{"id":15957,"date":"2016-03-28T12:32:34","date_gmt":"2016-03-28T16:32:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/?p=15957"},"modified":"2016-12-16T11:20:37","modified_gmt":"2016-12-16T16:20:37","slug":"seismic-precast-concrete-research-wins-civil-engineering-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/seismic-precast-concrete-research-wins-civil-engineering-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Seismic precast concrete research wins civil engineering award"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"New
New research into precast concrete design for seismic applications has been lauded by the nation\u2019s civil engineering association.<\/span>
Photo \u00a9 BigStockPhoto<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Research led by the Precast\/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) has been honored with an American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Charles Pankow Award for Innovation. The project, \u201cSeismic Diaphragm Seismic Design Methodology (DSDM)<\/a>,\u201d was also funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES).<\/p>\n

Representing literally groundbreaking research conducted by engineers and precast concrete industry experts, the project involves a comprehensive seismic design methodology for precast concrete diaphragms. Its development involved integrating finite element analyses of a diaphragm with full-scale reinforcing detail experiments and shaking table system tests. This initiative resulted in the adoption of a revised force demand and resistance methodology for precast concrete diaphragms in the 2015 National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program<\/span> (NEHRP) and ASCE\/Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) 7-16, Minimum Design Loads For Buildings and Other Structures<\/span><\/em>. (The complete research report is available here<\/a>, on the \u201cCompleted Projects and Programs\u201d tab.)<\/p>\n

\u201cThis project was successfully completed because of exceptional collaboration between academia and industry,\u201d said PCI\u2019s vice president of technical services, Roger J. Becker, PE, SE. \u201cIts completion and codification of the results means engineering professionals can now use precast concrete diaphragms with confidence in any seismic zone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Features of the performance-based seismic design methodology include:<\/p>\n