For structural and mechanical engineers
Calculations and parts,
with the working shown.
Every structural result carries its clause reference, its derivation and its
governing check, and exports as a sign-off PDF. Every part carries its fits,
its tolerances and a statement of what was not checked. Not a black box that
returns a number.
10 free calculations a month · cancel anytime
EXAMPLE — WHAT YOU GET BACKEC3-1-1 §6.3.2.3
>Check a 457×191×74 UB in S355, 7.5 m span, 22 kN/m UDL
MEd154.7 kNmwL²/8
VEd82.5 kNwL/2
Mc,Rd589.3 kNmWplfy/γM0
Mb,Rd412.6 kNmχLTWplfy/γM1
● PASS — utilisation 0.375
governing: lateral-torsional buckling
Two tools, one chain
Anvil proves it. Forge draws it. They are separate engines doing separate
jobs — a Eurocode checker is not a geometry kernel — and the seam between
them is where the value is: a steel connection designed to EN 1993-1-8 in
Anvil becomes a plate with holes in it in Forge, without being re-drawn by
hand.
ANVIL — CALCULATION
Steel, concrete, timber, masonry, composite, geotechnical and seismic
design. Each check prints demand, capacity, utilisation, the clause it
came from and the step-by-step working behind it.
Open Anvil →
or
see what it checks
FORGE — GEOMETRY
Describe a part; get a solid model and STEP, STL, DXF or 3MF. A finite
element pass reports where the model works hardest — as a second
opinion on the hand calculation, never as a substitute for it.
Open Forge →
or
see what it builds
EVIDENCE
Validation you can open
Every calculation type carries a badge linking to the published worked
examples behind it — the source, the expected value, and what this
build actually produced. Re-run live, not a stored claim.
For mechanical engineers
Forge is the mechanical half, and it is held to the same standard as the
structural half: it reports what it computed, names the table it came from,
and says plainly what it did not check.
FITS & TOLERANCES
ISO 286 limits and fits, computed
Name a fit in the prompt — H7/h6, H8/f7 — and the limits, the
clearance or interference and the resulting shaft and hole sizes are
computed from the published ISO 286 tables and printed with the part.
Checkable against the table, not against a claim.
MANUFACTURABILITY
DFM notes before the quote
Wall thickness, minimum feature size and machinability are reported
against the process the part is headed for — CNC, sheet, print — so a
part that cannot be made comes back as a note rather than as a
rejected quote from a fabricator.
CROSS-CHECK
A von Mises pass, honestly labelled
The finite element pass shows where the geometry works hardest. It
returns no rating, no safety factor and no pass or fail, because a
linear-elastic peak at a bolt hole reaches yield on connections that
are fully compliant. It is a second opinion, and it is labelled as
one.
Standards implemented
Eurocodes with UK National Annex parameters, plus the codes below. Where a
value is a nationally determined parameter, the National Annex value is
used and named in the output.
Structural
EN 1990 — Basis of design
EN 1991 — Actions
EN 1992 — Concrete
EN 1993 — Steel
EN 1994 — Composite
EN 1995 — Timber
EN 1996 — Masonry
EN 1997 — Geotechnical
EN 1998 — Seismic
BS 5950
AISC 360
AS 4100 / AS 3600
NZS 3101
IS 800
SCI P363 / P365 / P354
AISC Design Guide 11
Mechanical
ISO 286 — Limits and fits
How a job runs
- State the problemPick a calculation type and enter the geometry, materials and actions — or describe it in plain text and let the parser fill the form for you to check.
- Read the checks, not just the verdictEvery check shows demand against capacity with its clause. The governing one is marked. Warnings appear where a result is acceptable but worth a second look.
- Follow the derivationEach result expands into its steps: the symbol, the formula, the substituted numbers and the clause. Nothing is asserted without its working.
- Cross-check the geometry (optional)Send the proven design to Forge for a solid model, its ISO 286 fits and a finite element pass. Forge reports where the model works hardest; it returns no rating and no pass/fail, because a linear-elastic peak at a bolt hole reaches yield on connections that are fully compliant.
- Export for sign-offA clause-referenced PDF with inputs, checks, derivations, the verdict and a stated scope-and-limitations block. Every calculation is version-stamped, so any result can be reproduced on any later date.
Verification and limits
Volex is checked against published worked examples. Each case names its
source, its tolerance band, the expected value and what the current build
produced — and re-runs when you open the page rather than reporting a
stored number. Open any calculation and click its validation badge to read
the cases behind it.
WHAT THIS DOES NOT DO
- It does not replace independent checking by a chartered engineer, nor professional indemnity sign-off. The engineer issuing a calculation remains responsible for it.
- Only the checks printed in a result have been performed. The absence of a check is not a statement that it is satisfied.
- Inputs, load cases, combinations, support conditions and material grades are as supplied by the user and are not independently verified.
- Agreement with a published worked example is evidence of agreement with that example. It is not proof of correctness for your design.
- Forge's finite element pass is a second opinion on geometry. It returns no rating, no safety factor and no pass/fail, and must not be presented as a strength check.
- ISO 286 fits named in a prompt are computed. A full tolerance stack-up across a chain of mating parts is not performed.
- No geometric tolerancing. True position, flatness, perpendicularity and runout are not applied, checked or exported as GD&T.
- No mould-flow, draft or sink-mark analysis. Manufacturability notes cover printability and machinability only.
- Standard-part geometry — T-slot nuts, eye bolts and the like — is modelled to the nominal dimensions given, not built from certified tables, and carries no load rating.