sacrificing construction safety or operational continuity. This critical review examines how ETABS, SAP2000 and building information modelling can be combined for the assessment, strengthening and extension of buildings and associated civil assets. Thirty DOI-linked publications from 2020–2025 were synthesised through an evidence-led thematic method covering model exchange, existing-condition intelligence, nonlinear response, construction staging, monitoring and organisational implementation. The reviewed evidence indicates that digital integration is valuable only when geometric and analytical models remain distinguishable, transfers are verified, and uncertainty in as-built conditions is explicitly retained. A proposed assurance framework links survey evidence, controlled model translation, independent structural checks, stage-specific design and measured performance. The paper contributes practical decision gates for Saudi retrofit programmes and identifies unanswered questions concerning interface validation, model ownership and locally calibrated performance benchmarks. Findings are interpretative rather than the results of a new simulation or field trial.},
keywords = {digital structural engineering; ETABS; SAP2000; building information modelling; structural retrofit; staged construction; Saudi Arabia; infrastructure resilience},
month = {October},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.64388/IREV10I4-1724166}
}