Most of the earthquake-exposed population in the world face a considerable level of the funding limitation for its architectural investments and tend not to consider top earthquake-resistant solutions due to their prohibitively high cost of construction. Consequently, numerous life and property loss remain continually possible and implementing cost-effective and innovative solutions are necessary for the proper planning of our global future.
After thirty years of research work, we developed a new type of architectural structure that can sustain major magnitude earthquakes. Our invention is not an entirely new concept, but an innovative application of it to the new designs brings breakthrough results. They include a significant construction cost-saving (up to 50%), increased earthquake-resistance (up to 8.0 on the Richter Scale), and immediate application in new projects to effectively and economically protect life and property exposed to potential losses.
Between 1984 and 1998, we were a group of Architects that designed various buildings in New York City and its vicinity. We quickly realized that a rapidly increasing population and lack of land availability will force the creation of only the high structures and use them to exchange the existing ones. Additionally, we were facing restrictions on certain construction sites prohibiting higher buildings or an excessive load of the highest ones. Those constrains forced on us a new direction for finding the correct solutions that ended in designing and implementing new structural members. They lowered the cost and weight of the structure while increasing its strength. That resulted in reducing the bending moment of tall buildings exposed to wind pressures in a range of 50% in addition to the construction cost reduction by a similar rate when compared to the current solutions.
More than twenty years of related research allowed us to develop a new type of column and its corresponding beam. With the same section and weight per unit than other present solutions, the new column accepts 160% more load while the new beam takes 100% more load than any existing beams. That allows us to lower construction costs by almost 50% or double the height of the building within the same cost constraints.
This article, originally written in 1998, has been updated in 2024. The core technical content, which formed the basis of the original article, remains unchanged to preserve its historical context and the state of knowledge at the time of its initial publication. The additions made in 2024 serve to complement and enhance the original content, providing practitioners in the related fields with a more balanced understanding of the subject matter and its relevance to the present day.
ARTICLE
Krystyn Jerzy Haich, AIA
New York, October 20th, 1998
Reframing Earthquake Damage: An Unique Perspective on Structural Breakdowns
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The propagation of seismic energy waves through a building can significantly contribute to the initial point of damage during an earthquake. When seismic waves reach a building, they transfer energy into the structure, causing it to vibrate and deform. The interaction between these waves and the buildings' structural elements can lead to concentrated stresses and strains at specific locations, potentially initiating damage. The wave propagation involved in an earthquake includes vertical, horizontal, and diagonal propagation, causing complex wave amplification and torsional effects of a building that are impossible to simulate accurately. To minimize the potential for damage caused by seismic wave propagation, structural engineers must employ various strategies, including isolation systems. These techniques help to absorb and dissipate seismic energy, reducing the forces and deformations experienced by the structure. Additionally, providing adequate lateral stiffness and strength, and ensuring optimal building orientation in the reference to the closest fault lines, mitigate the risk of damage caused by seismic wave propagation. However, without involving seismic researchers in a direct collaboration before building design and execution incorporating the best real-life tested solutions available building an interdisciplinary consent, we will not achieve any meaningful progress in preventing the damaging effects of earthquakes. Undertaking an approach similar to NTSB’s obligation to gather all evidence after an aircraft crash to objectively analyze it and publish conclusions might be the most effective path to maximize preventive measures realized after earthquake disasters. Involving and providing related funding by UNDRR might be an essential way to maximize the benefits of lessons learned after each significant earthquake disaster.
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