Seismic Design for Functional Recovery Performance

Presentation Abstract:

In this presentation, Dr. Molina Hutt will share insights into the development of seismic design provisions for functional recovery performance as part of the 2026 NEHRP Provisions. The talk will introduce the need for functional recovery as design criteria for new buildings (in addition to life safety), background efforts which have built a foundation for functional recovery codification, key definitions, the development of functional recovery categories and associated recovery time targets, ground motion considerations for functional recovery design, the framework for development of prescriptive design provisions for structural and nonstructural systems, and other criteria necessary to achieve functional recovery performance.

Presentation Background:

In January 2021, NIST (National Institute for Standards and Technology) and FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) published FEMA P-2090/NIST SP-1254 Recommended Options for Improving the Built Environment for Post-Earthquake Reoccupancy and Functional Recovery Time, providing recommendations for enabling recovery from extreme seismic events. The first two of the seven recommendations in the report are (1) to develop a framework for post-earthquake reoccupancy and functional recovery objectives, and (2) to design new buildings to meet recovery-based objectives. Currently, the NIBS (National Institute for Building Standards) Building Seismic Safety Council, with support from FEMA, is developing the 2026 NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures (NEHRP Provisions) and defining functional recovery design criteria will be one of the key efforts during this NEHRP Provisions cycle. As the source material for ASCE and IBC seismic design requirements, the NEHRP Provisions build on the latest ASCE 7-22 Seismic Chapters and make modifications based on recent research and development, lessons learned from seismic events, and practitioner feedback. The Functional Recovery Task Committee, via the Provisions Update Committee, has convened five topic subcommittees to define Recovery Key Terms, Categories, Time Targets, Prescriptive Provisions, and Hazard Levels.

Bio:

Carlos Molina Hutt is an Associate Professor of Structural and Earthquake Engineering at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada where he leads the Engineering for Seismic Resilience Research Lab. His works focuses on the development of methodological approaches to assess seismic risk in buildings and its implications on urban resilience, and on the translation of this knowledge into tools and information for use by practicing engineers, seismic planners and policy makers. Carlos is a registered professional engineer in the province of British Columbia in Canada, in the state of California in the US, and is also a chartered engineer in the UK. In 2019, he was the recipient of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) Shah Family Innovation Prize. In 2022, he was invited by the US Building Seismic Safety Council, via the Provisions Update Committee, to become a member of the Functional Recovery Task Committee, which has been tasked with developing design procedures for buildings to achieve different functional recovery targets for use in the next generation of building codes.

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