Seismic Engineering

 

Opus is a recognised leader in earthquake engineering and can offer our clients a comprehensive range of services and experience built up over many decades of pioneering work in this field.

Earthquake engineering is a wide field that encompasses a broad range of specialist skills ranging from geology, seismology, geotechnical and structural engineering to risk analysis. We have built up expertise in all these areas and have applied these skills successfully to an extensive portfolio of projects ranging from building and industrial structures to energy and infrastructure projects.

Through our multi-disciplinary approach we are not only able to provide our clients with comprehensive earthquake risk assessment services but also cost and time efficient risk management solutions.

The range of services that we offer include:

  • Determination of seismic hazard including ground shaking intensity, liquefaction slope failure and tsunami risk
  • Regional seismic hazard and risk studies including $ losses, lifeline restoration times and numbers of casualties
  • Estimation of earthquake damage to buildings and infrastructure and subsequent impact on operations
  • Estimation of earthquake damage repair costs and business interruption costs for insurance purposes
  • Advice on earthquake risk management options for critical infrastructure
  • Analysis for seismic loads and design for seismic resistance
  • Survey and assessment of the seismic performance of existing structures and equipment
  • Development of earthquake strengthening schemes and cost benefit analysis
  • Response spectrum and time-history structural analyses
  • Soil-structure and fluid-structure interaction studies
  • Full scale and model testing of structural components and equipment at our Central Laboratories

Show all Seismic Engineering projects...

Britomart Transportation Centre, Auckland, New Zealand

The historic (1910) Auckland Chief Post Office has been converted to the main public entrance into the Britomart underground railway station. Analyses indicated that the old four storey brick masonry and steel frame structure had poor earthquake resistance. Opus provided the structure with new shotcrete concrete walls and steel bracing diaphragms to enable it to safely withstand 2500 year return period earthquake shaking. This was achieved without comprising the appearance of the historic building façade.

                                                                                   

Wellington City Road Risk Management, New Zealand

Wellington's road network is vulnerable to natural hazards, particularly earthquakes and storms, and the hazards pose a significant risk to the road network and the community. Opus has developed a strategic risk management strategy for the Wellington City Council, to enable proactive management of risks to their road assets, and help improve the resilience of the road network. This work has involved the use of innovative approaches to assess the spatially spread out risks to the network with the aid of geographical information systems (GIS), and prioritisation of risk mitigation.

                                                                                   

Western Bay of Plenty Lifelines Earthquake Hazard Study, New Zealand

Opus was approached by the Western Bay of Plenty Lifelines Group to undertake a study of the earthquake hazards affecting the Western Bay of Plenty Region.  Opus undertook a study to identify and map earthquake ground shaking, liquefaction hazards.  The study included collation and review of ground information from published and unpublished reports, and development of a ground class map and earthquake ground shaking maps for two hazard levels and four earthquake scenarios