New Engineering Facility Improves
Safety Testing For Large Structures

Cincinnati - The new year will bring a whole lot of shakin' to the UC College of Engineering. A team of civil engineers is preparing to open the UC Large-Scale Test Facility at Center Hill - a facility able to test building and bridge components to see if they can withstand high winds and earthquakes.

The facility will be one of the largest of its kind in the country and the only facility like it in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Braced by a 4 1/2 foot thick floor and two walls just as thick, engineers will finally be able to test full-scale models instead of the traditional scale models.

"After the Kobe and L.A. quakes, people realized the way we were designing is not sufficient," explained Bahram Shahrooz, associate professor of civil engineering. "We must test real, complete structures. This eliminates the questions when you're working at quarter-scale or half-scale."

The million-dollar facility was funded by the Ohio Board of Regents and is expected to attract considerable external funding for research projects. Two projects are in hand already. One will test fiber-reinforced polymers for bridge construction. The other will examine how well steel-concrete hybrids hold up under earthquake conditions. "We have research projects backed up," said Michael Baseheart, associate professor of civil engineering. "With the size of this facility, we'll be able to do many more projects simultaneously."

Currently, Baseheart, Shahrooz and the other civil engineering researchers must use limited space in the College of Engineering High Bay or space provided by private industry. The new facility will free up more space in the High Bay for teaching and improve research opportunties for both graduate and undergraduate students at the new Center Hill facility. "This will definitely enhance our educational component," said Baseheart.

The facility can test full-scale models up to two stories in height. It stands 48 feet high with two walls joined together and a 30-ton overhead crane to lift test components into place. Most important, the combination of two walls and the floor allow for more realistic testing. Earthquake forces shake buildings in more than one direction, and that combined force can be simulated effectively with the new facility's design.

The structural design of the test facility was performed by UC civil engineering alumnus Shayne Manning of THP, Limited.