Updated Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Building and Other Structures Standard Now Available

The newly updated ASCE/SEI 7-22 Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criterial for Building and Other Structures is now available. This national standard is the American Society of Civil Engineers’ most widely used standard and is an integral part of building codes in the United States and around the globe. Structural engineers, architects and those engaged in preparing and administering local building codes will find the 2022 edition of the structural load requirements essential to their practice.

The 2022 edition of ASCE 7, which supersedes ASCE/SEI 7-16, provides the most up-to-date and coordinated loading provisions for general structural design. Informed by past events including Hurricane Michael in 2018 and the Joplin Tornado in 2011, this standard prescribes design loads for all hazards including soil, flood, tsunami, snow, rain, atmospheric ice, seismic, wind and fire, as well as how to evaluate load combinations. ASCE/SEI 7-22 is different from past versions because, for the first time, the digital data is available via open access from the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool so that anyone can view the hazards that are relevant to their local community.

Environmental hazards used for building design were all updated, specifically including new wind speeds along the hurricane coastline, improved tsunami run up for highly populated west coast locations, increased accuracy of seismic design criteria, new national snow design data, risk specific atmospheric ice criteria and a completely new chapter for tornado loads. In addition, ASCE 7-22 modernizes design requirements for cutting edge mass timber systems and composite concrete and steel systems, as well as for big box stores/warehouses, ground mounted solar facilities and elevated buildings.

In addition to the print version of ASCE 7-22 — available as a two-volume paperback set or as a PDF — ASCE 7 Online is a subscription service that provides digital access to ASCE/SEI 7-22, as well as to the previous 2016 and 2010 editions, with enhanced features that make it faster and easier to work in the Standard. Functionality exclusive to ASCE 7 Online includes side-by-side display of the provisions and commentary, redlining to track changes between editions, real-time updates of supplements and errata, two-level corporate vs. personal annotations and toggling between Customary and SI unit measurements. Corporate subscriptions are available. For more information, contact asce7tools@asce.org.

To purchase the print or PDF version of ASCE/SEI 7-22, visit https://www.asce.org/asce-7.

To subscribe to the ASCE 7 Online digital platform, visit https://asce7.online.