ASCE First Generation Testbed for Evaluating Resilience of Structures

The ASCE Sub-Committee on Disaster Resilience of Structures and Infrastructures initiated a testbed study on Resilience-Based design (RBD) considering two critical strategic structures (Town Hall and Hospital), a University Campus and the water distribution network of a small town. These structures were chosen because of the widespread interest in critical structures and infrastructures. In particular, the first two structures are considered critical, because they must not only survive the shaking, but must remain in operation. They require the largest investment of resources to insure that they can provide services following an earthquake. The test bed study will be developed using discrete event simulation models which are going to be calibrated using real data collected in the field. The development of these test beds will facilitate the comparison among different resilience frameworks which are available in literature. The paper presents an overview and problem definition of a hospital testbed which intends to help move the earthquake engineering community another step toward the realization and implementation of resilience-based design strategies.