Optimization and risk assessment

of tall reinforced concrete

buildings
Prof M T R Jayasinghe
Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
University of Moratuwa
Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
http://www.civil.mrt.ac.lk/Academic_Profiles/mtrj/index.html

Presentation of 13th July, 2017 at Engineering Department,

University of Cambridge
 An introduction to Thishan Jayasinghe
Completed B.Sc. in February, 1987 at University of Moratuwa (UOM), Sri
Lanka and then joined UOM as an instructor and then assistant lecturer
Read for Ph.D. at Cambridge University from October 1988 to December
of 1991. Supervisor was Prof Chris Burgoyne Rationalization of prestressed
concrete spine beam design philosophy for an expert system
Returned to Sri Lanka in March, 1992
Worked as a Lecturer (1992), Senior Lecturer Gii (1992), Senior Lecturer
Gi (1998), Associate Professor on merit basis (2001) and Professor on
merit basis (2003) at UOM
Research on Masonry, Tall buildings, Continuous bridges, Energy
efficiency, Thermally comfortable built environments in tropical climatic
conditions, cost effective alternative materials and systems, etc.
Also, has been very active in the industry tall buildings, highway
bridges and box culverts, housing sector, Green building projects, etc.
Worked as a Senior Research Associate at Queensland University of
Technology, Australia during the earlier sabbatical leave
Currently, a visiting academic at University of Bath and main aim is to
promote joint research collaborations
 An over view of the presentation
Introduction to Sri Lanka
Tall buildings in Sri Lanka - few examples
The vertical load resisting system
The lateral load resisting system
The mathematical models
The fundamentals and applications
Optimization techniques and risk assessment
The role of Euro Codes for Tall Buildings
Conclusions
Acknowledgement
Opportunities for research collaborations
Keywords to search on internet
 Introduction to Sri Lanka

Total area 64000 square km (1/4 the size of UK)

Population 22 million and more than 2.5 million live in other countries
Hence, a very significant influx of foreign exchange
Demand to move to city centers and hence tall builings
Considered as an ideal destination for retirement due to tropical climatic
conditions
Medical facilities are one of the best in the world and the most experienced
medical consultants of patients selection are readily accessible with appointment
within 2-3 hours hence many of old age find it a good destination
 Introduction to Sri Lanka
Carbon footprint of USA (17 tons), Canada (14 tons), Germony (9 tons),
United Kingdom (7.6 tons), France (5 tons), South Korea (12 tons),
China (8 tons), Malaysia (8 tons), Thailand (4.5 tons), India (1.6 tons)
Sri Lanka 0.8 tons hence one of the greenest economies
Hydro-power 30-40%, coal 30-40%, diesel or heavy oil 10%
Renewable 10% with wind and solar but fast increasing the share
Many houses are generating own electricity with solar with 6-8 kw
installed capacity and hence carbon neutral or negetive
1 kw can give 4-6 kWhours per day much higher than UK
Most houses with solar will have an electric first car
Hybrid or petrol second car
Electric car Nissan Leaf Rs 3.8 million (19,000 GB pounds)
Petrol car Toyota Corolla hybrid/ Petrol Rs 6.6 million (33,000
pounds)
Higher range Mercedes A 180 Rs 12 million or 60,000 pounds
The same car in UK 23,000 pounds
Government policy in Sri Lanka is more geared to support green
 Tall Buildings in Sri Lanka few examples

Under construction (about 4 months ago)

Computer generated 68 storey Altair

The mathematical models converted to an efficient computer model using SAP 2000
 The architect and the team

Structural Design Engineer Predrag Error an engineer from former Yugoslavia and now
practicing in Middle East after gaining experience in Australia and Europe
Check and Certifying Engineer Thishan Jayasinghe A chartered engineer can certify only
up to four floors and beyond that needs a special permit.
Only the experienced members of Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka with post graduate
degree in structural engineering can certify tall building having more than 20 floors needs a
special permission and name on the directory of structural engineers published annually and
used by the Urban Development Authority for approval
Coordinating Engineers Deepal Wickramasinghe and Bimal Fernando
Other tall apartment buildings Clearpoint
Vertical garden needed cantilevers up
to 4.8 m to plant trees not obstructed
by columns made possible with PT
Price Rs 35 to 40 million or
175,000 to 200,000 GB pounds
Will be affordable only if having
property in a more expensive country
Run by a management committee one
year after the sale of more than 80% of
the apartments
Inspiration from bridges 5.0 m cantilevers in pier capping
beam post-tensioned in two stages
During construction beams kept on pier capping beams
during construction
After completion where slender looking cantilevers carrying
heavy beams and highway traffic up to 45 units of HB
In use after completion of the 4 lane flyover
Other bridges with I girders of 25 m length with five and
three spans completed within a short period of 4 months
The concrete bridge with minimum carbon foot print cost is
only 10 GB pounds per sq ft, 300ft long and 10 ft wide
Bridge must assure that cultural pageants with elephants can use
the bridge so as construction vehicles can cross it hence
designed for 25 units of HB as for BS5400: Part2: 1978
Other buildings Fairmount and Sky-garden
 Crescat Monarch in Colombo

