Earthquake suggests a “hold” on review of building standard

A building standard review should be put on hold pending the results of studies into the performance of residential structures during the Canterbury earthquake, says the Building Industry Federation.

The Federation’s Chief Executive Bruce Kohn said today a request had been made to Standards New Zealand to delay publication of an updated standard (NZS3604) until technical recommendations can be reassessed in the light of building performance in Christchurch.

“The Frame and Truss Manufacturers’ Association as well as the Wood Processors’ Association are supportive of such a move. Requirements related to soil information and bracing and foundation design are among elements that could be revisited by the industry experts involved in the revision of the standard.

“Senior executives of the Department of Building and Housing are in Canterbury examining the performance of individual structures. Their assessments and those of structural engineers and other technical experts should, in our view, be taken into account before the revised standard is signed off.

“There is a good deal of confidence within the Department that comparatively new homes built to existing Building Code requirements emerged reasonably well by comparison with older structures.

“But within industry questions have been raised. For example, the impact of liquefaction appears to have been quite horrific in residential areas. Are there steps which could usefully be taken to reduce the potential disruption this causes? How have foundations and concrete slab bases performed under these earthquake conditions?

“Standards New Zealand has done an excellent job in carrying out the update of this highly technical standard comprising some 300 pages. We would have expected it to be approved and implemented quite quickly in the normal course of events. But in view of the earthquake it seems a prudent and commonsense move not to finalise the document until assessments of building performance during the earthquake and aftershocks are available.” - ends

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