THE TIMBER CHAPTER OF THE NEW EUROCODE 8 – PART 1-2: NEW FEATURES AND FUTURE IMPROVEMENTS

The revision of the new Timber Chapter (i.e. Chapter 13 and Annex L) of Eurocode 8 (prEN1998-1-2) began almost 10 years ago, resulting in significant changes compared to the current version. Expanding from just 4 pages in EN1998-1 to almost 50 pages, the new chapter introduces detailed provisions for engineered wood products, dissipative zones, and both new and existing structural systems. It emphasizes capacity-based design at multiple levels (i.e. connections, walls, and entire buildings) along with updated overstrength factors and behavior factors for medium (ductility class 2) and highly dissipative (ductility class 3) structures. Provisions for the use of bonded-in rods as well as a new Annex L for non-linear static analyses of timber buildings have also been included. This paper summarizes the most significant changes introduced in the Timber chapter of the new Eurocode 8, and highlights the potential of this regulation to provide the designer with up-to-date information on the seismic design of timber buildings.