RESEARCH GRANT AWARD: Modular Steel Plate Floor Assemblies

The Charles Pankow Foundation (CPF) is pleased to announce the award of a new research grant to support a four-university collaboration to advance a potentially game-changing innovation. The universities will investigate the feasibility of a modular steel floor framing and diaphragm system for commercial building structures with broad applicability, including high seismic zones. The objective is a system that can be erected 30-50% faster than traditional concrete-on-metal-deck systems. The new system could be lifted and quickly set in place with simple, optimized connections. This grant will support the work of teams led by:

• Northeastern University, Principal Investigator Jerome F. Hajjar, Ph.D., P.E.
• Iowa State University, Onur Avci, Ph.D. and W. Samuel Easterling, Ph.D., P.E.
• Johns Hopkins University, Benjamin W. Schafer, Ph.D
• Virginia Tech, Matthew Eatherton, Ph.D.

Companies and organizations helping to fund this effort include:

• American Institute of Steel Construction
• MKA Foundation
• Nucor
• Schuff Steel



THANK YOU
industry supporters,
champions of innovation!