Impacto de la NEC 2025 en el diseño estructural de un edificio de 5 plantas: Un análisis comparativo con la NEC 2015

Abstract

The following research analyzes the regulatory change from NEC-15 to the proposed NEC-2025 in the structural design of reinforced concrete buildings. The main objective is to quantify the variations in seismic demand, element dimensions, and steel reinforcement quantities to determine the technical and economic feasibility of the new regulations. This is justified by the need to update design criteria following the 2016 earthquake. For the project, a typical 5-story building was modeled using the structural analysis software ETABS. Capacity design methods were used, and the loads and combinations specified in both codes were applied, with materials of typical strengths for the region. The results demonstrated that the response spectrum of NEC-2025 is 28% higher in maximum seismic acceleration than that of NEC-15. This resulted in an 11.4% increase in the reinforcement steel of the beams and an increase in column sections from 25x25 cm to 30x30 cm to meet drift control requirements. It has been determined that migrating to NEC-2025 provides greater structural strength, but entails a higher initial material cost. Optimizing design under the new standard is essential to balance safety with economic viability in Ecuadorian construction. Keywords: