Evaluation of seismic performance of buildings and infrastructure

Observations from the Canterbury and Kaikoura earthquakes are used to illustrate some important factors that often govern the seismic performance of ground, buildings and infrastructure. The talk examines some of the challenges in the seismic assessment of engineering systems, and confronts case history observations with our current engineering practice. Insights for a more holistic evaluation of the seismic performance of ground, buildings and infrastructure are discussed.