Release notes

Version 8.2

2010-03-08 (Build number 8.2.2.1)

New in version 8.2.

EuroCode 7:

• The Dutch Annex of the EuroCode7 is now available. Over the CUR-step plan, the division has changed into class factors. Thereafter the overall stability calculation uses no factor on driving moment anymore. Also new is the ability to vary the wet and dry unit weight.
• The Belgium Annex of the EuroCode7 is also fully prepared. Once the safety factors for the Belgian Annex are published, we can release MSheet including the Belgian Annex.

Besides the new EuroCode7, Dutch Annex, the 'old' CUR-guideline in MSheet remains available for the time being.

Interpretation of CPT:

• Automatic interpretation of CPT´s by Robinson has been implemented. CPT´s need to be entered in GEF format, or can be uploaded from the DINO database. The latter is free, but only contains CPT´s in the Netherlands. The GEFPlotool is available for digitalization of CPT on paper. 
• After interpretation, the MSheet soil profile is filled automatically using all relevant parameters for a calculation. The entire process can be controlled and adjusted.

Horizontal displacements of embankments:

• For the Single Pile model forces, as a result of displacements induced by embankments or surface loads, can now be calculated. MSheet automatically calculates the displacements by the tables of De Leeuw.

Free access to GeoBrain prediction model:

• In addition to access to the database GeoBrain experience, you can now directly carry out a feasibility analysis. MSheet provides all relevant data and shows the GeoBrain prediction. Access to the GeoBrain prediction model is preliminary free, to promote to use this prediction model. The GeoBrain experience data and prediction model are based on Dutch data. They may not be relevant outside the Netherlands. However, GeoBrain offers the possibility for other countries to set up an experience database.

Other improvements:

• In 'design sheet pile length’ with EuroCode, the (optional) feature ‘Reduce delta according to CUR' is now available. 
• The envelope curve is now also available in the table us option 'view data'.

Solved 'Known issues’:

• Loading by soil displacement was not taken into account in sheet piling calculation.
•  ‘Water Levels in Stage Overview’ in the single pile module were hard to change.
• Allowable anchor force: Actual Anchor force CUR not available.
• Incorrect data may be provided in table of graph ‘Moment/Force/Displacement’.
  

Version 7.9

2009-04-22 (Build number 7.9.2.1)

The following known bugs are solved:

• Wrong representative delta values in CUR.
• Brinch Hanssen and Phi = 0
• Total stability per stage.

Version 7.9

2009-03-18 (build number 7.9.1.5)

New in version 7.9 are:

1. The Moduli of subgrade reaction are multiplied with the shell factor.
2. Increase of the allowable number of anchors, struts, surfaces, layers, profiles and surcharge loads
3. Warnings and the presence of possible errors are indicated in the progress screen
4. The reduction on delta to comply with curved slipsurfaces must be taken on design values instead of representative values

The following known bugs have been solved:

1. Single Pile and Earth pressure coefficients
2. Design Sheet Piling Length, no moments with EuroCode
3. The reduction of friction angle(s) delta
4. Manual editing earth pressure coefficients
   

The following bugs have been solved as well:

1. The A and P from active and passive soil collapse were not visible in the report.
2. When calculating the Kn in the c,phi,delta method, the OCR was sometimes neglected. This happened when the manual option was used in layers / Earth pressure coefficients
3. Only the final result of overall stability was shown in the resume of the report
4. When using Eurocode (Design approach 2) the mobilization percentage is actually tested
5. Since the moments calculated for anchor force verification are not needed for the verification of the anchor force, they are not shown 
6. Problems with saving manually changed lambdas in the lambda editor
7. If there is no uncertainty about the anchor stiffness,the anchor is not verified (CUR)
8. Report failed if there were more anchors and struts in the calculation 
9. The appearance problems with 120 dpi have been solved
10. The envelope was sometimes not correct.

Version 7.7

2007-05-15 (build number 7.7.1.5)

New in Version 7.7 are:

