skip to main content

ASCE Week

Las Vegas, Nevada | –

Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of Existing Buildings -NEW

1.4 CEUs | Monday–Tuesday, September 26–27

Instructor

Robert G. Pekelnicky, P.E., S.E., M.ASCE

Purpose & Background

As providing sustainable and disaster resilience infrastructure continues to be at the forefront of the national discourse, existing buildings are coming under greater scrutiny. Whether it is an adaptive reuse project triggering a retrofit from the local jurisdiction or an owner looking to enhance the safety of their property, seismic evaluation and retrofit are topics structural engineers are frequently confronted with. This course seeks to demystify the commonly used standards and to explain the differences between seismic evaluation and retrofit of an existing building and new building design.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:

  • Correctly apply the ASCE 41 standard to existing building projects
  • Identify significant seismic deficiencies in concrete, steel, masonry, and wood buildings based on past earthquake performance
  • Streamline seismic evaluation and retrofit design of simple structures through the use of deficiency specific mitigation measures
  • Successfully apply the ASCE 41 standard as mandated by many federal and local jurisdictions
  • Accurately describe how the fundamental concepts of performance-based seismic design relate to existing buildings
  • Select the appropriate performance-level for an existing building based on the building’s function
  • Correctly explain the background behind the current standards for seismic evolution and retrofit of buildings by citing lessons learned from past earthquakes
  • Correctly explain the fundamental difference between new design standards and the standard for evaluation and retrofit of existing buildings
  • Successfully use ASCE 41 Tier 1 screening to identify common seismic deficiencies with various types of older buildings
  • Describe how to use the ASCE 41 Tier 2 evaluation and retrofit procedures to improve the seismic safety of existing buildings
  • Specify which detailed analysis provisions can be used to gain a thorough understanding of the seismic performance of an existing building
  • Identify the correct analysis procedure for an existing building retrofit project based on the building size and structural system
  • Describe how the ASCE 41 standard should be applied to different construction materials and structural systems
  • Prepare the ASCE 41 standard to assess nonstructural seismic hazards

Assessment of Learning Outcomes

Achievement of the learning outcomes will be assessed through a series of problem-solving exercises and a short post-test.

Who Should Attend?

  • Civil and structural engineers
  • Building officials
  • Students and faculty in civil and structural engineering

Seminar Outline

Day one

  • History of earthquake engineering and performance-based seismic design
  • Fundamental concepts of seismic evaluation and the ASCE 41 standard
  • Deficiency-based seismic evaluation and retrofit
  • Seismic evaluation and retrofit of
    • Steel moment frame buildings
    • Steel braced frame buildings
    • Reinforced concrete moment frame buildings

Day two

  • Seismic Evaluation and Retrofit of
    • Reinforced concrete wall buildings
    • Wood framed buildings
    • Unreinforced masonry buildings
    • Reinforced masonry and concrete tilt-up buildings
    • Foundation systems
    • Nonstructural components

Decided which seminars you want to take? Registration opens June 16, 2022!

Back to Program

jump to top