You are a Civil Engineer or Civil Engineering student, and you are asking yourself; ” of all the civil engineering softwares out there, which ones can I study/purchase?. Well this article is for you. I will be dividing the list of software into 2 sections. The first section for general 2D & 3D Modelling/ drafting/ design and the second section for structural modelling, calculation and design. Here are Popular commercial civil engineering software you can buy to enhance your understanding and productivity
SECTION 1 General 2D & 3D Modelling/ drafting/ design software.
AUTOCAD
Autocad is a general technical drawing software made by Autodesk. It is very good for creating 2D drawings.You can easily produce all types of building/civil engineering drawings with this great software. This software is worldwide industry standard. In fact, you must have and learn it!. It is quite expensive but there are cheaper versions like the Autocad LT.
You can also get a free one year license on Autocad, check out this OFFICIAL AUTODESK WEBSITE for details.
REVIT
Revit is a coordinated 3D / 2D modelling software great for creating Civil engineering and architectural drawings. It is a BIM software, that is; Building Information Modelling software.With this software, you start modelling in either 2D or 3D but actually you are modelling in 2D and 3D at the same time. This is the no. 1 software for Architects. It is an Autodesk product which means you can get a free one year license or try it for 30 days.
CIVIL 3D
Civil 3D is a software for creating various types of civil engineering drawings. It is also owned by Autodesk.You can produce 2D and 3D drawings with this great software. Types of drawings you can produce with this software include;
Building plans, survey plans, site design drawings, rail design drawings, contour drawings, road/highway design drawings, drainage system drawings, city master plans, maps, and much more.
For pricing of Autocad, revit civil 3D and other Autodesk products, you can check their PRICES HERE. All Autodesk software come with 30 day free trials. If you are eligible you can also get a one year free student of educator license.
SECTION 2. Structural modelling, calculation and design software
CSC ORION
CSC orion is a reinforced concrete structural and design software. It automates the design of concrete buildings from start to finish. It can design any shape of reinforced concrete structure and supports a lot of building codes. CSC orion is now part of Tekla. Telka is company that produces civil and structural engineering software. For more information visit Telka Website
PROKON
Prokon is a software for the automated analysis, design and detailing of a wide range of structures. You can use the software to design reinforced concrete, timber and steel structure. Prokon is popular and used in over 80 countries. You can try prokon software free for 30 days. Click HERE for pricing.
QUICK STRUCTURE.
Quick structure is a software that automates the analysis, design and detailing of reinforced concrete structures. It can automate the production of calculation sheets and final drawings into drawing sheets. It very easy to use and much cheaper compared to other software listed so far. Click HERE for pricing.
STAAD PRO.
STAAD Pro is a software for the analysis and design of any type and size of structure.It can design steel, concrete, timber, aluminum, and cold-formed steel structures using over 90 international design codes. Click HERE for pricing.
There are many other civil engineering softwares out there that are very good. The ones highlighted in this article is based on their popularity and age.