Blog 20: Exit Interview

1. What is your essential question and answers? What is your best answer and why?

EQ: How can a structural engineer best design a building for earthquake resistance?

1st Answer: Creating a better foundation, using SMRF with isolators.

2nd Answer: Through performing different types of seismic analyses on buildings can contribute in designing a building for earthquake resistance.

3rd Answer: Following all the details in the ASCE 7 code will help provide a basic model in designing earthquake resistance buildings.

Best Answer: Through performing different types of seismic analyses on buildings can contribute in designing a building for earthquake resistance is the best answer.

This is my best answer because according to Mark Austin, from the department of civil engineering, University of Maryland, from 0 to 2 sec., the column's displacement changed from 0 cm to about 0.65cm because of time history analysis (ESA). My second answer primarily focuses on seismic analyses, and with the development of exponential growth in technology, these analyses will improve every year giving better and more accurate results. Seismic analysis isn't just an engineer inspection of a building to check for specifics on how a buildings needs to improve when a potential earthquake hits. According to "Time history analysis as a method of implementing performance based design." by Bill Tremayne a professional structural engineer from the NZSEE, analysis can carry earthquake simulations ran by engineering software calculating solutions on how a building will function before the building is built, I was considering my answer 3 to be my best answer, because it lists all earthquake resistant guidelines of a building. However, according to USGS, US Geological Survey, and the Nisee Conference in Berkeley, engineers constantly debate whether to change certain guidelines, specifically earthquake resistant standards of ASCE 7 building code. In fact, as I researched ASCE.org (American Society of Civil Engineers), there are different versions of ASCE 7 code, ASCE 7-05 (year 2005) and ASCE 7-10 (year 2010). My answer 1, also could not be a candidate as the best answer because it was solely based on foundation (the structure of the building, not foundation for my presentation). Throughout my research in International Journal of Physical Sciences, there are more specific structures that are affected by earthquakes in a building than just the foundation. For example, my answer specifically states SMRF and isolators which includes a structure with beams and columns. Throughout my research in a novel written and published by structural engineers from New York, The Vertical Building Structure, beams and columns are structures that contain most of axial load, vertical load, and horizontal load coming from a building. Beams and columns are placed everywhere within a building, so although a foundations building is important, it's in the best interest of a structural engineer to design a building that also focuses on smaller details like beam and columns.

2. What process did you take to arrive at this answer? 

 When I started to research more on building codes, before and after my fourth interview, I found that these building codes include both of my answers in a few guidelines. So this is when I created my third answer. During my fourth interview when I asked questions such as, "How does building code ASCE 7 have an effect on earthquake resistance? My interviewee's response was engineers have to follow every guideline of ASCE 7; however, the codes guidelines always change due to debates of engineers to improve the code. When the assignment of making Three Column Logic Chart was assigned, I was tempted to place my third answer as my best answer. However, because the building code ASCE 7 included to many lists of answer to my guidelines and was always updated by debates of engineers, I knew it was more reliable to focus on a more specific answer, so during my three column logic chart is when I finally choose my second answer my best answer.

As I was researching my first answer, I would type specifically on Google search, best earthquake resistant structures. I would never be given a specific structure such as the one in my answer 1, SMRF (Special Moment Restraint Frame System, which I found by talking to my mentor professional structural engineer, TJ Wu), but I would always find terms that include word analysis, specifically time history analysis and equivalent static analysis. I knew this would be a crucial and important factor in formulating my next answer, so I decided to research more building seismic analyses. Reading from International Journal of Physical Sciences and Structure Magazine usually written by Susan Dowty, I understood that most of these analyses were used to simulate buildings with earthquakes to prepare for potential earthquakes, but at the time I needed to attain more knowledge on seismic analyses. It wasn't until during my third interview with professional structural engineer from South Pasadena, Casey Piedra, responded my question, "How does a design for earthquake resistance make a building safer?" with an explanation how time history analysis can measure a building's area during an earthquake loads impact on computer software that I understood the impact of time history analysis. This is when I decided to use analysis as a second answer to my EQ. As I researched more on specific types of analysis: ground motion maps, time history analysis, and equivalent static analysis, for my next interview I started to formulate answers based on the how effective these analyses were. So during my fourth interview, I asked questions such as,  "How do you incorporate earthquake time history analysis in the buildings you have designed? or Can you give me an example of how equivalent dynamic analysis has benefited a building in earthquake resistance?" According to my interviewee, my mentor's ex-co worker and structural engineer, Vinh Dao, from Orange County, his response that because each of these analyses measured earthquake loads: accelerations, moments, displacement, etc., comparing with a building's mass, the results of these analyses are beneficial for buildings.

3. What problems did you face? How did you resolve them?

Most of my problems during my senior project came from driving to my mentorship and understanding my senior topic. My mentorship is located in my mentor's workplace in South Pasadena and I live in Rancho Cucamonga. Most of my mentorship days were on Wednesday, since I always have more time during this day. Still the driving would consume lots of my time and I basically go home when my dad is off of work. To resolve this issue, I asked my mentor, if I could grab copy of the AutoCAD software and download it to my computer. My mentorship mostly consisted of me designing structures, so by downloading AutoCAD onto my computer I can do my mentorship also at home.

My other problem was understanding the material of my senior project. Most of my research included engineering with physics and math procedures that were above my level of education. To resolve this, I would ask questions about the purpose and the procedure of how a structure works, not in terms of math and physics, to my mentor or during my interviews. For example, during my fourth interview one of my questions was, "Can you give me an example of how equivalent dynamic analysis has benefited a building in earthquake resistance?"

4. What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

My two most significant sources in answering my essential question are my mentor and a book called The Vertical Building Structure by Wolfgang Schueller. My mentor has over 20 years of experience in the structural engineering industry and is currently placed as an associate at his firm, Kanda and Tso Consulting Structural Engineers. My mentor is always helpful in my research or at mentorship when I have to design a structure in explaining it with simple terms. The book called The Vertical Building Structure by Wolfgang Schueller, is significant in answering my EQ because it shows pictures of specific structures are shaped, such as bolts and steel frames. The book also focuses on mid to high rise buildings, so much of the content is based on earthquake loads and how does the shape and ductility of a building resist these loads, since mid to high rise buildings are more vulnerable to earthquakes.