1. Verification according to EuroCode7 for Design Approach 1, 2 and 3 have been added.
2. Number of factors CUR increased.
3. Factors on loads are not specified per load anymore. However per load you specify: permanent/variable en favourable/unfavourable.
4. CUR user defined split for class I, II en III.
5. No option Representative for CUR anymore.
6. In CUR method II all anchors are verified now instead of only the one that is most critical. NB. This is not yet the case in CUR method I.
7. A table with supports is added to the summary of the verification report.
8. It is now possible to view the moment/force/displacement plots per designcode check by going step by step through the stages. Design Code checks that were not calculated are indicated by a message displaying the reason.
9. For CUR and EuroCode7 verifications the envelop moment with factor is displayed as a red dotted line in the moments plot
10. All calculations start now from the same window.
11. The profile library is modified. The Arcelor profiles are updated. The Chaparral profiles are new. For concrete profiles now the maximum moment is displayed for both ULS and SLS.
12. For each sheet piling element a maximum moment can be selected from the profile library or defined manually. The maximum moment is plotted (only visible wehen smaller than the calculated moments) as a vertical green dotted line in the result plot with moments.
13. For each sheet piling element reduction factors on EI and maximum moment can be defined, as well as an explanation to the factors.
14. For each material a shell factor can be defined.
15. For each material an OCR and grain type can be defined.

The known bugs that were solved:

1. Allowable anchorforce calculation: in some cases the wrong materials were chosen in determining the horizontal cohesion force along the slip plane.
2. Allowable anchorforce calculation: in the verification of the anchor rep * 1.5 was used instead of (rep * 1.2 ) * 1.5.
3. CUR verification: it was not clearly mentioned in MSheet that the load factor that was defined per load was only used for class 3.
4. CUR verification method II: the verification of the anchor (step 9.1) was sometimes wrongly done with representative values.
5. Design Sheet Piling: sometimes the anchor force was not displayed when it should
6. Single Pile, Brinch Hansen:  The Kp can be calculated by Brinch Hansen. In the calculation an error occured when the calculated Kp is 0.
7. Single Pile, Brinch Hansen: An error (invalid floating point operation) could occur when the same layer was used twice in a profile.
8. Besides this numerous small bugs and wishes were solved.
   

7.1

2006-07-17 (build number 7.1.5.1)

The following known bugs are solved:

1. In the calculation of the earth pressure coefficients an error ("floating point overflow") can occur in MSheet. This happens when the force on the sheet piling (in the slip circle calculation with method "C, phi, delta") does not increase with the depth.
2. During the calculation with method "C, phi, delta", an error ("floating point overflow") occurs when there is no soil on one side of the sheet piling.
3. In the single pile module it is possible to define a pile with several elements and give every element another diameter. In the calculation of the modulus of subgrade reaction according to Menard and the K-passive according to Brinch Hansen, only the diameter of the upper element was used.
4. The surface has to start at the sheet piling (In the screen "Surfaces", the "Distance" of the first point should be zero). When this is not te case there should be a warning before the calculation, but in MSheet version 7.1 this message is not displayed. Then the result of the calculation is not correct.
5. When the partial factor verification on the loads is defined as 0.00 an error can occur during the verification calculation.

2006-03-23 (build nummer 7.1.4.1)

Attention: The file MSheetProfilesStandard.xml that is included in the setup was modified on 14 juni 2006, see known bugs.

The following known bugs are solved:

1. The value of phi is not reduced for a verification calculation, in case the delta of one of the materials is zero.
2. Stages Overview screen: When there are more than 5 stages the first column becomes very wide. When there are more than 9 stages it becomes almost impossible to view or modify the stages.
   

2006-02-24 (build number 7.1.3.2)

1. CUR regulation 166 step 6.5 was not applied correctly. The anchor force is now multiplied with 1.2 as is prescribed by the standard
2. Default selection of passive and active sides can be overruled by the user (in case the program selects the wrong side to be active, ie if a concrete basement floor is introduced in the model)
3. Earth removed at the beginning of the calculation on one side of the sheet piling was added at the end of calculation to the other side of the sheet piling. The cause of this problem had to do with a change of passive and active sides during calculation.
4. A safety factor applied to the tangens of delta was removed from the program because it was not according to the standard (CUR)
5. A high cohesion leads to less resistance of the sliding surface (passive) in case the surface leans downward from the sheet piling. Calculation of the resistance along the sliding surface was modified to take into account the beforementioned effect.
6. The surcharge load on the left of the sheet piling was multiplied one time too many by the partial safety factor (default 1). In case you did not select a correction of the load the partial safety factor was applied once, in case you did select the use of a correction of the load the partial factor was applied twice.
7. Several inconsistencies where removed from the report

2005-10-26 (build number 7.1.2.1)

1. Error in version 7.1.1.10 solved in calculation of earth pressure coeffiecients. See known bugs.
2. Gamma-mb representative 1.25 instead of 1.0
3. Verification, method 2: a message is shown when no stages are selected.
4. Report: in the Resume dashes are shown instead of values in case one or more stages are instable.
5. The manual is now read from the Manual directory (after both MSheet and the Manual are installed once again).

