Structural calculation packages: can they be licensed?

Can a structural engineering firm license its calculation packages?#

A structural engineering firm can often license calculation packages from its own projects, provided the client contract leaves ownership with the firm and no confidentiality term covers the work. Many owner-engineer agreements treat calculations as instruments of service owned by the engineer, with a license to the client to use them for the project. EJCDC owner-engineer forms, for example, have said that the engineer's documents are instruments of service and that the engineer retains an ownership and property interest, including the copyright and the right of reuse, whether or not the project is completed; wording varies by edition and by negotiation.

That starting point has exceptions. Some negotiated contracts transfer ownership of all project documents to the client, some impose confidentiality on everything produced, and some projects are restricted for security reasons. The answer is project by project, and a rights review sorts the archive into eligible and excluded groups before anything is prepared.

Start with the ownership-of-documents clause, then read the confidentiality, publicity and reuse clauses near it. A clause that puts the risk on a client who reuses documents on other projects suggests the firm expected to keep its rights; a work-made-for-hire or assignment clause points the other way.

What is in a calc package, and which parts carry value?#

A calculation package bundles the design basis, the analysis and the checks for a structure, and its parts differ sharply in value and sensitivity. The reasoning layers, such as criteria, assumptions and checker comments, matter more to AI developers than the final member sizes.

Packages that show iteration are especially useful: a connection redesigned after a check, a load assumption revised after a client decision, a note explaining why a conservative approach was chosen.

Seals, sealed status and permitted use#

Seals and signatures are always removed from licensed calculation packages, along with license numbers and any statement that the calculations are approved or issued for construction. A licensed calc is a record of how engineers worked, not a design anyone may rely on.

The license agreement should say so directly. A permitted use clause can limit the licensee to training, evaluation and research, and exclude any reliance on the records for design, construction or permitting. That language protects the firm and makes the licensee's obligations unambiguous.

Ask the firm's professional liability insurer whether licensing records of sealed work raises any coverage question before a scope is set. Carriers differ, and an early conversation avoids surprises later.

Which calc packages to leave out#

Some calculation packages should be left out even when the firm arguably owns them, because the risk outweighs the value or the work was never really the firm's. The exclusion list is usually short but firm.

Write exclusions into the scope document by project number so nobody adds them back during preparation.

• 1Delegated design calculations prepared by a contractor's engineer, such as stairs, curtain wall or precast connections.
• 2Peer reviews and third-party checks of another firm's design.
• 3Projects with security-sensitive programs or blanket confidentiality clauses.
• 4Projects involving failures, open claims or legal holds.
• 5Calculations built on proprietary manufacturer data the firm may not redistribute.
• 6Work for clients whose contracts transferred ownership of all documents.

Remove and keep: a preparation checklist#

A preparation checklist turns these rules into repeatable steps, which matters because calc packages mix typed output, scanned pages and handwriting. The checklist below covers what most structural packages need.

Redaction software catches typed names in analysis output reasonably well, but even its makers say it is incomplete: Presidio's documentation cautions that automated detection cannot be counted on to find every sensitive item and calls for added safeguards. Handwritten initials, stamp impressions and scanned title blocks need a human reviewer working from a written checklist.

Does analysis software affect what can be licensed?#

Analysis software affects licensing in two ways: through its license terms and through its file formats. Firms generally treat the reports they produce with tools such as RISA, ETABS, SAP2000, RAM or Enercalc as their own work product, but end user license terms vary, and some restrict redistributing embedded libraries, templates or databases. Check the terms for each tool in scope.

File formats matter to buyers. Native model files may need the original software to open, so many packages pair a PDF of the output with a structured summary of inputs, such as loads, materials and member schedules, that a developer can use without the software.

Illustrative: a structural firm prepares a calc sample#

Illustrative: a fictional structural engineering firm that designs wood-frame mid-rise housing, steel office buildings and parking structures reviews its calculation archive. Packages live on a file server as Mathcad worksheets, analysis model files and scanned hand calcs, with checker comments in Bluebeam.

Contract review shows most projects under owner-engineer agreements that keep ownership with the firm. The CEO approves a sample from those projects, excluding delegated designs, peer reviews and a confidential data center campus. Preparation removes seals, names and title blocks, keeps criteria, load assumptions and checker comments, and pairs each package with a structured input summary. The sample goes to a fit check before any wider scope is set.

How SourceX approaches calculation records#

SourceX approaches calculation records through the SourceX five-step transaction, starting with a fit check that asks only about project types, years, file formats and known restrictions. No calculation pages change hands at that point.

For packages that go forward, the SourceX Evidence Packet records the provenance of each package, the licensing rights relied on, the permitted use including any bar on design reliance, the privacy record of what was removed and the firm's release authorization. Records are licensed, not sold, so the firm keeps ownership.