In addition to UME School students, a maximum of 20 external participants may be accepted to the
course, under the payment of a 500e fee. Special financial conditions are, however, in place for
University researchers or students, to whom a fee of not more than 300e is requested.
Those wishing to attend the Course should contact the UME School Secretariat.
Istituto Universitario
di Studi Superiori di Pavia
Università degli Studi
di Pavia
Short Course on
c/o EUCENTRE
Via Ferrata, 1 - 27100 Pavia, Italy
Tel. (+39) 0382.516952
E-mail: secretariat@umeschool.it
Web-site: www.umeschool.it
SEISMIC DESIGN
AND ANALYSIS
OF NONSTRUCTURAL
COMPONENTS
Pavia, April 2-6, 2012
The European Commission has approved and financed within the Erasmus Mundus II the Masters
on Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Seismology (MEEES), coordinated by the UME School
as part of the ROSE programme and featuring also the participation of the University of Grenoble
Joseph Fourier (France), the University of Patras (Greece) and the Middle East Technical University
(Turkey), which aims to enhance quality in European higher education and to promote intercultural
understanding through co-operation with third countries, a relatively large number of scholarships
are available for both non-European as well as European students. Interested applicants are invited
to visit the MEEES website (www.meees.org) for detailed information and instructions on financial
conditions and application procedures.
• BACKGROUND
With the development and implementation of performance-based earthquake engineering, harmonization
of performance levels between structural and nonstructural components becomes vital. Even if the structural
components of a building achieve a continuous or immediate occupancy performance level after a seismic
event, failure of architectural, mechanical or electrical components can lower the performance level of the
entire building system. This reduction in performance caused by the vulnerability of nonstructural
components has been observed during recent earthquakes worldwide. Moreover, nonstructural damage
has limited the functionality of critical facilities, such as hospitals following major seismic events. The
investment in nonstructural components and building contents is far greater than that of structural
components and framing. Therefore, it is not surprising that in many past earthquakes, losses from damage
to nonstructural components have exceeded losses from structural damage. Furthermore, the failure of
nonstructural components can become a safety hazard or can hamper the safe movement of occupants
evacuating or of rescue workers entering buildings. In comparison to structural components and systems,
there is relatively limited information on the seismic design of nonstructural components. Basic research
work in this area has been sparse, and the available codes and guidelines are usually, for the most parts,
based on past experiences, engineering judgment and intuition, rather than on objective experimental and
analytical results. Often, design engineers are forced to start almost from square one after each earthquake
event: to observe what went wrong and to try to prevent repetitions. This is a consequence of the empirical
nature of current seismic regulations and guidelines for nonstructural components.
• OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE
The main objective of this short course is to familiarize Structural Engineers with current knowledge on
the seismic design and analysis of nonstructural components. At the end of the course, Structural
Engineers should be able to:
- classify the various types of nonstructural components and understand their performance during recent
earthquakes;
- conduct seismic analysis of nonstructural components by the direct and cascading methods;
- understand and apply correctly current regulations and guidelines for the seismic design and
specifications of nonstructural components in North America and Europe including the seismic
qualification requirements for important nonstructural components that have been introduced recently
in building codes;
- conduct seismic qualification of nonstructural components by testing, analysis or experience database
according to recent building code requirements;
- be familiar with the seismic performance and fragility of specific nonstructural components and systems
through the review of research case studies.
• ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
André Filiatrault received a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of British Columbia in 1988.
After a two-year stay as an Assistant Professor at the University of British Columbia, he joined the
Department of Civil Engineering at Ecole Polytechnique of the University of
Montreal, where he became a Full Professor in 1997. Professor Filiatrault joined
the faculty at the University of California, San Diego in 1998 where he was a
Professor of Structural Engineering until 2003. Currently, Filiatrault is a Professor
in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering at the
University at Buffalo (UB), State University of New York. Professor Filiatrault served
as the Deputy Director of the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering
Research (MCEER) from 2003 to 2007 and as Director from 2008 to 2011. His
research over the last twenty three years has been centered on the seismic testing,
analysis and design of Civil Engineering structures. Professor Filiatrault has been
a UME School Faculty since 2003.
• COURSE SCHEDULE April 2-6, 2012
Monday 2
09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00
LECTURE 1:
Definition of nonstructural components; Classification of nonstructural components;
Importance of considering nonstructural components in seismic design; Challenges
associated with the seismic design of nonstructural components; Causes of seismic
damage to nonstructural components; Performance of nonstructural components in
recent earthquakes; Practical seismic assessment and mitigation of nonstructural
components; Seismic analysis of nonstructural components.
Tuesday 3
09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00
LECTURE 2:
Objectives of seismic design requirements for nonstructural components; Steps in seismic
design of nonstructural components; Steps in estimation of peak acceleration at center
of mass of nonstructural components; Definition of rigid and flexible nonstructural
components; Seismic design requirements for nonstructural components in the United
States, Canada and Europe; Seismic qualification of nonstructural components by
analysis, testing and experience data; California's hospital seismic upgrade program (SB
1953); Impediments to incorporating nonstructural design into practice.
Wednesday 4
09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00
LECTURE 3:
Research Case Study I: Seismic performance of cold-formed steel framed gypsum
partition walls;
Research Case Study II: Effects of in-plane cold-formed steel framed gypsum partition
walls on the seismic response of a medical facility;
Research Case Study III: Influence of wall finish materials on the seismic response of
wood buildings.
Thursday 5
09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00
LECTURE 4:
Research Case Study IV: Seismic performance of pressurized fire suppression sprinkler
piping systems;
Research Case Study V: Seismic performance of vibration-isolated mechanical equipment.
Friday 6
09:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00
LECTURE 5:
Research Case Study VI: Seismic performance of steel storage racks;
Research Case Study VII: Seismic performance of bookcase-partition wall systems.