FrameAI vs Tekla Structures

Autonomous Eurocode connection design — at 1/15 the price of Tekla's full BIM suite

Upload a structural steel PDF. FrameAI extracts every member, runs the Eurocode calculations, and exports shop-ready drawings — without a seat license, a FEM textbook, or a 3-month onboarding.

Try the live demo → Calculate your savings
15×
cost difference
2 min
PDF → drawings
$0
setup cost
Tekla Structures
Autonomous Eurocode connection design — at 1/15 the price of Tekl…
IDEA StatiCa
Full structural workflow, not just connection checks — AI-powered…
SCIA
Cloud-native AI steel design vs. 30-year-old desktop FEM — same E…
SAP2000
AISC fabrication workflow in 4 minutes vs. days of manual draftin…
RISA-3D
AISC fabrication workflow in 4 minutes vs. 11 hours of manual dra…

Feature comparison

Feature FrameAI Tekla Structures
BIM import (IFC / Tekla / Revit) ◑ ✓ Full Tekla BIM integration
EN 1993-1-8 connection design ✓ ✓ (Partial — via Structural Designer add-on)
EN 1993-1-9 fatigue ✓ ✗ Not covered
EN 1992 concrete design ✓ ✓ Full Tekla BIM concrete
EN 1995 timber design ✓ ✓ Tekla structures timber
EN 1998 seismic design ✓ ✓ All regions
DSTV NC1 export ✓ ✓ (Requires export license)
DXF export ✓ ✓ Full DXF
IFC 4.0 export (CoordinationView 2.0) ✓ ✓ IFC 4 (no Psets)
PDF calculation reports ✓ ✓ PDF reports
Revision diff / AutoDiff ✓ ✗ Not available
ROI calculator ✓ ✗ Not available
Public REST API + webhooks (Studio) ✓ ✓ Tekla Open API (COM, not REST)
Starting price per seat / yr $120 ~€2,800–3,000 / yr
Free tier ✓ Always free ✗ Student license only

Workflow comparison

Traditional workflow
Tekla Structures
  • Open Tekla Structures
  • Create 3D structural model (hours to days)
  • Add connections manually — 30+ steps per joint
  • Spend 15–60 min per connection for design and check
  • Export to IDEA or manual review for code verification
  • Handle revisions manually — no AutoDiff
Total time per joint 4–8 hours per joint
FrameAI workflow
AI-powered steel design
  • Upload a structural PDF drawing (or type geometry)
  • AI auto-designs every connection per EN 1993-1-8
  • Instant Eurocode check + AutoDiff on revision
Total time per joint 30–60 min end-to-end

Pricing

Traditional
Tekla Structures
~€2,800–3,000 / yr
Per seat per year.
Annual contract required.
Implementation + training extra.
FrameAI
Pro
$60 / yr
Total price, all inclusive.
No seat limit. No training cost.
Browser-based, instant access.
FrameAI
Studio
$400 / yr
Total price, all inclusive.
No seat limit. No training cost.
Browser-based, instant access.

Pricing from public sources as of June 2026. Contact competitor for current quotes.

Frequently asked questions

Can I import my existing Tekla model or IFC file?
FrameAI accepts IFC uploads and supports SAF v2.x round-trip (Scia / Tekla / Nemetschek). For Tekla .tfl files, export to IFC first — the process takes under a minute.
Do you cover Dutch / German / Belgian National Annexes for Eurocode?
Yes. FrameAI supports NA variants for NL, DE, BE, FR, IT, PT, RO, SI, HR across EN 1993-1-1, -1-8, -4, -8, and EN 1998-1. Check the docs for your specific annex.
What about IFC round-trip — can I send model data back to Tekla?
FrameAI exports IFC 4 files that can be re-imported into Tekla. The connection design data (bolt groups, plate dimensions, weld geometry) is included in the IFC for coordination.
Is there a free trial?
Yes — FrameAI has a free tier with no time limit. Upload up to 5 drawings per month at no cost. No credit card required.
Does FrameAI cover concrete design?
Yes. FrameAI now ships EN 1992-1-1 concrete checks on /intake PDFs containing RC sections: bending (§6.1 rectangular stress block), shear (§6.2 V_Rd,c + V_Rd,s), crack width (§7.3 quasi-permanent SLS), and minimum reinforcement (§9.2/§9.3/§9.5). Rebar schedules with BS 8666 shape codes are generated automatically. See /examples/eurocode/en-1992-rc-beam-bending for a worked example.
What's the pricing compared to Tekla?
FrameAI Studio is $400/yr total. Tekla Structures starts at ~€2,800/seat/yr — that's 7× more per seat. For a 5-person engineering firm, that's €14,000/yr in Tekla licensing vs $400/yr in FrameAI. The ROI is immediate.
See the Eurocode hand-calc validation report →

Try FrameAI free — no credit card.

No install. No sales call. Upload your first drawing and see the difference.

Try FrameAI free →