About
The 2024 Undergraduate Seismic Design Competition will be held in Seattle, Washington, from April 9 to April 12!
We hope to see you at the 2024 Undergraduate Seismic Design Competition!
Please click through the above menu links for more information!
For SDC questions, please contact: sdc@eeri.org
For general team and participation questions, please contact: slc@eeri.org
Getting Started
Interested in competing in the Seismic Design Competition but don’t know where to start? The slides here include helpful start-up information for new teams and instructions on how to go about starting a team and a student EERI chapter if your school doesn’t have one yet! Please reach out to slc@eeri.org with any questions.
Helpful Links:
EERI Mission
EERI Student Chapters
EERI Student Chapter Best Practices
EERI Annual Report Submission
Join EERI Today
Announcements
Announcement 13: 06/05/2024
Join the 2024-2025 Student Leadership Council!
Are you a graduate student or planning to start graduate school in Fall 2024? Do you have a passion for earthquake engineering? If you enjoy working in a collaborative and dynamic environment with fellow graduate students towards common goals, we want you! Be a part of the team that organizes the EERI Undergraduate Seismic Design Competition. We are excited to invite applications for the EERI Student Leadership Council (SLC) for the 2024-2025 term.
Application Deadline: June 16th, 2024, at 11:59 PM PDT
Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity. Please fill out the form to express your interest in joining the SLC this year. Feel free to share this announcement with other interested graduate students.
Announcement 12: 04/05/2024
Hi teams, the deadline to submit posters and presentations has been extended to all teams to Monday, April 8, 2024, at 11:59 pm PST! We can’t wait to see you soon! Good luck!
Announcement 11: 03/09/2024
Hi teams, the architecture rubric, presentation requirements, and poster requirements have been posted under the “Rules and Documents” tab! Also, links for the team accomodation form, the poster and presentation form, performance predictions form, and shake day song form are under the “Forms” tab! Good luck!
Announcement 10: 03/06/2024
Hi teams, the registration deadline for the Seismic Design Competition has been extended to March 8, 11:59 pm PST. All team members attending the competition are required to register using the link here.
During registration, please select “Seismic Design Competition (SDC) Team Member (Advance Fee: $175.00 USD).”
For additional information, please consult Mailer #1 sent on January 11. If your team captain has not received it, please contact us via email. Any registration inquiries should be directed to slc@eeri.org with the subject line “University Name – Registration Query.”
Announcement 9: 03/03/2024
Hi teams, we are extending the PBEE (SP3) Award until March 31, 2024!! Also, there are SP3 webinar resources available here.
Announcement 8: 02/21/2024
Hi teams, the files for Ground Motion #1 are released! Please find the zip file in the “Rules & Competition Documents” tab. Note: The spectrum file corresponded to the pseudo-acceleration spectrum for GM#1 is in units of g. Similarly, the acceleration units for the record are also in g.
Announcement 7: 02/06/2024
We hope this announcement finds you well and in high spirits as your teams gear up for the upcoming Seismic Design Competition. We are excited to announce the introduction of a new award in the Seismic Design Competition – the EERI 2024 SDC Cornell and Krawinkler Award for Excellence in Performance Based Earthquake Engineering (PBEE).
This award is dedicated to C. Allin Cornell and Helmut Krawinkler, esteemed faculty colleagues at Stanford University, whose pioneering work in structural reliability and seismic design laid the foundation for FEMA P-58. In recognition of their immense contributions to PBEE, the team demonstrating the best understanding of the PBEE process will be honored with this prestigious award.
- Award Details:
- Problem Statement: Please find the detailed problem statement in the “Rules & Documents” section.
- Deliverable: Pre-recorded video presentation (maximum 5 minutes)
- Deadline: 11:59 PM Pacific Time on March 15th, 2024
- Prize Amount: $200
- Submission Email: eeri-sdc@hbrisk.com (cc: sdc@eeri.org)
- Email Subject Line: “2024 SDC PBEE Award Submission – University Name”
- Video Hosting Platforms: Dropbox, YouTube, or any easily accessible platform
The scoring for this award is independent of the SDC and will not impact the overall SDC scores. Please refer to the document in the “Rules & Documents” section for detailed information on the problem statement, analysis points, and requirements.
We encourage all participating teams to seize this opportunity to learn about PBEE and showcase your skills. If you have any questions or need further clarification, feel free to reach out to us. For questions specific to the award and its problem statement, please direct your queries to eeri-sdc@hbrisk.com (cc: sdc@eeri.org).
