This building at UC Berkeley wears its earthquake prevention on the outside

For a building sitting just a quarter-mile from one of the most active faults in the seismically treacherous San Francisco Bay Area, the UC Berkeley Grimes Engineering Center is unambiguously confident. Designed by the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the building has been outfitted with a new seismic-responsive structural system that’s capable of withstanding major earthquakes. The architects put the system on full display. {"blockType":"mv-promo-block","data":{"imageDesktopUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/09\/2026-IBD_social-share-2-16x9-1.jpg","imageMobileUrl":"https:\/\/images.fastcompany.com\/image\/upload\/f_webp,q_auto,c_fit\/wp-cms-2\/2026\/09\/2026-IBD_social-share-1-1-1x1-1.jpg","eyebrow":"","headline":"Meet the world\u0027s most innovative design companies","dek":"","subhed":"","description":"","ctaText":"See the List","ctaUrl":"https:\/\/www.fastcompany.com\/innovation-by-design\/list?utm_source=fcwebsite\u0026utm_medium=promo_block\u0026utm_campaign=IBD26","theme":{"bg":"#f4f4f4","text":"#2b2d30","eyebrow":"#9aa2aa","subhed":"#ffffff","buttonBg":"#444444","buttonHoverBg":"#ef5b24","buttonTex…