{
  "id": 7307283,
  "title": "This building at UC Berkeley wears its earthquake prevention on the outside",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/this-building-at-uc-berkeley-wears-its-earthquake-prevention-on-the",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-14T11:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Fast Company",
    "slug": "fast-company",
    "url": "https://www.fastcompany.com/91589905/university-of-california-berkeley-grimes-engineering-center-innovation-by-design-2026"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "UC Berkeley's Grimes Engineering Center, located just a quarter-mile from one of the most seismically active faults in the San Francisco Bay Area, stands as a beacon of earthquake preparedness. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the state-of-the-art building has been equipped with a cutting-edge seismic-responsive structural system capable of withstanding major earthquakes. The architectural marvel received the accolade of being the winner of the 2026 Innovation by Design Awards.\n\nThe seismic system comprises steel tension rods arranged diagonally around the building's perimeter. Each rod features a 4-foot section spliced with a cluster of cables made from a highly flexible compound known as a shape-memory alloy. These cables, commonly utilized in NASA spacecraft, possess the unique ability to bend under extreme stress, such as during an earthquake, and then effortlessly snap back into a straight position, returning the building to its original form.\n\nDavid Shook, a senior associate principal at SOM who played a pivotal role in developing the shape-memory alloy system, likens the material's behavior to that of a rubber band - it stretches, changes shape, and then returns to its original form. Shook assures that in the event of an earthquake, \"the building's going to come back to plumb.\"\n\nSOM collaborated with researchers at UC Berkeley's engineering school, a renowned center for seismic studies, to create this innovative system. The architects chose to leave the tension rods exposed, not only as a design choice but also as a teaching tool. Mark Sarkisian, a structural engineer and partner at SOM, explains, \"This is a place where they test, understand, and deploy new technologies in seismic zones year after year after year.\" Sarkisian proudly states, \"It's fun to be able to work with them to bring this forward in a visual way.\"",
  "summary": "For a building sitting just a quarter-mile from one of the most active faults in the seismically treacherous San Francisco Bay Area, the UC Berkeley Grimes Engineering Center is unambiguously confident. Designed by the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the building has been outfitted with a new seismic-responsive structural system that’s capable of withstanding major…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}