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HOW TO ANCHOR A BASE PLATE IN SEISMIC AREAS

Fastening systems for earthquake zones

Hilti HST3 stud anchor
Structural and non-structural earthquake damage

Earthquakes are much more common than we realize, happening every day all over the world.

Not only can they bring a great cost of life, but they can also do great damage to buildings and the economy.

All this can be limited by good seismic construction design and specification.

It’s important to include seismic design for both non-structural and structural elements of a build, as research shows that non-structural systems suffer the largest damage in commercial buildings during an earthquake.

HOW ANCHORS BEHAVE IN AN EARTHQUAKE

Seismic conditions significantly change the behavior of anchors, compared to static conditions.

Anchors seismic behavior

HOW HILTI ANCHORS COMPLY WITH SEISMIC CODES

There are already codes in place to determine which anchors should be used in seismic areas.

EOTA TR045 clearly states most of the applications only allow the use of category C2 anchor systems for seismic areas.

At Hilti we produce a range of anchors, which are code compliant and fit seismic performance category C2.

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HOW DO I DESIGN ANCHORS FOR SEISMIC AREAS

Hilti technical service

At Hilti our engineering team can help you design your anchor systems – just contact your local Hilti office for more details.

Or, you can use our Hilti PROFIS Anchor design software. This includes code compliant Hilti products in 2D and 3D with relevant documentation and specifications.

Our PROFIS Anchor software performs seismic calculations according to EOTA TR 045. This gives three solutions for anchoring base plates in seismic areas:

Capacity design

The anchorage is designed for the force corresponding to the yield of a ductile component, or if lower, the maximum force that can be transferred by the fixture or the attached element.

Elastic design

The fastening is designed for the maximum load assuming an elastic behavior of the fastening and of the structure.

Design with requirements for anchor ductility

This design for ductile steel failure requires an anchor classified as ductile. This approach is also applicable only for the tension component and some provisions need to be observed in order to ensure that the cause of failure is steel failure.

We’ve also added our own Hilti research results into PROFIS Anchor design software, so that you can find solutions, which go beyond EOTA TR 045.

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