Architecture and Construction

Researchers at the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló and at the University of California have devised a system to reduce the damage caused by earthquakes in bridges. Installed between the piers of a bridge and their respective foundations, it is a flexible device that helps to mitigate the effects produced by the movement of the Earth’s surface, working in a similar way to the shock absorbers in cars. The study has been published in the journal Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics.

Tension is mounting for three teams of architects and engineers who are competing for the design of the new British Antarctic Survey (BAS) Halley Research Station. The winning team will be announced on Tuesday 19 July.

The Jury Panel and technical advisory team have a difficult choice to select just one from three stunning solutions. Each proposal is designed to withstand Antarctica’s extreme environment. Each scheme is elevated above the ice to avoid burial by snow; and is capa

New Florida homes withstood last year’s four hurricanes better than their older counterparts — thanks in large measure to continued improvements in the state’s hurricane building code, say University of Florida engineers.

UF engineering researchers have completed one of the most extensive studies of how homes built before and after Florida’s latest building code held up against Charley, Frances, Jeanne and Ivan.

Their conclusion: Homes built under the Flor

TERREAL of France, a leading manufacturer of terracotta construction materials, specialises in terracotta facades for commercial and residential buildings and is currently looking for distributors. The company has demonstrated its international expertise by advising architects in Spain, England, the USA and China. TERREAL will be showcasing its latest product lines at various trade shows in the coming months.

TERREAL’s expertise is a major advantage in the terracotta cladding

EUREKA project E! 2797 FACTORY MSETC (Mobile Self-Erecting Tower Crane) has successfully combined the technologies of mobile and self-erecting cranes to create a single crane that can do the work of five. The new crane features an anti-sway device which makes it safer as well as more efficient.

The Belgian lead partner, Arcomet NV, has developed self-erecting tower cranes for the building industry for many years. “These cranes were mounted and remained in a fixed position on

An automatic sprinkler system significantly increases a person’s chances of surviving a dormitory fire, according to a report issued recently by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Three NIST experiments,* supported by a U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) initiative for fire safety in college housing, compared the hazards of fires in smoke detector-equipped dormitories with and without fire sprinklers in the room of fire origin. Researchers started fires