Building earthquake-resilient structures

architectural technology in designing earthquake resilient buildings

Hours after the Turkey-Syria earthquake, a video on Japanese techniques to deal with such calamities began doing the rounds on social media. It showed how Japanese engineers and architects had developed different methods to tackle earthquakes as their country was geographically prone to it. They used two main techniques — seismic isolation and base isolation. Seismic isolation is the technique of installing a system of bearings and sliders under the building that reduces its responses to ground motion during an earthquake. Base isolation is an anti-seismic design strategy that can reduce the effect of earthquake ground motion by uncoupling the superstructure from the foundation.

“Japan uses various techniques to make earthquake-resilient structures. At the core of Japan’s infrastructure is Taishin — an earthquake-resilient code every building must follow. Beams, pillars, and walls can absorb intense ground shaking since construction is of minimum thickness,” says Delhi-based Sneha Gurjar, Director, CEM Engineers.

Japan had witnessed two major earthquakes in the past century — the great Kanto earthquake in 1923 and the Hanshin earthquake in 1995. In 1923, over one lakh people were killed, while in 1995, the earthquake claimed over 6,000 lives. That’s when Japan decided to bring changes in the construction scenario. Now, it is one of the best modern techniques in the field of construction across the globe, minimising damage to property and saving thousands of lives.

Can these be implemented in India? Architects and engineers reply in affirmation, validating it with research and groundwork.

“The frequency and intensity of earthquakes in each country differ depending on the tectonic action below the surface. So, only research can say how the Japanese method can be made possible in India. That will provide avenues of technological adaptation and can lead to the invention of hybrid forms of resilience more suited to our climatic and geological conditions,” says Chennai-based Creative Architects & Interiors founder Pramod Jain.

Though India has made rapid progress in technology and infrastructure sectors, the cost of construction is the big hurdle. Gurjar says, “Adapting some of these international strategies and integrating them with meticulous analysis and simulations based on the climate, geography and ecosystems here will be a leap ahead. However, the cost of constructing such buildings is definitely one of the main factors pulling us back.”

Om Prakash Mishra, Director, National Center for Seismology (NCS), and Scientist G, Union Ministry of Earth Sciences, says that the government is studying several ways to implement Japanese technology in India.” A team of scientists from IIT Delhi, Madras, Roorkee, among others, is conducting the study.