Risk Assessment and Mitigation of Blast Damage to Structural Systems. The cost of providing blast-resistant protective measures to potentially hundreds or thousands of existing buildings is immense and beyond the resources of government and society. The decision-making framework proposed herein provides a means to allocate funds to those buildings shown to have high risk of damage in the event of bomb blast. This will enable existing risks to be quantified and compared in a rational and consiste ....Risk Assessment and Mitigation of Blast Damage to Structural Systems. The cost of providing blast-resistant protective measures to potentially hundreds or thousands of existing buildings is immense and beyond the resources of government and society. The decision-making framework proposed herein provides a means to allocate funds to those buildings shown to have high risk of damage in the event of bomb blast. This will enable existing risks to be quantified and compared in a rational and consistent manner, thus ensuring that risk mitigation is maximised given expenditure of limited resources. Public safety will be governed by the extent and effectiveness of building protective measures. Lives will be saved, likelihood and extent of injury reduced and social and economic disruption minimised.Read moreRead less
Behaviour and innovative design of drive-in steel storage racks. Drive-in steel storage racks offer the most space-effective solution to storage needs. They have become increasingly sought after as population growth concentrates in the main Australian metropolitan areas, which is pushing up the cost of land and storage. However, the high failure rate of drive-in racking systems is costly to society, as they cause disruptions to our production and supply cycles, and lead to increased costs to Aus ....Behaviour and innovative design of drive-in steel storage racks. Drive-in steel storage racks offer the most space-effective solution to storage needs. They have become increasingly sought after as population growth concentrates in the main Australian metropolitan areas, which is pushing up the cost of land and storage. However, the high failure rate of drive-in racking systems is costly to society, as they cause disruptions to our production and supply cycles, and lead to increased costs to Australian industry and the consumer of the final product. There are great national benefits to be gained from developing innovative drive-in storage systems which have minimum risk of structural failure. Such systems will also enhance the international competitiveness of the Australian rack manufacturing industry.Read moreRead less
Stochastic Modelling of Strength and Reliability of Masonry Walls Loaded in Flexure and Compression. For new construction, a more efficient use of structural masonry will mean that less material will be used when compared to masonry structures designed to existing design specifications. This will result in lower construction costs, reduced energy costs and could help contribute to an increase in building approvals. The ability to more accurately assess the safety of existing masonry structures m ....Stochastic Modelling of Strength and Reliability of Masonry Walls Loaded in Flexure and Compression. For new construction, a more efficient use of structural masonry will mean that less material will be used when compared to masonry structures designed to existing design specifications. This will result in lower construction costs, reduced energy costs and could help contribute to an increase in building approvals. The ability to more accurately assess the safety of existing masonry structures may allow authorities to avoid unnecessary demolition or rehabilitation of such structures. Such infrastructure includes much of Australia's domestic housing, light commercial structures, numerous heritage buildings, and many structures required to serve a post disaster function.Read moreRead less
Structural Systems with Hollow Flange Sections in Cold-Formed Steel. Palmer Tube Mills have created a new range of hollow flange sections in cold-formed steel manufactured with the unique dual resistance welding process for use in the construction industry. The new sections combine the properties of hot-rolled open sections and cold-formed sections to create more structurally efficient sections. These new sections experience some unique and specific failure modes that are not considered in cur ....Structural Systems with Hollow Flange Sections in Cold-Formed Steel. Palmer Tube Mills have created a new range of hollow flange sections in cold-formed steel manufactured with the unique dual resistance welding process for use in the construction industry. The new sections combine the properties of hot-rolled open sections and cold-formed sections to create more structurally efficient sections. These new sections experience some unique and specific failure modes that are not considered in current design standards. This project will investigate these failure modes to devise efficient and safe guidelines for their structural design. The project will also develop new structural systems to utilise the unique properties of these sections.Read moreRead less
High-strength formwork systems. The project will lead to new formwork systems which are safer, stronger and quicker to erect. The systems will rely on scientific investigations to minimise the risk of structural collapse and associated cost to community. The systems are innovative and combine advanced technology to produce a superior product with strong export potential and capacity to raise the level of efficiency in the national market. The project will also develop advanced analysis and desig ....High-strength formwork systems. The project will lead to new formwork systems which are safer, stronger and quicker to erect. The systems will rely on scientific investigations to minimise the risk of structural collapse and associated cost to community. The systems are innovative and combine advanced technology to produce a superior product with strong export potential and capacity to raise the level of efficiency in the national market. The project will also develop advanced analysis and design methods for formwork systems which can be applied more generally to advance Australian engineers' position as world leaders in innovative structural design.Read moreRead less
Stochastic Modelling of Structural Facade Damage and Occupant Safety Risks Due to Explosive Blast Loading. The cost of providing blast protective measures to built infrastructure is immense and providing protective measures to potentially hundreds or thousands of existing buildings is immense and beyond the resources of government and society. The risk-based decision-making framework proposed herein allows damage and casualty risks to be quantified and compared in a rational and consistent manne ....Stochastic Modelling of Structural Facade Damage and Occupant Safety Risks Due to Explosive Blast Loading. The cost of providing blast protective measures to built infrastructure is immense and providing protective measures to potentially hundreds or thousands of existing buildings is immense and beyond the resources of government and society. The risk-based decision-making framework proposed herein allows damage and casualty risks to be quantified and compared in a rational and consistent manner, thus ensuring that risk mitigation is maximised given expenditure of limited resources. Clearly, maximising risk mitigation across a range of high risk buildings will minimise building damage, loss of life, business disruption and other economic and social impacts in the event of a severe bomb blast. Read moreRead less