Terms of Service

Effective September 11, 2026 · Version 2026-09-11

1. Description of Service

etFrame is a structural engineering calculation and modelling service. The service is provided by etFrame (hereinafter “the service provider”).

The service is a software-based calculation tool. Providing or using the service does not create a structural design, consulting or other design engagement between the service provider and the user or customer, and the service provider does not act as the user’s structural engineer, consultant or reviewer of designs.

By using the service, you agree to these terms. If the service is used on behalf of a company or other organisation, the user confirms that they are authorised to use the service on behalf of that customer.

2. Users and Customers

Users of the service must be at least 16 years of age.

In these terms, “user” means a natural person who uses the service.

“Customer” means a company, educational institution or other organisation to which the service provider has granted an Academic or Commercial license.

A Commercial license is granted only to a company or other organisation engaged in business activities. Commercial licenses are not sold to consumers.

3. User Accounts

You can register for the service with an email address or a Google account.

The user is responsible for the accuracy of the information they provide, for the security of their account and login credentials, and for all use of their account to the extent that such use results from the user’s actions or omissions.

The user must notify the service provider without delay of any suspected unauthorised use of their account.

The user account is personal and may not be transferred to another person for their use unless the service provider has expressly permitted such use.

4. License Tiers and Permitted Use

The service is available at the following license tiers:

Unauthenticated use — limited access to basic features without the ability to save. Unauthenticated use is intended for exploring and evaluating the service. It may not be used for commercial design tasks or for the design or dimensioning of real construction projects.

Free account (Free) — registered users get access to basic features and limited cloud storage. The Free license is intended for personal, non-commercial use and for exploring and evaluating the service. The Free license may not be used to carry out assignments for a client or employer, for commercial structural design, or for the design or dimensioning of real construction projects.

Academic license (Academic) — available to educational institutions that have entered into an agreement with the service provider. The license may be tied to the institution’s email domain and may require periodic re-verification. The license is valid in accordance with the agreement between the institution and the service provider.

The Academic license may only be used for teaching, studying, coursework, theses and other non-commercial academic activities. The Academic license may not be used to carry out commercial assignments, for design work performed for a client or employer, or for preparing designs or dimensioning intended for the execution of real construction projects.

Material based on a real building may be processed under the Academic license in teaching, studying, theses or research, provided that the results produced by the service are not used as design documentation intended for the execution of that building.

Commercial license (Commercial) — intended for companies and other organisations engaged in business activities for professional and commercial use of the service. The Commercial license entitles the holder to use the service as a calculation tool for the structural design of real construction projects in accordance with these terms and any separate license agreement.

The customer is responsible for ensuring that persons using the Commercial license have the structural engineering competence and professional skills required for the calculation and design task in question.

A license may only be used for the purpose defined for that license tier. The service provider has the right to restrict or suspend use of the service if the user or customer uses the service contrary to the purpose permitted by the license.

The service provider has the right to develop the service and to change the features and limitations of the license tiers. However, no material changes that significantly impair the customer’s ability to use the service for the agreed purpose will be made to a paid license during the agreed license period, unless the change is necessary due to law, an official regulation, information security, the standard used or another justified reason.

5. User Content and Model Ownership

The user or customer retains their rights to the data they enter into the service and to the calculation models and other user-generated content they create in the service.

The service provider is granted the right, to the extent necessary to provide the service, to process user content for the purposes of delivering, maintaining and technically testing the service, troubleshooting and quality assurance.

The service provider will not use identifiable customer calculation models for other purposes without the customer’s consent, unless such use is necessary to ensure the security of the service, to investigate an error or to fulfil a legal obligation.

The user and the customer are responsible for appropriately backing up the material stored in the service.

The service provider has the right to delete models stored in the service upon termination of the user account, license or service in accordance with the applicable retention periods. The service provider will endeavour to notify the user or customer of material changes within a reasonable time in advance.

6. Use of the Service and User Responsibility

The service performs calculations based on the input data provided and the choices made by the user. The user is responsible for the accuracy and suitability of the input data, loads, materials, structural model, design settings, standards and other data and choices affecting the calculation for the task in question.

The service provider develops and maintains the service so that its calculation functions are intended to operate on the basis of the design standards stated in the service, their national annexes and the applicable national non-contradictory complementary information (NCCI). However, the service provider does not guarantee that the service, its calculation methods or their implementation are error-free in all situations or suitable for every possible design situation.

Results produced through unauthenticated use or under a Free license may not be used for the design, dimensioning, verification or execution of any real structure, or for any other decision-making related to real construction. Calculation results produced under an Academic license may not be used as the basis for a structural design or dimensioning intended for the execution of a real construction project.

Under a Commercial license, the service may be used as a calculation tool for structural design. However, use of the service does not transfer the responsibility of the structural engineer, the customer or any other party responsible for the design to the service provider.

