The rise of liquefaction rules
After the Canterbury earthquakes, regulations governing foundations changed. Initially only for the Canterbury region, they were later rolled out around New Zealand. What are the changes and what do they mean?
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By Maria Grace – 1 August 2022, Build 191
After the Canterbury earthquakes, regulations governing foundations changed. Initially only for the Canterbury region, they were later rolled out around New Zealand. What are the changes and what do they mean?
By Kylie Bailey, Kelly Dombroski, Amanda Yates – 1 December 2021, Build 187, Feature article
Increasing urbanisation means people will be living closer together which could be challenging for some. In post-earthquake Christchurch, community gardens show how connections can be forged and the power of community engagement.
By Angela Liu, Roger Shelton – 1 April 2021, Build 183
While the bracing requirements in NZS 3604:2011 Timber-framed buildings suit most buildings, the distribution rules of clause 5.4.7 are too lenient for some complex designs. During earthquakes, some Building Code-compliant buildings may move or flex, causing extensive damage. BRANZ research found which buildings are affected and suggests changes.
By Alice Chang-Richards, Dr Charlotte Brown, Dr Nicky Smith – 1 June 2019, Build 172, Feature article
Quakecore research from Christchurch suggests a real-time, cross-sector construction information reporting system would smooth earthquake recovery and improve the ability to resource future reconstruction.
By Nick Brunsdon – 1 June 2019, Build 172, Feature article
The earthquakes left a lasting impact on the Christchurch housing market. An early shortage of houses and rising rents has levelled out, and the city is experiencing population growth and stable housing prices.
By Nick Brunsdon – 1 June 2019, Build 172, Feature article
BRANZ research into post-disaster construction workloads has yielded some interesting insights into the Christchurch housing stock and has projected remaining workloads in the city.
By Nick Helm – 1 June 2019, Build 172, Feature article
Christchurch isn’t about to make the same mistake twice – 8 years after the earthquakes, the city’s buildings are not what they once were.
By Angela Liu – 1 October 2018, Build 168
BRANZ research suggests changes are needed to the bracing provisions in NZS 3604:2011 Timber-framed buildings to avoid the damage to irregularly shaped houses that occurred in the Canterbury earthquakes.
By Graeme Beattie – 1 February 2018, Build 164, Feature article
Recent major earthquakes have provided much information on how our buildings perform in seismic events and helped reshape some details of how buildings are constructed.
By Dael Climo – 1 April 2016, Build 153, Feature article
Leading thinkers from science and government have joined forces to start developing ways to manage the risk to our built environment and communities from natural hazards.