Seismic hazard analysis and design

What are seismic hazard analyses?

Earthquakes are among the most severe natural disasters we must contend with. Seismic hazard describes the probability of ground motion impact in a given area or at a site. Seismic hazard analyses, therefore assesses the scale of this impact on land whereas seismic risk analyses assesses its impact on existing structures in order to optimize design and mitigate risk.

Why are seismic hazard analyses important?

Every year, earthquakes result in around 20,000 deaths with accompanying economic losses amounting to approximately US $7.5 billion. Given the unpredictability and potential severity of these natural disasters, implementing measures to protect people, critical infrastructure and investments from damage caused by seismic impact is vital.

Site-specific seismic hazard analyses and adequate seismic design solutions play an important role in decreasing seismic risk.

In order to complete an optimized safety and cost-efficient assessment, an analysis of the seismic impact is fundamental. Therefore, a site-specific seismic hazard analyses considering local site response is key for an adequate seismic design analysis and mitigating seismic risk. For existing buildings and facilities, a structural analysis of the seismic risk evaluates the seismic safety and identifies critical elements for retrofitting.

TÜV SÜD’s seismic hazard analyses and design expertise

Your business can benefit from our seismic hazard expertise as a competent and independent partner with long-term experience of projects at all stages, from initial planning to final approval. Our international activities and participation in regulatory working groups and committees ensure an ability to transfer state-of-the-art methods into practical applications that help you meet national and international requirements.

Your business can rely on our experience and expertise to meet relevant safety-related aspects and better protect its investments from seismic impacts.

Through our seismic hazard analyses services and seismic design expertise, your business can see a host of benefits:

• Minimize seismic risk – our experience ensures we identify potential issues from the early planning stages.
  
• An expert partner – our team offers international expertise, extensive experience and state-of-the-art knowledge of standards and regulations.
  
• Apply complete solutions – you’ll work with a single source for technical services in line with regulatory requirements.
  
• Access global support – TÜV SÜD has more than 24,000 experts in key locations worldwide, providing in-depth local knowledge and best practices.

TÜV SÜD’S SEISMIC HAZARD ANALYSES AND DESIGN SERVICES

TÜV SÜD provides customer- and project-specific solutions covering all aspects, from seismic hazard analyses to seismic design. We perform site-specific seismic hazard analyses to calculate seismic impact and apply soil dynamic calculations to consider site response.

Our seismic hazard analyses and seismic design services include: 

• Site-specific seismic hazard analyses – calculation of the seismic impact on site, taking local and regional conditions into account.
  
• Seismic hazard maps – seismic hazard maps are generated for planners and insurance companies.
  
• Soil dynamics and seismic site response – assessment of realistic local seismic impact through site response analyses performing soil dynamic calculations.
  
• Calculation of floor response spectra – structural floor response spectra calculated using soil-structure models that include soil structure interaction effects.
  
• Seismic design of structures – structural analysis through dynamic calculations and developing earthquake-resistant design solutions.
  
• Seismic design of components – calculation of seismic resistance of components and their supporting structures.
  
• Evaluation of seismic risk for buildings and facilities – seismic risk analyses based on guidelines and supplemented by our experience, including plant walkdowns and additional structural calculations.
  
• Seismic design of buried pipelines – seismic wave propagation impact and fault displacement assessment achieved using non-linear finite element pipe models.
  
• Seismic design of liquid-filled tanks – realistic seismic design models that account for soil-structure and fluid structure interaction.
  
• Soil stability – slope stability, soil liquefaction potential and seismic compaction assessments.
  
• Seismic test procedures – seismic shaking table tests and pseudo-dynamic tests.