Performance-Based Structural Fire Design: Exemplar Designs of Four Regionally Diverse Buildings using ASCE 7-16, Appendix E

Abstract

• Prepared by the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers

  Performance-Based Structural Fire Design presents recommended alternatives to the prescriptive procedures for structural fire design of buildings as described in the nationally adopted standard Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures, ASCE 7-16, and based on the guidance contained in Structural Fire Engineering, Manual of Practice 138. It describes performance-based structural fire design (PBSFD) methods and provides real-world design applications by leading structural engineering firms.

  Part I includes an overview of the methodology, a description of the project’s design procedures, and summaries of each design team’s analyses, results, and conclusions. Part II includes four design team reports that further document and detail the evaluation of the design scenarios. These exemplar designs demonstrate the most significant benefit of PBSFD, which is its explicit process to confirm structural system performance under fire exposure.

  This is a valuable resource for new building project stakeholders, including building officials, fire marshals, and the appropriate Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) for final approval.