Rachel Holland, a Simpson Strong-Tie engineer, reflects on the profound impact of the Northridge earthquake in Southern California on January 17, 1994. Living just 8 miles from the epicenter, the earthquake shaped her perspective on natural disasters and inspired her journey into engineering. In an interview, she shares her vivid memories of the chaos, destruction, and challenges faced during the aftermath. Hear how this seismic event played a pivotal role in shaping Rachel’s career and influencing her commitment to structural engineering.
Tag: Strong Frame
Find Simpson Strong-Tie® Strong Frame® Moment Frames on the Beach
Our Orange County Residential Territory Sales Manager Joe Polder recently worked on a Strong Frame project in Seal Beach, California. Joe gives insight into what happens from the planning to the installation of a Strong Frame on the jobsite. Learn how our Strong Frame provided the perfect solution for this restaurant and helped maintain the jobsite schedule.
The Legacy of Loma Prieta
Every year on October 17, we take a moment to reflect on the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The 6.9-magnitude earthquake was one of the most powerful and costly quakes to shake the San Francisco Bay area since the 7.9-magnitude earthquake of 1906. The quake caused an estimated $6 billion in damage and, tragically, resulted in 63 deaths and 3,757 injuries.
Many of those casualties were due to failing infrastructure when sections of the Nimitz Freeway collapsed.
Simpson Strong-Tie was founded in Oakland, California — practically in the heart of the Bay Area. Earthquakes were never far from the minds of our founders. It’s why even before Loma Prieta our mission was to provide solutions that help people design and build safer, stronger structures. However, it’s safe to say the earthquake not only reinvigorated our mission but inspired countless structural engineers who would go on to define the next 30 years of Simpson Strong-Tie research and development into community resilience.
“You Cannot Escape Responsibility Tomorrow by Evading it Today”
While the contents of this blog are certainly not what Abraham Lincoln had in mind when he made the statement that I’m using to title this blog post, it does speak volumes to the pertinence of what will be discussed today. “Design by others” or some variation of this appears in many parts of Simpson Strong-Tie details.Continue Reading
Breaking News: Simpson Strong-Tie® Strong Frame® Special Moment Frame Testing Today
Today the NEES-Soft project has begun testing the steel Simpson Strong-Tie® Strong Frame® Special Moment Frame as a retrofit option for soft-story buildings at the NEES outdoor shake table facility at UC San Diego. The testing is focused on validating the FEMA P-807 design procedure, which attempts to create a least-cost retrofit solution by only retrofitting the garage areas of problem buildings.Continue Reading
Soft-Story Retrofits
In February 2007 I had the opportunity to volunteer for a Soft-Story Sidewalk Survey for the San Francisco Department of Building Inspection. The purpose of the survey was to inventory buildings in San Francisco that appeared superficially to have soft or weak first stories. The volunteers were given a list of addresses to review and we recorded if the building was more than three stories tall, had five or more dwellings, and estimated what percentage of the ground level had openings in the walls. No structural analysis going on, just counting stories, mailboxes, doors and windows.
