A new information paper on what the Christchurch earthquakes will mean for the future of building design has been released.
The paper is the product of collaboration between the Royal Society of New Zealand, the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand, the Structural Engineering Society New Zealand, the New Zealand Geotechnical Society and the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering.
It aims to answer questions raised by the quakes, including what constitutes an earthquake-prone building and how a building’s quake resistance can be accurately tested when it has already been hit by multiple shakes.
The paper outlines the key principles of earthquake resistance – ‘stiffness’ to prevent excess moving during small shakes, ‘strength’ to prevent damage to the building frame and ‘toughness’ – the ability for buildings to absorb energy during major earthquakes so that damage occurs without collapse.
Most buildings are designed to safeguard lives from the level of earthquake shaking which has a 10 percent chance of occurring in 50 years, it says.
The ‘earthquake life’ of a building, which determines how much shaking a building can withstand before it will collapse or require repairs, is determined by a number of factors including age and construction, the paper says.
Vice-President of the Royal Society of New Zealand Professor Keith Hunter says the paper “draws on New Zealand's engineering expertise” to provide information for the public.
“We hope that by bringing together information on these issues, some of the questions and concerns which people have will be answered,” he says.
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