Before using the results as part of a design, a Commercial license user must assess at least the accuracy of the input data and the structural model, the suitability of the calculation method and standard used, the technical consistency and order of magnitude of the results, and the applicability of the results to the structure and design situation in question.

A calculation or printout produced by the service is not, as such, a structural design prepared or approved by the service provider.

The user is responsible for the final design decisions and for the use of the results produced by the service.

The service may not be used in an automated system in which a result produced by the service leads directly to the manufacture or execution of a structure or to any other safety-related action without a review of the results by an appropriately qualified professional.

The service provider has the right to restrict or suspend use of the service if the user violates these terms or uses the service in a manner that may compromise the security or operation of the service.

7. Service Features and Disclaimer of Warranties

The service is provided “as is” and “as available” to the extent permitted by applicable law.

Despite careful development, testing and maintenance, software and technical calculation systems may contain errors, deficiencies or compatibility issues.

The service provider does not guarantee uninterrupted or completely error-free operation of the service, nor that the service is suitable for all of the user’s specific purposes or design situations.

Nor does the service provider guarantee that the interpretation of the design standards, national annexes, NCCI material, product data, type approvals or certificates used in the service corresponds in all situations to the interpretation of the user, an authority or any other party.

The service provider may correct, change and update the service and its calculation methods. The user should note that calculations performed with different software versions may produce differing results, for example due to bug fixes, changes in standards or the development of calculation methods.

This section does not limit any rights arising from mandatory law.

8. Limitation of Liability

To the extent permitted by applicable law, the service provider shall not be liable for indirect or consequential damages, business interruption, loss of revenue or profit, loss of anticipated savings or other expected economic benefit, loss of data, or damage arising from a third-party claim against the user or customer.

The service provider shall not be liable for damage to the extent that it results from incorrect or incomplete input data provided by the user or customer, an incorrect structural model or design choice, misinterpretation of the service’s results, failure to review the results, use of the service contrary to the purpose permitted by the license, use of an outdated calculation after the input data has changed, or any other matter for which the user or customer is responsible.

The user or customer is liable, to the extent permitted by applicable law, for damages arising from the use of a Free or Academic license for the design of a real construction project, for a commercial assignment or for any other purpose prohibited for that license.

To the extent permitted by applicable law, the service provider’s aggregate liability for claims arising from the service, the license or these terms shall in all cases be limited to the amount paid by the customer to the service provider for the license in question during the twelve (12) months preceding the event giving rise to the damage.

If the service has been used without a paid license, the service provider shall not be liable for any damage, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

The above limitations of liability apply regardless of the legal basis of the claim, to the extent permitted by applicable law.

The limitations of liability do not apply to the extent that limiting or excluding liability is prohibited by mandatory law. Nor do they limit liability for damage caused intentionally or any other liability that cannot be validly limited under applicable law.

The user and the customer acknowledge that the allocation of liability and the maximum liability defined in this section are an essential part of the pricing of the service and of the service provider’s ability to offer the service.

9. User and Customer Liability for Third-Party Claims

The user and the customer are responsible, in relation to their own clients and other third parties, for the design decisions they make with the help of the service and for the use of the service’s results.

The user or customer shall compensate the service provider for reasonable damages, costs and legal expenses arising from a third-party claim to the extent that the claim results from:

incorrect or incomplete input data provided by the user or customer;
a design or dimensioning decision made by the user;
misinterpretation of the service’s results or failure to review them appropriately;
use of the service contrary to the purpose permitted by the license;
a breach of these terms by the user or customer; or
any other act or omission for which the user or customer is responsible.

The obligation to compensate under this section does not apply to damage to the extent that it results from a defect in the service for which the service provider is responsible or from the service provider’s own actions, and the service provider is liable for that damage under applicable law and these terms.

10. Personal Data Processing

The service collects and processes the following personal data:

Name and email address upon registration
Login information and session data (device, login timestamp)
Service usage data for service improvement
Academic license verification data

All data is stored within the European Union. Processing is based on the service agreement (GDPR Article 6(1)(b)) and the service provider’s legitimate interest in improving the service (GDPR Article 6(1)(f)).

Users have the right to download their data and request account deletion through the account settings. Data will be permanently deleted within 30 days of a deletion request.

For full details on personal data processing, see the Privacy Policy at etframe.com/privacy.

11. Third Parties

The service provider does not share users’ personal data with third parties, except where required by law.

Google Sign-In is subject to Google’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Google shares the user’s name and email address with etFrame during sign-in, which are used solely for the purpose of creating a user account.

12. Service Availability

The service provider aims to keep the service continuously available but does not guarantee uninterrupted operation. The service provider reserves the right to suspend the service for maintenance or development purposes.

13. Changes to Terms

The service provider reserves the right to modify these terms without prior notice. By continuing to use the service, you accept the updated terms. The current terms are always available at etframe.com/terms.

14. Governing Law

These terms are governed by Finnish law. Any disputes shall primarily be resolved through negotiation. If no settlement is reached, disputes shall be resolved in the Satakunta District Court.