EN 1991-1-4 (Eurocode 1 Wind Actions)

EN 1991-1-4, Eurocode 1 – Actions on structures – Part 1-4: General actions – Wind actions, is the European Standard for determining wind loads in structural design. It is published by CEN through technical committee CEN/TC 250 and forms part of Eurocode 1.

Editions

The first-generation standard was EN 1991-1-4:2005, with corrigenda in 2009 and 2010 and an amendment in 2010. It replaced the pre-standard ENV 1991-2-4:1995. As part of the second generation of Eurocodes, CEN has published EN 1991-1-4:2026, and its catalogue records withdrawal of the 2005 edition effective March 2026. Countries apply their own transition arrangements, so the earlier version may still be referenced locally for a time.

Scope

The standard gives rules for wind actions on:

• buildings and civil engineering works up to 200 m (about 656 ft) high
• bridges with no span longer than 200 m, if they meet dynamic response criteria
• whole structures, parts of structures, and attached elements such as cladding units, fixings and barriers

Guyed masts, lattice towers and lighting columns are covered elsewhere, and local thermal effects on wind and tornadoes are excluded.

How it applies to roofs

Wind pressure on a roof depends on:

• the basic wind velocity, from national wind maps
• terrain and orography (hills and escarpments)
• building height and dimensions
• pressure coefficients for different roof zones

Roofs are divided into zones because suction is much higher at corners, edges and ridges than in the middle of the roof. Designers use separate coefficients for small loaded areas (such as individual fixings and tiles) and large areas (such as the roof structure).

Use with roofing codes

National roofing standards build on EN 1991-1-4. In the UK, BS 5534 uses its wind loads with the UK National Annex to determine tile and slate fixings, supported by uplift tests such as EN 14437. Similar links exist with German and French roofing rules. Metal roof and membrane fixing calculations also rely on it.

National Annexes

Each country's National Annex provides the wind map and choices for nationally determined parameters. In North America, ASCE 7 (US) and Part 4 of the National Building Code of Canada serve the same purpose.