Structural Design Narrative of the CFS-NHERI 10-story Test Building for Multi-dimensional Shake Table Testing

Cold-formed steel (CFS) framing is a popular choice for construction of low to mid-rise structures because it provides significant cost benefits through use of prefabricated assemblies and produces lightweight structures with high durability and ductility. It is manufactured from recycled materials, exhibits consistent material behavior offering a high strength-to-weight ratio and is resistant to corrosion. Benefits of CFS framing align well with the system resiliency needs in moderate to high seismic zones from a performance perspective. However, the use of CFS framing for construction of mid to high-rise structures in the North American construction industry is severely restricted due to a lack of available full-scale system level test data documenting both earthquake and post-earthquake fire response of CFS-framed buildings. To address this issue, a 10-story CFS-framed building, herein referred to as the CFS-NHERI test building, is planned to be tested under increasing earthquake motion intensity, and subsequently subjected to live fire testing, at the NHERI 6-DOF Large High-Performance Outdoor Shake Table (LHPOST6) facility at University of California, San Diego. This paper documents the structural design and detailing decisions adopted for the gravity and lateral force resisting systems of the CFS-NHERI test building, which will have a floor plan of 11.0 m×6.9 m (36 ft×22.5 ft) and consistent 3.05 m (10 ft) story height. This building will also be the first to integrate architectural finishes and will have a 30.5 m (100 ft) building height which exceeds the height limitations set by the ASCE 7 design standards.

Proceedings of the Cold-Formed Steel Research Consortium Colloquium.