We look forward to your participation and wish you the best in your preparations!
Announcement 6: 01/19/2024
Hi teams! First off, apologies, there was a mistake on the website previously about the damping proposal due date being February 5, 2024. To clarify, the damping proposal due date is Friday, January 26, 2024 at 11:59 pm PST.
Also, Mailer #1 was sent out to team captains on January 11th. If your team captain has not received the email, please send us an email at slc@eeri.org with the subject line ‘Mailer 1 not received,’ and we will forward you the mailer.
If there is a change in the team captain, please send us an email at slc@eeri.org with the subject line ‘University Name – Team Captain Change,’ including the new team captain’s name and email address. Please cc the previous team captain and your advisor in the email.
Teams that have filled out the request for Etabs/SAP2000 licenses for the competition have been assigned the cloud license, thanks to generous support from CSI. Please ask your team captain to check their emails for software assignment. If you encounter any trouble accessing the licenses, please send us an email at slc@eeri.org with the subject line ‘University Name – Software License Issue.’
Announcement 5: 01/12/2024
Our t-shirt design contest is now live! Designs are due Friday, Feb. 9, 2024 at 11:59 PST and late submissions will not be accepted! All rules are outlined in the T-shirt Competition document in the Rules & Documents tab, so be sure to read carefully and reach out with any questions. We’re excited to see what everyone comes up with!
Announcement 4: 01/05/2024
Hi teams, any damping device proposals are due by 11:59 pm PST on Friday, January 26, 2024. Please see the Damping Proposal Requirements & Rubric on the Rules & Documents page.
Also, thanks to all of the teams that have submitted a proposal and congrats to all of the teams whose proposal has been accepted and invited to the competition!! The list of schools invited to the competition can be found below in alphabetical order:
- Altinbas University
- Brigham Young University
- Bucknell University
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
- California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
- California State University, Northridge
- Cornell University
- Helwan University
- Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
- Iowa State University
- Istanbul Technical University
- Izmir Katip Celebi
- Karadeniz Technical University
- McMaster University
- New York University
- North Carolina State University
- Oregon State University
- Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra
- Portland State University
- Purdue University
- San Francisco State University
- Seattle University
- Stanford University
- Technical University of Civil Engineering of Bucharest
- Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
- The Ohio State University
- The University of British Columbia
- The University of Texas at Austin
- The University of Victoria
- Universidad de las Fuerzas Armadas ESPE
- Universidad Iberoamericana
- Universidad Politecnica Salesiana
- Universitas Indonesia
- Universiti Teknologi Malyasia
- University at Buffalo
- University of California, Berkeley
- University of California, Davis
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of California, San Diego
- University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
- University of Massachusetts Amherst
- University of Memphis
- University of Southern California
- University of Toronto
- University of Washington
Additionally, as per the Official Rules, the top 9 proposals will receive bonuses during the competition. This list is as follows (in alphabetical order, NOT placement order):
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
- Cornell University
- Istanbul Technical University
- Karadeniz Technical University
- Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
- The University of British Columbia
- University at Buffalo
- University of California, Los Angeles
- University of Southern California
We can’t wait to see what everyone comes up with and are excited to see y’all at the event in Seattle, WA!! : D
Announcement 3: 12/04/2023
Computers and Structures, Inc. (CSI) has generously extended support by offering software licenses for Etabs and SAP2000 to teams that require access to the analysis softwares and have been unable to secure a license through their university or school. Please fill out the License Request Form – here.
Please use your university/ school email while filling out the form. This form is exclusively for teams facing challenges in obtaining licenses through their academic institutions. We kindly ask that all teams submit the form by Friday, December 15, 2023 at 11:59 pm PST to ensure ample time for processing.
Announcement 2: 10/23/2023
Hi teams, the rules for SDC 2024 are finally out!! Please refer to the “Rules & Competition Documents” Section to find all of the rules documents and read each one carefully. The proposal this year is due on Friday, December 15, 2023 at 11:59 pm PST. Good luck to all of the teams this year!! : D
The Boring Logs report was obtained from the Washington Geologic Portal.
Also, reminder that the SLC has created a Discord channel for student communication with the SLC! The invitation link for the discord channel can be found in the “Forms” tab.
