AFPS 25th BIRTHDAY PARTY

HOW DID THE PIONEERING WORKS IN

EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING IN YOUR
COUNTRY INFLUENCE OUR PRESENT
PRACTICE
THE NEW ZEALAND CONTRIBUTION
Nigel Priestley

FACTORS INFLUENCING DEVELOPMENT

OF SEISMIC DESIGN IN NZ
1931 Napier Earthquake
Physical Isolation
Liaison between Academia and Professional Engineers
Experimental Research at University of Canterbury
Formation of NZSEE
Pioneering Spirit of a Young Country
Key people at the right time
Emphasis on Rational rather than Empirical Design
Methods

1931 NAPIER EARTHQUAKE

Magnitude 7.8

NAPIER EARTHQUAKE Nurses Home

Mag. 7.8, 256 fatalities (NZ pop = 2million)

Most severe natural disaster in NZ history

1931 NAPIER EARTHQUAKE

Consequences:
1. Inclusion of lateral seismic force in design
2. Awareness in the national psyche of the
power of earthquakes
3. However, no innovative developments in NZ
before 1960s

THE GOLDEN YEARS: 1968-1985

Formation of the NZ National Society for Earthquake

Engineering

Key people in Key positions

Experimental Research at University of Canterbury
Development of Seismic Isolation Technology at DSIR
Major developments in Seismic Design procedures
Benign funding conditions (EQWC and NZ Roads
Board), and comfortable consulting design fees.

UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH
State-of-the-art (at
the time) experimental
facilities, free
technicians, a very
supportive Head of
Department (Prof Harry
Hopkins), and excellent
funding permitted largescale experimental
research to be carried
out

KEY PEOPLE AT THE RIGHT TIME

U of C: Park, Paulay with assistance from others
U of A: Fenwick, Megget
Government: Glogau, McKenzie, Blakeley et al
DSIR: Skinner, Robinson
Consultants: Hollings, Andrews et al
The environment for cooperation between academia,
government, and consultants was particularly
conducive to development of new concepts between
1970-1985.

NZ NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR

EARTHQUAKE ENGINEERING
(NZSEE)
Started in 1968
Publication of The Bulletin, a design-oriented
magazine
Organization of Seismic Design Study Groups
Organization of national and regional (Pacific)
Conferences on Earthquake Engineering

NZSEE STUDY GROUPS, 1975-1985

Seismic Design of Ductile Moment-Resisting Reinforced Concrete
Frames
Seismic Design of Bridges (also NZ Roads Board, now Transit NZ)
Seismic Design of Base-Isolated Structures
Seismic Design of Storage Tanks
Assessment and Strengthening of Earthquake-Risk Buildings
The reports of these study groups, which involved academics and
practicing engineers, using results from research primarily carried
out at the University of Canterbury, with some lesser contributions
from MWD Central Laboratories and U. of Auckland, provided the
recommendations that were incorporated in various NZ seismic
design codes, and which have influenced design practice elsewhere.

KEY NZ CONTRIBUTIONS TO E.E.

THE CONCEPT OF CAPACITY DESIGN
RATIONAL DESIGN PROCEDURES FOR R-C
BEAM/COLUMN JOINTS
RATIONAL ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES FOR
REINFORCED AND UNREINFORCED MASONRY
DEVELOPMENT OF ISOLATION TECHNOLOGY
STRAIN-BASED PERFORMANCE CRITERIA FOR
SEISMIC DESIGN AND ASSESSMENT OF BRIDGES
KEY TEXT BOOKS ON SEISMIC DESIGN

CAPACITY DESIGN, (1970s)

The concept of providing a strength hierarchy in the
structure to ensure only ductile inelastic modes of
deformation can occur.
Originally conceived by John Hollings, a consultant
Developed and extended at U of C
Incorporated in NZ and other (e.g. EC8) codes,
particularly for frame columns, structural walls and
bridge piers in concrete and masonry structures.
Probably the most important NZ contribution to EE.

0.8

Tension
Shift

0.6

Dimensionless height

Dimensionless Height

0.8

Linear +
Overstrength

0.4

Design
Forces

0.4

0.2

0.2

0
0

0.4
0.8
Dimensionless Moment

(a) Moment Profiles

1.2

+ Dynamic
Amplification

0.6

Design
Forces

Overstrength

0.5
1
1.5
2
Dimensionless Shear Force

(b) Shear Force Profiles

C-D OF WALLS

2.5

SIMPLIFIED WALL CAPACITY-DESIGN EQUATIONS

o
o
Moment: M
0.5 Hn = C1,T M B where C1,T = 0.4 + 0.075Ti
o 1 0.4

Von
Tension
shift

Height

Capacity
envelope

Capacity
envelope

Mo0.5Hn

oMF

MF

VF

oMB

(a) Moment Capacity Envelope

o
Base

= VVBase,
o

oVF

VoBase= oVVBase

(b) Shear Force Capacity

V =1+ o C2,T C 2,T = 0.067 + 0.4(Ti 0.5)72 1.15

DESIGN PROCEDURES FOR R-C

BEAM/COLUMN JOINTS (1970s)
This is still controversial, with USA refusing to
accept NZ rational design approaches. Particular
differences exist between different countries about
the influence of axial load on joint shear (considered
irrelevant in USA, despite experimental evidence to
the contrary).

DESIGN AND ASSESSMENT OF

REINFORCED AND UNREINFORCED
MASONRY (1970s, 1980s)
First rational treatment showing that stress-based
design and assessment of masonry (particularly
unreinforced masonry) is inappropriate. Incorporation
of strength, displacement and energy concepts.
This work has been a starting point for further
development by many researchers outside NZ

SEISMIC DESIGN OF BRIDGE PIERS,

(1970s, 1980s)
(Performance-based Design)
Essentially this is thought to have been the first
rational attempt at performance-based seismic design.
Instead of using specified force-reduction
(performance ,or ductility) factors, to determine
required strength, the displacement capacity of bridge
piers based on specified concrete and steel limit strains
was used to determine the ductility capacity, and hence
the required strength.

SEISMIC ISOLATION TECHNOLOGY

Ivan Skinner and Bill Robinson at the Physical

Engineering Laboratories of the NZ Governments
Department of Scientific and Industrial Research were
in the forefront of development of devices for seismic
isolation and added damping. Lead-extrusion dampers,
and lead-rubber bearings were developed in NZ, and
were implemented in structures, starting in the 1970s

KEY TEXT BOOKS ON SEISMIC DESIGN

Reinforced Concrete (1976) Park and Paulay
Seismic Design of Reinforced Concrete and Masonry
Structures (1992) Paulay and Priestley
An Introduction to Seismic Isolation (1993) Skinner,
Robinson and McVerry
Seismic Design and Retrofit of Bridges (1996)
Priestley, Seible and Calvi
(Displacement-Based Seismic Design of Structures
2007 Priestley, Calvi and Kowalsky) ???
These books (well, at least the first four books!),
based on NZ design philosophy, and research, have
had considerable influence on seismic design both
within and outside NZ.