Resilience: Why Material Selection Matters

Understanding how the selection of structural framing materials impacts the resilience of buildings and communities
[ Page 2 of 4 ]  previous page Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 next page
American Institute of Steel Construction
This test is no longer available for credit

Resilient Design Considerations

When selecting a structural framing system and material, there are many factors that must be considered.

Building Code Requirements

The resilience of a building’s structural framing system is a function of both the material and the design of that system. Structural framing systems that meet the requirements of the building code can be built using steel, concrete, or wood. The purpose of building code provisions is to provide safety for occupants in the event of an extreme event. To ensure the best possible outcomes, all buildings are subject to building codes, such as the International Building Code (IBC).

In general, building codes do not directly address the resilience of the building by referencing either a subjective evaluation of the four Rs or an objective evaluation of the time and cost of repair and recovery. Section 1604 of IBC states that building structures and parts of the building must have the following considerations built into the design: strength, load and resistance factor, allowable stress, and empirical design or construction methods as permitted by the material.

However, IBC section 1604.5 begins to address the resiliency of buildings by including enhanced design requirements for high-rise buildings in risk categories III and IV. In those cases, structural integrity is evaluated independently. This means deformations in the material are allowed as long as failure does not occur. The goal is to allow for the redistribution of loads in the event of damage. This is possible to accomplish using structural steel, concrete, or wood. However, the question isn’t whether it’s possible to accomplish this goal; the question is, what is the most efficient way to meet this goal by maximizing design properties of the material specified in the design, getting the best return on investment from the system, achieving redundancy, and creating a system that is easy to repair after an extreme event?

 

[ Page 2 of 4 ]  previous page Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 next page
Originally published in Architectural Record
Originally published in August 2018

Notice

Academies