Design of buildings and structures against multiple time-varying loads has always been a challenge to engineers. At most loadings on structures are stochastic in nature, an overriding concern has been proper treatment of the uncertainty such that the structural performance will be satisfactory under the loadings during its lifetime. It requires a careful consideration of the difficult load combination problem and yet the design criteria have to be simple for implementation in codes and standards. This paper gives a brief review of the recent developments in load combination and development of design criteria based on reliability. Examples are given for design of buildings in areas with high seismicity and for development of design criteria for offshore platforms against winds, waves and currents.
