The Paramount in San Francisco

NEHRP Success Story

The Paramount in San Francisco, CA"The application of research results to the building industry is a notable achievement in making our buildings safer."
-Steven Cauffman, Research Engineer, National Institute of Standards and Technology

The Paramount, located in the South Market area of downtown San Francisco, is the tallest precast concrete building in a high seismic zone in the United States. The striking 39-story residential apartment tower, completed in 2001 by Pankow Residential Builders II, L.P., includes 486 apartments and parking for 350 cars in a total of 660,000 square feet of building area. The Paramount is also the first significant application of the Precast Hybrid Moment Resistant Frame (PHMRF) System.

The PHMRF is a dramatic new structural building frame system that has been developed over the past decade by leading industry researchers and experts. Although the design approach is innovative, the PHMRF uses existing concrete and steel materials and their properties, but arranges them in a novel way to maximize their benefits. In simple terms, the make-up of the joint using the PHMRF system allows it to work like a shock absorber to accommodate and counter the seismic forces that cause a building to sway when an earthquake strikes. While most modern buildings will withstand a major earthquake if built in accordance with current building code requirements, many of their structural systems will be seriously damaged. The design concept of the PHMRF provides a well-defined joint location to accommodate structure movement, significantly minimizing structural damage during an earthquake.

The development of the PHMRF involved a consortium of industry researchers and experts, including the NIST, the University of Washington, and the Pankow Companies. The NSF sponsored initial research and testing of the system in the early 1990's. The capabilities of the system have been recognized by building code authorities and have been approved for use by the International Conference of Building Officials.

Last Modified: Friday, 19-Oct-2007 11:50:56 EDT