Evaluation of Design Review Process and Requirements for Seismic-Isolated Buildings

A telephone survey was conducted to determine design professionals' experiences and opinions of the design review process for seismic isolated buildings. Participants agreed that the review process is beneficial in concept, but the benefit can sometimes be obscured by poor implementation. Best practice recommendations include: (1) the review team should be organized and the review process should be planned at the onset of design; (2) all parties should mutually agree on the scope and level of detail of review; and (3) a process for conflict resolution should be pre-negotiated. Most of the discussion and recommendations generated by this study are applicable to design reviews in general. The specific code requirements for design review of isolated buildings were found to be in need of updating, but the concept of exempting certain structures from the review process, favored by some engineers, was not found to have widespread support.