The Structures Lab in the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at UC Berkeley was selected through a competitive process to evaluate Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) dampers for the Grimes Engineering Center. Working with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and TriPyramid Structures, the CEE team tested an innovative SMA-based lateral force-resisting system—believed to be the first of its kind in new construction.
The project examined the super-elastic behavior of nickel-titanium SMA cables through a three-phase experimental program, including full-scale cable, damper, and frame testing under cyclic loading to assess seismic performance. This video highlights all three phases of testing and the potential of SMA technology for earthquake-resilient design.