Non-structural Damage Case Study

Non-structural damages are the damages that are imparted to the non-
structural components which are not designed to take any load, during a seismic
event. Non-structural damage, however, generally comprises of the damages to
the materials that have not been attached properly to the structural system and
may therefore be detached from the system in the course of the vibration that
is passed on the building by the earth that supports the building in the course of
an earthquake.
For a structurally resilient system, designed and detailed as per the prevalent
codes which define the level of seismic effects imparted to the system, has an
enormous possibility that it remains intact during the earthquake event. The
fact that construction of such a system is given special attention and the
sensitivity the people involved in the project show towards the operation most
of the times prove supportive towards making the system a really tough system
against the forces set forth by the most probable intensity of the earthquake in
the region.
After all these endeavours to save lives and secure the people from the risks that
the earthquake hazard poses, however, people forget to secure them from the
least risky threats, which are the non-structural components of the building. The
non-structural components are constructed or kept in place to make living inside
the buildings more convenient and sophisticated, for example, the freely hung
ceiling fans, even the false ceilings, the cupboards , and the cases kept on top of
such cupboards, or the pots with flowers during earthquakes can fall from their
place due to inadequacy of their fixity and may cause from mild to severe
accidents. So, in any type of building, after their construction, these seemingly
small things in comparison to the building activity must be appropriately taken
care so that they don’t constitute of such a problem during the events. Non-
structural retrofitting means to establish and organize the non-structural
components in their place, without significantly affecting their utility, by bracing
and tying them against their possible movements with the goal that the action
of retrofitting may halt any chances of occurrence of such events that may bring
about any mishaps to the lives residing in the building.
Building: School
Damages:
■Falling ceiling materials at the special classroom. Ceiling boards fell
together with the mounting brackets because of significant seismic
motion.
■Fallen auditorium ceiling. Auditorium ceiling material fell together with
the mounting brackets because of significant seismic motion.

Retrofitting:
■ Daily inspection: Verify that tie braces are installed by inspecting
through access ports.
・Verify that intervals between hanging bolts are sufficient and that the
bolts are tightened.
・Verify that ceiling board have not moved, cracked or deformed, and
that fasteners are not loose or rusted.
■ Retrofitting
・Provide sufficient space between ceiling material and wall or column.
・Hanging bolts are long (≥1500 mm) in gymnasiums where there is
significant space between the roof and ceiling. Horizontal and diagonal
tie braces should be installed to prevent the ceiling from moving.
Possible sources of further damage and retrofit:
○ Ceiling surfaces set at different levels
・This results in some portions of ceilings with high or low rigidity, which
requires retrofitting, such as by securing space between portions with
different rigidity.

○ Ceiling with irregular horizontal layout

・Ceilings with irregular horizontal layout could be damaged at the joint
between the rectangular portions of ceilings.
Disconnect the restraint at such joint is effective.

The case was taken from group study report on the "Investigative Research for Promoting the
Seismic Retrofitting of School Facilities" prepared by Educational Facilities Research Centre, National
Institute for Educational Policy Research, on December, 2005.