Seismic Isolation Bearings: Key Technology for Keeping Hospitals and Schools Safe
When earthquakes happen suddenly, hospitals and schools are the most important public buildings. Their ability to withstand quakes directly affects countless lives. Seismic isolation bearing technology offers a game-changing protection solution for these "lifeline projects."
As an advanced anti-seismic technology, seismic isolation bearings reduce the impact of earthquakes on buildings by isolating and absorbing seismic energy. In recent years, this technology has been widely used in hospital and school buildings, becoming a key method to improve the safety of public structures.
1 How It Works: A Big Change in Building Earthquake ProtectionTraditional earthquake-resistant buildings mainly rely on the structure's own strength and toughness to "fight against" quakes. But seismic isolation technology changes this approach completely—from "fighting" to "absorbing" the shock.
Seismic isolation bearings work by placing a flexible isolation layer at the building's foundation or certain floors. This allows the building to shift or rotate slowly as a whole during an earthquake, effectively isolating and consuming seismic energy, greatly reducing the quake force that reaches the upper structure.Common types of seismic isolation bearings include elastic bearings and sliding bearings. More specific products are:
LRB (Lead Rubber Bearings): Combine rubber's flexibility with lead's damping ability.
Natural Rubber Isolation Bearings: Rely only on rubber material to provide elastic recovery force.
High-Damping Rubber Bearings: Use special rubber formulas that have better energy absorption.
Friction Pendulum Bearings: Consume earthquake energy through sliding friction.
Because hospitals have special functions and must keep running after earthquakes, they are a key area for applying seismic isolation technology.
For example, in the Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine Second Affiliated Hospital (Xixian Hospital) heart and brain specialist building project, a full-layer isolation system was used on a large scale. 41 sets of high-performance isolation bearings were installed.
This application shows how much medical buildings value safety. It also fits with national policies to improve construction project earthquake resistance and build resilient cities.
In high seismic risk areas, the benefits are even greater. For a hospital outpatient building in Xinjiang located in a zone with high earthquake intensity, studies showed that using isolation technology greatly reduced floor shear forces and inter-story displacement in the upper structure. With isolation technology, the upper structure's earthquake resistance requirements and construction measures can be lowered by one degree. This both improves safety and saves construction costs.
Schools are key places for education. Safe, strong buildings are essential to protect students and teachers. In southwest and northwest China, where earthquakes happen more often, buildings need better quake resistance.
Research shows that properly using seismic isolation bearing technology in school buildings can significantly improve the building's earthquake resistance, effectively protecting students, teachers, and teaching equipment. Applying seismic isolation bearing technology in school buildings not only keeps people safe during quakes but also ensures schools can serve as emergency shelters after disasters.
As countries pay more attention to public building safety, the seismic isolation bearings market is growing quickly. According to QYResearch's latest report, the global seismic isolation systems market is expected to reach $520 million by 2031, with a yearly growth rate (CAGR) of 4.56% in the coming years.
Among product types, lead rubber bearings hold an important market share. Besides hospitals and schools, use in residential and commercial buildings is also expanding.
Globally, major seismic isolation system producers include OILES CORPORATION, Kawakin Holdings, Yunnan Quakesafe Seismic, Nampon Steel Engineering, etc. In 2024, the top ten manufacturers held about 64.0% of the global market share.
As national requirements for building earthquake resistance increase, seismic isolation technology has changed from an option to a must-have for public buildings. Each technological advance not only shows engineering innovation but also reflects respect and care for human life.
When hospitals can keep running normally during quakes, and when schools become safe shelters in disasters, the value of seismic isolation technology goes beyond engineering—it becomes a vital expression of social responsibility and human care.
