Hi all,
I am back from my summer break and ready to start working on my research project once again. I was very busy this summer traveling and working a co-op work term at a local Gold Mine so unfortunately I had no time to work on my research. This semester I will complete my project and have it reviewed. It should be complete and ready to be published by the end of this school year in May/2012.
I'll keep posting to keep whomever is interested up to date with the status of my report.
Hati Earthquake Disaster
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Waffle-Crete
I just found a system that that has been used in the past for disaster reconstruction. It's a company called Waffle-Crete. They set up a local manufacturer to build pre-cast concrete slabs that can easily be transported to nearby sites. This system was used after an earthquake hit Greece top help rebuild it's infrastructure. I'm going to look into this Kansas based company to see how well it would pertain to my research topic.
Updated Research Proposal
HAITI: A SRUGGLING ECONOMY IN NEED OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
By: Bradley Veenstra
Summary Statement of Proposed Project
After the earthquake that rocked the Caribbean island of Haiti on January 12, 2010, the country has been struggling to rebuild what is left of their cities and bring hope back to its people. With help and supplies coming from all over the world to aid them in their endeavors, they have managed to stabilize their country’s economy, but they are not yet self-sustainable. Haiti is a tropical paradise, located on the northern part of the Caribbean Sea that shares an island with Dominican Republic, a popular vacation hotspot for Canadians. Their number one resource and means of income is tourism. It is my intent to research what type of concrete building system would be most appropriate to construct a three story multi-unit hotel building that could withstand a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Haiti in order to bring income through tourism to benefit Haiti’s economy.
Purpose
The people of Haiti are in need of help now more than ever, and with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) estimating a literacy rate of 45%, it is up to us, the well educated and economically developed nations, to do our part and research the most reasonable approach to build a sustainable economy for a wounded nation. The purpose of this research project is to provide information on developing reliable architecture in Haiti that may be used to produce income and possible disaster shelters in the future. It will also benefit my personal ideals and those of others when it comes to possible future designs in unstable parts of the world.
Goals and Objectives of the Project
There are many concrete building systems in the construction marketplace. My goal is to find out what will be the most reasonable way to build a multi-unit hotel resort, incorporating earthquake resistant design technology, so that it may be used by developers to improve Haiti’s Gross National Product (GNP). The income generated by the developers using the information found will improve Haiti’s economic crisis and eventually Haiti will become completely self-sustainable. Determining the reasonable level of sustainability will also determine whether or not these hotels could act as disaster shelters in case of future earthquakes or other natural disasters.
Methodology and Analytical Approach
In order to find the most appropriate concrete building system for a multi-unit hotel resort in Haiti, I will research the different types on the market, taking into consideration local materials, availability and cost. I will base my research on projects that have already been built and other related research in order to determine a conclusive outcome. The information collected can be used in the construction and re-construction of concrete hotels in Haiti and provide information for those prospecting earthquake resistant concrete construction for other parts of the world.
Previous Studies/ Related Information
Since this is a region specific research due to a recent disaster, this will be a unique study. Seismic Engineering is a field that searches for ways to make structures, such as buildings and bridges, resistant to earthquake damage. Extensive research has been made to write building code regulations as well as region specific research for projects in the past. This research study will provide information for Haiti and its neighboring region to better its infrastructure’s resilience to future earthquakes. It will outline a project specific area of research conforming to the earthquake parameters for engineering design in the Caribbean determined during the first Caribbean conference on earthquake engineering in 1978.
Plans for Dissemination of Work
Information will be shared using a blog set up through Thompson Rivers University’s ARET program at:
http://eddt231.blogspot.com/
References Cited
Carol Bellamy, UNICEF (1999) “The state of the world's children”, table 4, 107
Jeanne V. Beekhuis (1981), Tourism in the Caribbean: Impacts on the Economic, Social and Natural Environments, Ambio, 10(6), 325-331
Morelli, Ugo (2004) "Preventing Earthquake Disasters – The Grand Challenge in Earthquake Engineering – A Research Agenda for the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES)," Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management: 1(4), Article 410.
Taranath, Bungale S. (2005) “Wind and earthquake resistant buildings: structural analysis and design”, xiv - 892
Tomblin, John F. (1978), The Earthquake Engineering Online Archive: Earthquake parameters for engineering design in the Caribbean, http://nisee.berkeley.edu/documents/elib/www/documents/200905/tomblin-earthquakes-caribbean.pdf
By: Bradley Veenstra
Summary Statement of Proposed Project
After the earthquake that rocked the Caribbean island of Haiti on January 12, 2010, the country has been struggling to rebuild what is left of their cities and bring hope back to its people. With help and supplies coming from all over the world to aid them in their endeavors, they have managed to stabilize their country’s economy, but they are not yet self-sustainable. Haiti is a tropical paradise, located on the northern part of the Caribbean Sea that shares an island with Dominican Republic, a popular vacation hotspot for Canadians. Their number one resource and means of income is tourism. It is my intent to research what type of concrete building system would be most appropriate to construct a three story multi-unit hotel building that could withstand a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Haiti in order to bring income through tourism to benefit Haiti’s economy.
