Seismic Retrofit

Projects / Filter by Type:

Quake Brake Projects - in Association with P. Zavareh & Associates

The Carrington project is a classical example of soft story retrofit which addressed the client's constraints of: no interference with parking; existing water, gas, electrical, & sewer services that cannot be disturbed; existing occupants that cannot be disturbed; an existing structure that is too weak to resist seismic loads transmitted by a stiff new structure; and insufficient funds for traditional shear walls & special moment resisting frames.

WCP&A, jointly with P. Zavareh & Associates, created and later patented an entirely new structural concept to address each of these problems called "Quake Brake" - a “tunable” 3-D space frame that stays rigid for wind loads and small earthquakes, deflects under design earthquake loads while damping out vibrations, and locks to prevent excessive displacement. The frame fits within 3 inches of existing walls & ceilings, and generally costs 50% to 70% of conventional retrofits.