The methods of structural analysis are of two types, analytical methods and numerical methods.
Analytical methods provide closed-form solutions in only certain special cases.
Thus analytical methods cannot be used in the analysis of complex structures. Numerical methods can be divided into two categories, numerical solutions of partial differential equations and finite element methods. The first of these techniques, numerical partial differential equations, is used to find approximate solutions of the equations of elasticity. However, practical limitations restrict the application of this method to only simple structures. Finite element methods provide accurate analysis of complex structures.