2005-10-15 (build number 7.1.1.10)

The new MSheet Version 7 follows the new design standard, as described in the CUR handbook for Sheet pile wall design. The new CUR design procedure is the step between the current design practice and the EuroCode 7. A second major improvement concerns the revised manual.

Improvements in the software:

• Support of CUR design method I and II;
• Method I, all phases are checked using the same safety class (Class I, II, III or User Defined);
• Method II, only the indicated phases are checked using the indicated safety class (Class I, II, III or User Defined). Previous phases are checked using representative values;
• For Method II all indicated phases are check in one batch calculation. Results are presented in one report;
• For both methods, the overall stability can be check (optionally). Results are available in the report as well;
• ?CUR Verification? now works for the Ka, Ko en Kp method;
• A check on the vertical balance is now included;
• An extra CUR verification step is included for the check on a factor 1.2 over the representative values;
• An extra CUR step is included for the possible change in phreatic level on the passive side of the excavation;
• For the vertical balance check it is now possible to input a negative delta friction angle;
• At a high friction angle phi, the delta can be reduced automatically so a calculation with straight slip planes can be made (method c, phi, delta);
• A User Defined Set of partial safety factors can be used, allowing for international design code checking;
• MSheet and the MSheet report includes a graphical representation for the different CUR verification steps;
• The profile library is updated according to the main sheet pile wall producers. The library also includes the parameters needed for the vertical balance check;
• Improved visualization of diagrams en graphs. Names and coloring for layers is now available;
• The layout for the ?Soil Layers? window is improved to follow a more logical input order;
• The ?Design Sheet Pile Length? option now also uses the safety classes I, II and the User Defined set;
• Some 60 larger and smaller suggestions, reported by users improvements have been made;
• All know bugs have been solved;
• An overall envelop has been introduced in the plot for moments, shear forces and displacements;
• The change in geometry, according to the CUR Design procedure is now also visualized in the reports;
• For ?Single Piles? loaded by ?Soil Displacement? the coefficients for lateral earth pressure can be calculated (automatically) using Brinch-Hansen.

Improvements in the documentation:

• The readability of the manuals has improved drastically. The manual has been rewritten by an English Civil Engineer with Geotechnical background;
• A new refreshing Layout has been introduced. The manual is now available as a book;
• A large number of illustrations have been added;
• 15 practical examples have been included as examples. These tutorials illustrate most options in MSheet providing geotechnical backgrounds as well;
• The manual now includes a verification section, describing 39 benchmarks.

6.2

2005-06-01 (build number 6.2.1.5)

E-Consult module:
This new module enables users to check their MSheet design for sheet pile wall on relevant experienced during execution. This may help to reduce failure cost during pile driving/vibrating. Without license this module works in Demo mode.

A large number of small bugs have been eliminated and improvements have been made. The most important improvements are listed below:

• For the standard method (Ka,Ko,Kp) vertical stresses were determined slightly incorrectly, as a result of using incorrect vertical levels (i.e. minute variations).
• Some users experienced incorrect printing of graphs in the output report (smaller copy, or double graphs). This has been improved.
• On exporting reports with a large number of graphs some users experienced memory problems. This can now be omitted by using an option to reduce the resolution of the graphs.
• Multiple struts on the same location could not be distinguished in the output.
• The third title in "Identification" under the menu item "Project Properties" was not included in the output file.

6.1

2005-01-07 (build number 6.1.2.13)

The following bugs are solved:

1. In some cases when loads or supports were added, they were assigned 10 or 30 times to a certain stage. The mistake was seen in the Stage Composer and in the report, but the calculation was done correctly.
2. The wrong surface level was selected after adding a new surface level in the Single Pile model.
3. Data that was input to a table was muliplied by 100 (at 2 decimals).
   This happened only to one of our users in combination with a specific Windows dll.
4. The test on negative stresses during the calculation of the lambdas is now performed after any loads are accounted for.
5. In the dump file, for extreme high values some columns were printed directly against each other so the dumpfile became unreadable.

2004-11-15 (build nummer 6.1.2.8)

New module for Single Piles
With the new Single Piles module one can easily perform calculations on horizontally loaded single piles.

Combi wall wizard
With the combi wall wizard combined walls are easy to input. The user can select or input wall and (soldier) piles separately. The wizard will automatically convert inputted data.

Profile library
The existing library has been extended with updated sheet-pile profiles, concrete walls, steel tubes, etc. It is now also possible to enter user defined walls in the library.

Enhanced output
A report generator has been added, so that users may select the appropriate sections according to their personal needs. Graphs, charts as well as tables are available.

5.8

5.7