Toka Tu Ake EQC says engineering guidance to help design new buildings in New Zealand is a “culmination of decades of natural hazard research” funded by the organisation.

Standards New Zealand has released a draft technical specification for new seismic design solutions and will utilise feedback from building designers and engineers to improve its guidance before it is formally released in a few months. 

Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and EQC Chief Engineer Ken Elwood credits recent discoveries through the National Seismic Hazard Model as the driving force behind the new guidelines.

The model utilises global and local seismic research to create maps indicating the probability of earthquake activity within the next decade and beyond.

“In most regions, the forecasted severity proved higher than previously anticipated, and this new guidance for seismic loadings on buildings and their content are providing methods for engineers to respond to this new knowledge,” Prof Elwood said.

Prof Elwood also highlights the work of the projects funded by the agency as a critical resource to help improve earthquake protection. EQC delivers more than $NZ10 million ($9.4 million) towards research efforts each year.

“New Zealand has some of the best experts in these areas and it is wonderful to see decades of research being used to make our buildings more resilient and keep New Zealanders safe,” Prof Elwood said.