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Santa Clara County East Wing Seismic Retrofit
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SCC East Wing
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Following the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, Santa Clara County commissioned Crosby Group to perform a seismic investigation and evaluation of the Santa Clara County, East Wing building. Although the East Wing suffered minimal structural damage, it did experience prolonged vibrations which created a life-safety concern. A three-dimensional analysis of the structure showed that it was adequately designed, yet had low global damping which caused the prolonged shaking of the structure during the 1989 earthquake.

Crosby Group determined the optimal retrofit scheme would include the implementation of a visco-elastic passive energy dissipation system. This would be the first such use of "dampers" in a building to reduce response and mitigate damage due to seismic events. A 'surgical' approach to the damper implementation allowed for construction to proceed without impacting the day-to-day use of the facility, which was vital to County operations. Since the implementation of these dampers, the building has performed very well during small events and is anticipated to have a better response than most newer buildings during larger seismic events.

LOCATION:
San Jose, CA

CONSTRUCTION COST:
$3.5 Million

COMPLETED:
1994

OWNER:
Santa Clara County

HIGHLIGHTS:
Prime Professional
Occupied Facility
First use of Visco-Elastic Dampers in U.S.


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Copyright © The Crosby Group. All Rights Reserved.


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