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Effects of full-height nonstructural partitions on modal properties of two nominally identical building floors

This is the first paper that quantifies the considerable effects of non-structural partitions on vibration performance of building floors. It was found that vertical non-structural partitions add not only damping, as previously thought, but also stiffness, which was quantified for practical use for the first time. Prompted by these results and Prof. Pavic, Yorkon Ltd invested £72k in research to demonstrate that partitions halve walking-induced dynamic response of lightweight floors making them acceptable for high quality offices. The new Pioneer lightweight floor system utilises this feature boosting its sales (£6.6m pa) in the UK and overseas (contact: Glyn Boddy, glyn.boddy@portakabin.com).