Purpose
The people of Haiti are in need of help now more than ever, and with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) estimating a literacy rate of 45%, it is up to us, the well educated and economically developed nations, to do our part and research the most reasonable approach to build a sustainable economy for a wounded nation. The purpose of this research project is to provide information on developing reliable architecture in Haiti that may be used to produce income and possible disaster shelters in the future. It will also benefit my personal ideals and those of others when it comes to possible future designs in unstable parts of the world.
Goals and Objectives of the Project
There are many concrete building systems in the construction marketplace. My goal is to find out what will be the most reasonable way to build a multi-unit hotel resort, incorporating earthquake resistant design technology, so that it may be used by developers to improve Haiti’s Gross National Product (GNP). The income generated by the developers using the information found will improve Haiti’s economic crisis and eventually Haiti will become completely self-sustainable. Determining the reasonable level of sustainability will also determine whether or not these hotels could act as disaster shelters in case of future earthquakes or other natural disasters.
Methodology and Analytical Approach
In order to find the most appropriate concrete building system for a multi-unit hotel resort in Haiti, I will research the different types on the market, taking into consideration local materials, availability and cost. I will base my research on projects that have already been built and other related research in order to determine a conclusive outcome. The information collected can be used in the construction and re-construction of concrete hotels in Haiti and provide information for those prospecting earthquake resistant concrete construction for other parts of the world.
Previous Studies/ Related Information
Since this is a region specific research due to a recent disaster, this will be a unique study. Seismic Engineering is a field that searches for ways to make structures, such as buildings and bridges, resistant to earthquake damage. Extensive research has been made to write building code regulations as well as region specific research for projects in the past. This research study will provide information for Haiti and its neighboring region to better its infrastructure’s resilience to future earthquakes. It will outline a project specific area of research conforming to the earthquake parameters for engineering design in the Caribbean determined during the first Caribbean conference on earthquake engineering in 1978.
Plans for Dissemination of Work
Information will be shared using a blog set up through Thompson Rivers University’s ARET program at:
http://eddt231.blogspot.com/
References Cited
Carol Bellamy, UNICEF (1999) “The state of the world's children”, table 4, 107
Jeanne V. Beekhuis (1981), Tourism in the Caribbean: Impacts on the Economic, Social and Natural Environments, Ambio, 10(6), 325-331
Morelli, Ugo (2004) "Preventing Earthquake Disasters – The Grand Challenge in Earthquake Engineering – A Research Agenda for the Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES)," Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management: 1(4), Article 410.
Taranath, Bungale S. (2005) “Wind and earthquake resistant buildings: structural analysis and design”, xiv - 892
Tomblin, John F. (1978), The Earthquake Engineering Online Archive: Earthquake parameters for engineering design in the Caribbean, http://nisee.berkeley.edu/documents/elib/www/documents/200905/tomblin-earthquakes-caribbean.pdf
Saturday, April 2, 2011
I've been having a hard time finding concrete design codes and building practises that would certify it to be "earthquake resistant" that's now way over my head. I'm not exactly a structural engineer.
Good foundations, good cement/aggregate ratio, and lots of rebar support are musts. Is that it though?
Is there any way to tell that is would be able to withstand a 7.0 magnitude?
I plan on talking to James Ju, our structural engineer at TRU, and see what else i should be looking for.
Anybody else have any information that could help me out?
Good foundations, good cement/aggregate ratio, and lots of rebar support are musts. Is that it though?
Is there any way to tell that is would be able to withstand a 7.0 magnitude?
I plan on talking to James Ju, our structural engineer at TRU, and see what else i should be looking for.
Anybody else have any information that could help me out?
Bond Building System
I have contacted the CEO of Bond Building System. In he email he stated, "The bulk of the walls are concrete, which is locally sourced and the quality of the concrete is assured because if the cement ratio is compromised it will not adhere to the mesh weather applied by shotcrete or by hand. Another consideration is the ease at which unskilled labor can become proficient in a single day without a common language and without heavy equipment. The Bond Building system exceeds all building codes and will withstand seismic issues with engineering to match the zones."
I returned his email by asking whether or not the system is able to construct a three story hotel building. I also asked if there have been any test or data for how strong the material is.
Will update soon.
I returned his email by asking whether or not the system is able to construct a three story hotel building. I also asked if there have been any test or data for how strong the material is.
Will update soon.
New Building Design
So I realized the concept plan for my building was a little vague, and nobody would want to stay there on vacation. So i sketched up another idea that I will digitally build on Revit over the next couple of weeks.
Here are the basic sketches:
Here are the basic sketches:
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