Baseisolation: Mindthegap

Abstract

Base Isolation is used in seismically active countries around the world to successfully minimize damage caused by large earthquakes, safeguarding both people and property. Yet, while the technology is understood by earthquake engineers, base-isolated buildings are designed by multi-disciplinary teams, and owned, operated, and maintained by stakeholders who are not typically trained in earthquake engineering. This research examines the use of BI in buildings from a whole of life perspective, specifically investigating the consequences of having a differing design life between the building and base isolator components. The research studies the historic performance of base isolated buildings, the rules that govern base isolation design in New Zealand, and the risks arising in building performance for the whole life of the building. Through an integrative literature review of academic research, engineering guidance notes, building legislation and base isolator manufacturer literature, the research highlighted key risks, the most concerning being a lack of rigorous and independent assessment of base isolator durability, conditions under which base isolators need to be replaced, limited research into the multi-disciplinary design implications of base isolator inspection and replacement, and a gap in literature around the asset management of base isolated buildings generally.