If your team hasn’t filled out the interest survey but would still like to participate, it’s not too late! Just shoot an email to: sdc@eeri.org
Announcement 1: 09/06/2023
The 2024 Seismic Design Competition (SDC) season is fast approaching! While the rules and regulations are still being finalized by the Student Leadership Council (SLC)’s SDC chairs, the SLC wants to know in advance how many undergraduate teams are interested in competing next year! Please fill out the interest form located in the “Forms” tab above. The SLC has also created a Discord channel for student communication with the SLC! The invitation link for the discord channel can be found in the “Forms” tab as well.
This year, the SLC has also created slides to help get teams started! These slides also include instructions on how to go about starting a team and a student EERI chapter if your school doesn’t have one yet. This information can be found in the new “Getting Started” tab above.
Please reach out to: slc@eeri.org with any questions and we hope to see you all in Seattle, WA!!
Rules & Competition Documents
Rules
Official Rules 2024
Boring Log (Obtained from the Washington Geologic Portal)
Additional Helpful Documents
Design Guide 2024
Ground Motion Selection Guide
Requirements & Rubrics
Proposal Requirements 2024
Damping Requirements & Rubric 2024
SDC T-shirt Competition 2024
2024 Cornell and Krawinkler Award in PBEE
2024 Architecture Rubric
2024 Poster Requirements
2024 Presentation Requirements
Ground Motion Files
Note: The spectrum file corresponding to the pseudo-acceleration spectrum for GM#1 is in units of g. Similarly, the acceleration units for the record are also in g.
Ground Motion 1
Forms
Please click on the forms below to open them in a new tab!
Interest Form
Discord channel for student communication with the SLC
SDC Teams Accommodation Form
Performance Predictions and Floor Area Calculations
Posters and Presentations
Shake Day Song
Important Dates
Please note that all dates are subject to change! Also, all cutoffs are 11:59 pm PST.
Milestone | Date / Deadline |
Interest Form* | Friday, October 13, 2023 |
Proposal Submission | Friday, December 15, 2023 |
Proposal Acceptance | Tuesday, January 5, 2024 |
Damping Proposal Submission | Friday, January 26, 2024 |
Damping Proposal Acceptance | Monday, February 5, 2024 |
Final Registration | Friday, March 8, 2024 |
Floor Area Calculations & Performance Predictions | TBD |
*If a team has not submitted the interest survey but would like to participate in the competition, please contact slc@eeri.org.
Clarifications
Clarifications can only be asked via the SDC 2024 Discord channel this year.
Clarifications will mainly be posted in the SDC 2024 Discord Channel and then copied to the website. To join the SDC 2024 Discord Channel, please click here.
There was a clarification rules meeting on Friday, December 1, 2023. The video recording for the event can be found on our Youtube channel here. The document with the asked questions and their corresponding answers can be found here.
Please click on the tabs below to show clarifications for different topics.
In each section, please click on the questions to see the answers! To make the photos in the questions and answers less blurry and/or smaller, please click on the photo to bring it to a normal size and make it sharper.
- Logistics
- Architectural, Geotechnical, & Design
- Structural Model
- Ground Motion & Response Spectrum
- Dampers
Sponsors
Many thanks to our generous sponsors of SDC!
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2000px-FEMA_logo.svg_-1024x363.png)
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/2022-CSI-1024x1024.jpg)
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Degenkolb-logo_CMYK-1024x233.png)
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Kinemetrics-logo-lowres.png)
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/logo_california-earthquake-authority.png)
![](https://slc.eeri.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/CGM_wm_rgb.png)
Full Results
The results for the 2024 Seismic Design Competition are here! To download a copy of the score pdf, just click on the title and you can download it from there.
Congratulations to all of the teams that participated this year! We hope you learned a lot and hope to see you next year! 😀
Summary
1st Place: Cornell University
2nd Place: Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
3rd Place: The University of Victoria
Charles Richter Award for Spirit of the Competition: Pontifica Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra
Egor Popov Award for Structural Innovation: Izmir Katip Celebi University
T-Shirt Design: The University of Texas at Austin (Honorable mentions: University of California San Diego and Altinbas University)
Best Seismic Performance: University of California Davis
Best Communication Skills Award: Cornell University
Best Architecture Award: Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest
Most Improved Team: Istanbul Technical University
Rookie of the SDC Award: Karadeniz Technical University
Cornell and Krawinkler Award for Excellence in PBEE: University of California Los Angeles