The future of seismic design of steel structures PR EN 1998-1-1 and PR EN 1998-1-2

The first generation of Eurocode 8 has appeared some twenty years ago. At that time, it presented a brand new and modern seismic standard. But twenty years is a relatively long period and during it a lot has been happening in the field of seismic design of buildings. Latest scientific research together with the identified shortcomings in the current version of Eurocode 8 created a need for it to be updated. Bearing that in mind European commission began to work on the second generation of Eurocodes. They are expected to be finished and ready for adoption in a sequential manner at the start of 2026. In this paper the first draft of the second generation of Eurocode 8 (parts 1-1 and 1-2) is presented with specific attention being paid to seismic design of steel structures. The main part of Eurocode 8 which was EN 1998-1-1 is now divided into two parts: EN 1998-1-1 and EN 1998-1-2. These two documents combined give basic rules for the design of seismic resistant structures. They are massive, comprehensive and filled with novelties and latest scientific research in the area of seismic design. Bearing in mind that the two before mentioned drafts have over five hundred pages combined and that this paper can only be so long only the most important novelties are presented without going too much into details. The topics that are covered in this overview paper are general concept of seismic design and representation of seismic action, soil classification and site amplification effects, methods of seismic analysis and seismic design of steel structures. With all proposed changes and advances in mind it is safe to say that the second generation of Eurocode 8 will be a large step forward and will set a high bar for other seismic standards to reach. The advances that are made in field of steel structures will make them even more attractive in earthquake prone areas.