The Pennsylvania State University Smeal College of Business Building, located on Penn State’s University Park campus in University Park, PA, is an educational building that houses both the undergraduate and graduate divisions of Penn State’s Smeal College of Business.  The building is four-stories with a basement and mechanical penthouse.  The 210,000 square foot building was built between July 2003 and July 2005 at a cost of $68 million.  The existing gravity system of the building is composite steel, and the lateral system is composed of ordinary steel moment frames.

The structural redesign of the building is based upon maintaining the base system of composite steel, but reworking it to maximize efficiency.  The first step of this process was to shift from normal weight concrete topping for slabs to light weight concrete.  It was important in redesign that the existing architecture remain undisturbed by any changes to the structure, including depth, size, and other factors.  While this restricted movement of columns, certain columns deemed to be excessive or unnecessary were removed.

The lateral redesign of the building included two
options: concrete or masonry shear walls, or
braced frames.  Due to the aforementioned
architectural restrictions and lack of available
shear wall locations, the braced frame route
was chosen.  Integration of braced frames
with architecture and ensuring no blockages of
existing door or window locations led to a
variety of braced frame styles being utilized
in the design.  With the reduction of weight
in the switch to light weight concrete, seismic
forces were reduced and wind controlled design.

The original structural design was done in
accordance with IBC 2000 and ASCE 7-98.
Structural redesign was done in accordance with
IBC 2012 and ASCE 7-10 after discussion with the
faculty.  Structural software used included RISA
2-D and RAM Structural System.

Two breadth topics were investigated in addition
to the structural redesign.  A construction
management breadth analyzed the cost and schedule impacts of any structural changes made.  A second breadth, in relation to mechanical impacts of the atrium on the building, was completed.  The mechanical breadth looked at changes that could be made to reduce the impact of the large, open atrium on the building’s mechanical system.

After investigation, it was found that the proposed redesign showed a significant decrease in cost, as well as a lower duration of work.  The architecture would only be affected in minor ways, such as slightly thicker walls, but no openings would have to be moved.  In addition to these factors, the reduction in weight could have a significant impact on reducing the foundation system, which could save further time and money.