Building Vibration

Measurements
Training Materials

Presented by: Jacek Kuczynski

 Building Vibration Purpose of the training

• To be able to ask questions to customers

What do you measure?
Which standard do you follow?

• To be able to recommend measurement equipment

Sensor mounting
Frequency analysis
Reporting

• To know references
DIN, BS, ISO

• To know equipment capabilities

SV258 PRO, SVAN 958A, SvanPC++
Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources

Choosing the method of measurement

Choosing the measuring instrumentation

Configuration

Measurement

Results verification and reporting

Building Vibration Vibration sources
 Building Vibration Structure vibration

• Short-term vibration • Long-term vibration

• does not occur often • monitoring of

enough to cause continuous vibrations
structural fatigue and which may cause
which does not fatigue or resonance
produce resonance in
the structure being
evaluated

• Buildings 3 to 12m high have resonance from 4 to 15 Hz

Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources ✓

Choosing the method of measurement

Choosing the measuring instrumentation

Configuration

Measurement

Results verification and reporting

Building Vibration Identification of sources

• Vibration affecting structures • Vibration affecting

humans
 Building Vibration Where to measure?

• Either at the foundation of the outer wall, on the outer wall itself

• In buildings without a basement, the point of measurement shall be no

more than 0,5 m above the ground

• Measurement points shall preferably be on the side of the structure that

faces the source of excitation

• For structures with a large ground floor area, simultaneous

measurements shall be made at several locations
 Building Vibration Where to measure?

• In addition to the measurements made on the foundation and the highest

floor, a measurement in the vertical direction may also have to be made on
the floors on which the strongest vibration is expected; in this case, the
point of measurement should be in the centre of the floor

• Where short-term vibration causes floors to vibrate, if Vz (vertical) is less

than 20 mm/s when measured at the point of maximum velocity (which is
usually at the centre of the floor), a reduction in the serviceability of the
floor is not to be expected.

• When monitoring computers, relays and other installations sensitive to

vibration, the point of measurement should be placed on or at the
foundation or on the frame of the equipment.
 Building Vibration Where to measure?

• The transducer mounting can be secured to the frame of the

building by expansion bolts.

• Gypsum joints are preferred when measuring on lightweight

concrete elements.

• In special circumstances, it is acceptable to glue the transducer or

attach it using magnetic attraction.

• For measurements indoors on horizontal surfaces, double-sided

adhesive tape may be used on all hard surfaces for accelerations
below 1 m/s2, although mechanical fixings are preferred.
 Building Vibration Multipoint monitoring

• Measurements of vibration response generated by traffic, pile-

driving and blasting, especially at a great distance, show that the
vibration may be amplified within the building and in proportion
to the height of the building. It may, therefore, be necessary to
carry out simultaneous measurements at several points within
the building. Simultaneous measurements on the foundation and
the ground outside will serve to establish a transfer function.

• Where a building is higher than 4 floors ( 12 m), subsequent

measuring points should be added every 4 floors and at the
highest floor of the building.

• Where a building is more than 10 m long, measuring positions

should be installed at horizontal intervals of approximately 10 m.
Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources ✓

Choosing the method of measurement ✓
Choosing the measuring instrumentation

Configuration

Measurement

Results verification and reporting

• ISO 4866-2010

Building Vibration Market segments

Building Vibration Class 2 instrumentation
• SVAN 958A
with options
• 17 Ah battery
• Charging unit
• Waterproof power
supply
• Waterproof microphone
enclosure
• Controller
• 3G modem and antenna
• SvanNET web interface

Building Vibration SV258 PRO Class 1 Station

• SVAN 958A & SV 258 PRO
Simultaneous vibration & noise
Class 1 noise
2 vibration profiles: acceleration & velocity
3G modem

Customers: consultants
hand-held measurements
independence from Intrernet
number of applications
customized settings

Building Vibration SVAN 958A advantages

Building Vibration Transducers
• Accelerometers • Geophones

As the base is moved, a current is induced in the

coil, which can then be used as an output
proportional to velocity.

Building Vibration Vibration transducers

Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources ✓

Choosing the method of measurement ✓
Choosing the measuring instrumentation
✓
Configuration

Measurement

Results verification and reporting

Building Vibration Measurement duration
 Building Vibration What do we measure?

• The time history of the vertical vibration (z-axis) and

horizontal vibration (x- and y-axes, at right angles to
each other) shall be recorded, with one of the
directions of measurement running parallel to a side
wall of the building.
 Building Vibration Peak Particle Velocity

• Peak Particle Velocity IviImax in three directions X, Y, Z

Building Vibration DOMINANT FREQUENCY
Building Vibration PPV vs DOMINANT FREQUENCY
Building Vibration SVAN 958A Settings
• SVAN 958A
Less complicated settings
Standardized limit curves
Customized limit curves
Alarms from instrument
New File Format

Building Vibration SVAN 958A Dedicated Firmware

Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources ✓

Choosing the method of measurement ✓
Choosing the measuring instrumentation ✓
Configuration ✓
Measurement

Results verification and reporting

 Building Vibration Field Survey

• A field survey would consist of a limited number of vibration

measurement locations in order to assess the vibration severity
often in comparison with values stipulated in codes or
regulations.

• In the case of vibrations which can be reproduced for a sufficient

time, transducers can be used for the different points keeping a
reference point at the foundation level near the source.
Building Vibration Measurement in practice

Identification of the sources ✓

Choosing the method of measurement ✓
Choosing the measuring instrumentation
✓
Configuration ✓
Measurement ✓
Results verification and reporting ✓
• SvanPC++
Interactive graph
Block selection on time history

Building Vibration SVAN 958A Dedicated Firmware

Building Vibration Example Monitoring Reports
Building Vibration Example Analysis
Thank you!