VITOK’s Structural Engineering group designs new structures, evaluates/modifies existing ones, and supports safety functions throughout new and existing facilities. Our structural engineers work hand-in-hand with our internal process, mechanical, and power teams to ensure that every structure we design is sized for the actual loads it will carry, built for the environment it will operate in, and compliant with applicable electrical codes, building codes, and permitting requirements.
Whether you’re building a new production facility, adding a mezzanine to an existing plant, improving safety functions, or reinforcing aging infrastructure for a new process, VITOK delivers fully coordinated structural designs that support your project from feasibility through construction.
Capabilities
Core Structural Engineering Services
Building Design
Full structural design for new industrial and commercial buildings, including framing systems, lateral force resisting systems, and load path analysis from roof to foundation — coordinated within architectural and MEP requirements.
Structural Steel Design
Design of primary and secondary steel framing, connections, and bracing systems for industrial facilities. VITOK designs include material specifications and IFC level drawings and details.
Foundations for Buildings, Equipment & Utilities
Shallow and deep foundation design for buildings, heavy process equipment, tanks, vessels, and utility structures— incorporating geotechnical data and equipment vendor loads.
Concrete Structures
Reinforced concrete design for slabs, walls, pits, containment, trenches, and structural frames, including special inspections coordination and mix design requirements for industrial environments.
Platforms & Mezzanines
Structural design or audit of elevated work platforms, equipment access mezzanines, and pipe racks — engineered for actual live loads, vibration, and process equipment weights.
Modifications to Existing Structures
Structural assessment and upgrade design for existing facilities undergoing process changes, equipment replacements, or capacity expansions, including load rating studies and as-built documentation.
Supports for Ducts & Piping
Design of pipe racks, hangers, anchors, and duct support structures — coordinated with our internal piping and mechanical teams to account for thermal expansion, dynamic loads, and accessibility.
Concrete & Steel Floors
Structural floor system design including post-tensioned slabs, elevated decks, grating, and checkered plate systems suited to the operational loads and maintenance requirements of industrial facilities.
Cross-Disciplinary Integration
Structural Design Built Around the Process
Structural engineering at VITOK is never done in isolation. Our structural engineers receive equipment loads and layouts directly from our process and mechanical teams, ensuring that foundations and support structures are sized for what will actually be installed — not generic assumptions. We coordinate with our piping designers on pipe rack geometry and with civil engineers on grading, drainage, and site improvements that tie into the structural work. The result is a structurally sound facility that fits the process, not one that forces the process to work around the structure.
Specialized Services
Additional Electrical Engineering Expertise
Safety
Fall Protection Design
Engineered fall protection systems including guardrails, safety cable systems, and anchorage points designed to OSHA 1910/1926 standards and integrated into the structural framing.
Containment
Spill containment structures
Engineered fall protection systems including guardrails, safety cable systems, and anchorage points designed to OSHA 1910/1926 standards and integrated into the structural framing.
Site
General Arrangement & Site Layout
Structural input into facility general arrangement drawings, including equipment footprint coordination, clearance verification, and maintenance access planning.
Assessment
Fitness for Service Evaluations
Structural integrity assessments of existing tanks, vessels, frames, foundations, and buildings to determine suitability for continued service or new loading conditions.
Underground
Underground Structural Systems
Design of underground concrete structures including valve pits, utility vaults, pipe trenches, and below-grade equipment rooms with appropriate waterproofing and drainage.
Permitting
Permitting Assistance
Preparation of permit drawings, structural calculations packages, and coordination with local authorities having jurisdiction (AHJ) to support building permit submissions.
Our Approach
How We Engineer Every Structure
01
Loads &
Criteria
Establish design loads — dead, live, wind, seismic, equipment, and thermal — along with applicable building codes and site-specific geotechnical conditions.
02
Structural System Selection
Evaluate framing options and select the structural system that best fits the facility’s function, budget, schedule, and constructability requirements.
03
Detailed Design & Analysis
Complete structural analysis using RISA, Revit, and other tools, producing fully coordinated design drawings and specifications for construction.
04
Construction Support
Review shop drawings and submittals, respond to RFIs, and provide field observation to ensure structural work is built in accordance with the design.
Industries We Serve
Structural Expertise Across A Range of Industries
Distilleries & beverage
Structural support systems for distillation columns, fermentation vessels, barrel storage, containment, and elevated walkways in facilities where cleanliness and access are equally critical.
BioFuels
Heavy equipment foundations, containment, elevated tank structures, and pipe rack design for biofuel production facilities with large-scale fermentation and distillation equipment.
Chemical
Chemically resistant concrete design, containment structures, and equipment foundations for facilities handling corrosive or hazardous materials under strict regulatory requirements.
Consumer Products
Flexible structural systems for consumer goods facilities that support current production layouts while accomodating future equipment additions and process changes.
Food Processing
Washdown-compatible structural design including stainless-compatible framing, sloped drainage floors, and elevated platforms designed for sanitary maintenance access.
Manufacturing
High-bay building structures, crane runway beams, equipment pads, and mezzanines designed for industrial manufacturing environments with demanding live and dynamic loads.
Municipal
Structural design for water and wastewater treatment facilities, pump station buildings, and underground utility structures built to withstand continuous wet-environment operation.