A podium condition typically refers to a building design where the lower floors of a building are designed using a different structural system than the upper floors. Commonly, the lower podium structure is a reinforced concrete structure or other system that is heavier than the upper floors which are designed using a lighter steel or mass timber system. Podium conditions are commonly used in mid-rise and high-rise buildings where there is a transition between the lower and upper floors, where fire code requires separated occupancies, or where a larger base for lateral force resistance is needed. Broadly speaking, podium systems can provide efficient structural solutions and support greater architectural design flexibility.

You can create early-stage structural estimates that account for podium conditions in the Carbon Feature using the advanced structural inputs and selecting “Podium Construction” under the Podium Condition question.

Once you have selected podium construction, enter the number of floors from the ground which will be part of the podium system. For example, if the first three floors (ground, first, and second) are in the podium, enter “3”. Next, select the structural system for the podium. Typically, the podium condition will be a heavier system than the upper floors – for instance, your podium may be concrete with a primary mass timber system above.

Happy Modeling!