With natural disasters affecting some of the most vulnerable communities across the world, Build Back Better and Safer principles are becoming increasingly important for rebuilding or strengthening buildings in affected areas and protecting the community against excessive damage from future disasters.

FRAMECAD is currently working hand in hand with Red Cross to deploy the best Design and Build solution to rebuild the Vunikaikaloa Arya School in Fiji, destroyed in February / March 2016 by the the passage of the Cyclone Winston.

In countries subject to seismic activity, building design, engineering and construction must be specifically tailored to withstand the unique environmental stresses that result from earthquakes. Studies have demonstrated that light gauge steel (LGS) frame buildings and houses can perform extremely well during seismic events and are increasingly being used for construction in earthquake regions.

In the building and construction sector worldwide there has been an emerging awareness of the term “resilience”. Resilient buildings are a must – especially in areas that are prone to extreme environmental events such as cyclones.

Auckland University and Kiwi firm FRAMECAD have worked together on a new flooring system designed to cope better than traditional full concrete flooring in earthquakes. The new lightweight steel and concrete product is designed to minimise deaths and damage.