Vibrations due to heavy construction work continue to be a major concern for museums. Although there has been an increase in research on the effect of vibrations on objects of cultural heritage in recent years, selecting measures to protect collections and remain open during construction work continues to be difficult because of a lack of data on what objects can actually withstand, the complexity of vibration loads, and the uniqueness of each situation. The major renovation of the Central Library in Liverpool, UK, which shared walls with the World Museum and Walker Art Gallery, both of which belong within National Museums Liverpool, showed how museums and other institutions can successfully deal with such situations. An integral approach was taken, beginning with an extensive risk analysis to determine which objects could remain on display, which needed extra protection and regular condition monitoring, and which had to be removed. The museums then negotiated a vibration protocol and action plan with the contractors, including continuous monitoring, and trigger levels requiring consultation or work stoppage. Vibration data were also stored and used for later analysis. This integral approach was successful in protecting the collections on exhibition, with only two incidents of reported damage directly related to vibrations. A combination of museum staff experience, excellent communications with the contractors, and some flexibility in defining vibration limits provided a successful recipe for both museums. The analysis of the vibration data using the basic engineering concept of the Palmgren-Miner rule, supports a more flexible approach to setting vibration limits based on recently published guidelines. ... Read more

Pastel paintings are one of the most fragile types of objects of art. When handling loan requests, conservators lack scientific data to assess the risk for damage in transport, and thus for making decisions whether they can be transported. A research project was initiated in 2014 to investigate the effect of vibrations on the condition of pastel paintings, and to determine under what conditions they can be transported with minimum risk for damage due to vibrations. The initial results of this work indicate that the vibration behaviour of pastel paintings is a cumulative one and can be dealt with as an issue of fatigue. If failure is defined as a given level of unacceptable visual loss of pastel, it has been shown that higher stress amplitudes lead to shorter lives to failure than lower stress amplitudes. The use of a fixative appears to prolong fatigue life. There also appears to be a fatigue limit for freshly drawn pastels without fixative. This study highlights the synergism between typically non associated fields of research, in this, art conservation and the fatigue failure of materials. ... Read more