Manufacturing portable accommodation modules and technical buildings is an extensive process, ensuring each unit meets the demands of operating in a wide range of environments. From working in the North Sea to the West Texas desert, each Armoda unit must be ready to handle its demands. One of the critical components in ensuring that Armoda’s units can stand up to these environmental conditions is designing and manufacturing the units to meet engineering loads. In this article, we will cover what a load is and five of the types used to design our units.

What is a load?

When dealing with structures like Armoda’s portable accommodation modules and technical buildings, a load is a force, deformation, or acceleration applied to the structure by its components or external elements. To account for these engineers, use various load calculations to ensure a structure can handle the environmental forces it will encounter. By running these calculations, engineers at Armoda can optimize structural design, material selection, code compliance, and safety.

Code Compliance – The major governing bodies, like the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), the United States Coast Guard (USCG), Den Norske Veritas (DNV), International Maritime Organization (IMO) Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), etc., require certain engineering loads be met by modules and buildings that are used on marine vessels and facilities. Running these load calculations lets the engineers know where the structure they are designing stands and allows them to make necessary adjustments to meet the regulations.

Structural Design – Based on load calculations, engineers will make design and layout choices to ensure the unit can handle the environments it will be deployed to.

Material Selection – The choice of materials used can change based on the structure's requirements. The engineering and design team can optimize the materials used to build the structure by performing load calculations based on the available materials.

Safety - By assessing and designing based on loads, engineers ensure that each structure can withstand external forces that they will be subjected to during their operating life. This prevents failures and ensures the structure will be safe for occupants and equipment.

5 Engineering Loads Armoda Uses

It’s important to note that specific methods and equations for load calculations vary based on geographical location and regulatory requirements. These breakdowns give a general scope of what is considered when calculating the below-listed loads used in the design of Armoda Portable Accommodation Modules and Technical Buildings.

Wind Load

Wind loads are the pressure exerted on a given zone of a building and its components. A few factors must be considered to calculate wind loads, such as wind speed, wind pressure, windward forces, leeward forces, wall pressure, internal pressure, net wind pressure, and wind load distribution. These factors, along with the structural properties of the materials and the unit's design, are then used to analyze the structure and determine if it can withstand wind-induced forces. Wind load is particularly relevant for units deployed to offshore facilities and vessels.

Wave Load

Wave load is the force exerted by ocean waves on a structure. When calculating a wave load, several factors are considered, including the water density, wave height, wavelength, water depth, wave frequency, wave number, resistance coefficients, and the shape and orientation of the structure itself. These calculations provide data on hydrodynamic pressure, impact loads, and dynamic response, which are used to analyze the structure and determine if changes in the design are needed to meet governing regulations.

Live Load

A live load refers to the temporary or moving loads a structure may experience during its intended use. Live load includes things like equipment, desks, and even personnel. These loads are not constant and can vary in magnitude and location. The requirements for a live load can vary depending on the type of structure and where it will be located. The specific load requirements are determined by the governing regulator, and each structure must conform. Knowing the live load aids the engineers in designing the structure by giving a value to account for the temporary and moving loads created by personnel and equipment.

Floor Load

A floor load refers to the maximum weight that the floor of a structure can safely support. Floor loads are important in helping engineers ensure that the structure’s floor can handle the weight of the live loads and the structure itself (floor slab, beams, floor covering, etc.). With this calculation, engineers can adjust the structure's design to ensure it can support all the items and personnel it will house. Knowing the floor load is particularly helpful when designing our technical buildings, as they are often outfitted with specialized, heavy equipment.

Lifting Loads

Being able to lift modules and technical buildings is a key feature for being able to operate in remote locations like offshore rigs. Several calculations are required to ensure the modules can be lifted without issue. These calculations include determining the module's dead weight, live load, and center of gravity. Other loads that we have discussed here, such as the wind load, wave load, and current load, are also considered. With these calculations, the engineers determine what lifting equipment and configuration is required for the structure. Knowing these lifting loads allows the engineers to ensure the units are lifted by the typical equipment in the industries for which the units are designed.

This general overview of what engineering loads are should illustrate the value they provide in the engineering process. We highlighted the five engineering loads Armoda uses in the engineering and design of our portable accommodation modules and technical buildings.

For more information about how Armoda manufactures equipment to meet regulatory compliance, continue reading on our blog: