At the previous EURO-C conference, a guideline for nonlinear finite analysis and safety assessment of concrete structures was presented. This guideline is a results of a cooperation between the Delft University of Technology, the University of Parma and the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment. The nonlinear finite element results of a workshop around shear failure, held in Rotterdam in 2007, was the starting point for the development of a guideline for nonlinear finite element analysis. The scatter of the results presented in Rotterdam was considered as too large; knowledge of nonlinear finite element analysis of concrete structures should be controlled better in order to make nonlinear finite element analysis an accepted method. In 2012 the first version of the guideline that focussed on girder structures was published. In 2014, at the concrete structures laboratory of the Delft University of Technology, four almost similar pre-stressed girders were tested till the ultimate limit load level. This was considered as an opportunity to organise a contest to predict this ultimate load level at failure. The participants were asked to make use of the guideline. A workshop at the University of Parma gave the teams the opportunity to pitch their predictions. This paper presents the following topics: an overview of the content of the guideline, the gain of a controlled blind prediction contest and the main outcomes of the contest in Parma. @en

Several reliability methods available in literature combined with various modelling approaches are compared in this current work in the context of two experimental reinforced concrete (RC) beams. One beam failed in bending while the other beam failed in shear due to diagonal tension. The structural behaviour is described by analytical models and nonlinear finite element models. The changes in predicted reliability of these structures with increasing loads are evaluated by different reliability methods and the results are compared.@en

In this paper, the behaviour of RC slab strips subjected to transverse loads and axial tensile forces is investigated by means of analytical and numerical simulations. The results obtained are compared to the experimental results from tests performed at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH). The prediction of the structural response was part of an international benchmark study [1]. The aim of the paper is to investigate the capability of the adopted models and their main influencing parameters, especially from the perspective of a reliable structural robustness assessment. It is known that in some cases axial tensile forces have a beneficial effect on the bearing capacity of slab strips, thanks to the development of catenary actions. Such hidden strength resources are usually not taken into account in the current design process. For this reason, validation of suitable numerical tools, able to properly predict the structural response, is useful for a reliable structural robustness assessment. The paper underlines the importance of benchmark development, especially for specimens, in which both mechanical and geometrical nonlinearities play an important role.@en