A Risk-Informed Framework for Earthquake Ground Motion Hazard Assessment in NZ

Understanding earthquake ground shaking, or the earthquake ground motion (GM) hazard, is critical to understanding the earthquake risk for planning, design and development in New Zealand. There are several techniques for determining GMs for input into the planning and design of built infrastructure.  This report discusses some of these techniques and when they could be applied to projects to improve the understanding of earthquake GM hazards for planning and design. read more


Guideline for Assessing Technical Resilience of Three Waters Networks

Simplified assessment method

This guideline provides a framework for assessing technical resilience of three waters piped assets.

It has been prepared to support local authorities and the private sector (including asset managers, operators and engineers) at local and regional levels with assessing technical resilience and in developing strategies to improve network resilience, and inform pre-event planning and post-event emergency support and recovery. read more


Invasive Seismic Testing – A Summary of Methods and Good Practice

In the aftermath of the 2010-2011 Canterbury and 2016 Kaikōura earthquakes, invasive seismic testing has become more commonly used in geotechnical earthquake engineering. However, several critical aspects of both data collection and data processing are not well understood by either the contractors collecting and processing the data or the geotechnical engineers using the data. read more


Interpretation of Internal Erosion Susceptibility in a New Zealand Canal Embankment

New Zealand has over 3,000 earth embankment dams and canals, many of which were constructed prior to the evolution of modern granular filter criteria for dam design in the mid-1980s. Tekapo Canal is one such structure, constructed from 1971 to 1977 as a 26 km long conveyance canal, linking two hydropower stations in the inland Canterbury region. Tekapo canal is constructed of widely-graded soils of glacial origin. Challenges with material compaction and constructability were reported during construction. read more


Seismic Performance of Diaphragms of Buildings – Determining the Lateral Earthquake Forces for Design of Diaphragms

This report outlines the findings of two independent studies by PTL Structural Consultants (PTL) and Holmes Consulting LP
(HCLP) which have validated the use of an earthquake induced lateral force distribution, develop by Dr D.
Gardiner (at University of Canterbury). The method for determining the lateral force distribution for
designing the diaphragms of buildings is known as “the pseudo-Equivalent Static Analysis (pESA)”. read more


Reconstructing Christchurch

EBF

International experts Dr. Michel Bruneau, Professor in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering at the University of Buffalo and Dr. Greg MacRae, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Natural resources Engineering at the University of Canterbury have collaborated on an extensive report on the factors underpinning  decisions  made in the rebuild of Christchurch after the Canterbury Earthquakes of 2010-2011. It is based on interviews with structural designers of up to 60% of the buildings design to date in the rebuild. read more