Seismic Analysis of Glenwood Middle School, Evansville, Indiana

Abstract

This paper describes important engineering features relating to the seismic evaluation of a school building system in southern Indiana. This evaluation is the first step in identifying deficiencies in the school’s seismic force resisting system and may ultimately be a reference for retrofitting the structure to be in compliance with current design standards. This paper is intended to provide an introduction to the engineering challenges of seismic retrofitting of school structures in the Midwest, with particular reference to the Glenwood Middle School located in Evansville, Indiana. To this end, the paper presents the numerical modeling and analyses to establish a retrofitting scheme that would provide a structurally stable system under seismic loading conditions.