Crescat Monarch building with 30 floors originally designed as an office building

A mathematical model of Crescat Monarch
 The vertical load resisting system
This can consist of Columns, Walls, Pile caps, Piles, etc.
Columns can be massive 1.0 m x 1.0 m or 0.6 m x 1.4 m
Walls can be thin but must ensure not slender (200, 225, 250 300, 350,
400, 500, 600, 700 mm, etc.)
Dia-grid arrangement also can be used
200 mm is the minimum, but 250 or 300 mm could be preferred
depending on the number of floors
The minimum reinforcement of 0.4% (Euro of 0.2%) may not be
adequate in the lower floors and 1.0% -1.5% is usual
When more than 2%, vertical bars are provided, must be restrained as
for the columns
Since columns are much large than beams, mechanisms will occur in
beams when subjected to earthquakes
Hence, tall buildings are very safe in earthquakes if detailed properly
Beams will need special attention to provide adequate confinement
Piles must be properly tied with ground beams and slabs
 Transfer beams and plates
Urban development authority regulations need a car parking space
per apartment
The size of a slot is 4.8 m x 2.4 m
This makes the column spacing to be on a grid of 7.6 m to 8.0 m
Car parks also need access with a road of 7.3 m width
Also need access ramps of maximum gradient of 8 degrees
Hence, car parks are generally arranged on split level to reduce the
length of the ramps
The grid of apartments or hotel can be different to the car parks
Apartments and hotels need walls to reduce the space lost for the
vertical members
To reduce the beam depths, many walls are needed in 4.0 to 5.0 m
spacing and hence transfer beams or floors just above car parks
Flat slabs with PT is not very popular due to so many drops needed
Transfer beams in Sky Garden - Rajagiriya
 Lateral load resisting system
Tall buildings are vertical cantilevers with full or partial fixity
at the ground level
Hence, needs a very good lateral load resisting system to resist
the wind loads (and earthquake loads)
Concrete walls can be used (shear walls)
Concrete walls can be coupled to enhance the effectiveness
Closed cores could be even more efficient
When less than 10 floors, shear walls will carry all the lateral
loads
Above 15 floors, wall frame interaction must be considered
Outriggers can deploy the outer columns as well
Band beams can be used to make outriggers more efficient
Tubular structures and bundled tubes could be even more
efficient so as dia-grids
Structural forms for tall buildings
 The mathematical model
Tall buildings are complicated structures
Hence, needs a much simplified mathematical model to analyse
Structural Analysis packages with 3D capability can be used SAP 2000,
ETABS, Midas Gen, STAAD.Pro, etc.
ETABS Burj Khalifa structure
Axial shortening effects Midas Gen
Must prepare the model on paper and should get all the answers before the 3D
model is made
This is to select the member sizes needed for beams, columns, walls, etc
Model is there to verify the answers that we know
It is not to get the answers, but to get to the accurate value only
When the guess is 1500 kN, computer model can give 1543 kN and the designer
will happily use 1543 kN instead of his approximate guess of 1500 kN
Must know how to get these approximate values before the computer model is
made It is an art
This will need a thorough understanding from first principles on the behaviour
of tall buildings
Midas Gen was the main software for the Kingdom
tower and ETABS was used for checking
 The fundamentals and applications
In tall building, even if the building twists globally under wind
or earthquake loads, individual elements like beams, columns
and walls will not be subjected to torsional moments
Beams resist bending about one axis and shear (hardly bends
about two axes) but no torsion
Columns can carry axial loads and may have bending moments
about two perpendicular axes but no torsion
Concrete walls will carry axial loads and can have in-plane
moments acting but no significant out of plane moments no
torsion detail the slabs and beams to ensure this
Slabs will carry loads in flexure and can act as rigid diaphragms
to ensure the deflection at a given floor will represent a global
translation and rotation
However, there could be exceptions Must be identified early
 What a 3D model can tell us
Natural periods for any number of mode shapes
Earthquake analysis and wind analysis
The loads on columns, walls, dia-grids, transfer plates, pile caps,
piles, etc.
Cannot tell the bending moments on the slabs
Cannot be used to find the design moments in beams
Slabs can be designed considering yield line theory or computer
modeling with plate elements
Beams must be designed to resist pattern loading and hence a
simplified sub frame consisting of the beam at the floor level
acting with columns above and below can be used
Column axial load at ULS must allow for reduction in floor loads
allowed for the whole structure true for walls, transfer plates, pile
caps
Same reductions can be used at SLS for pile capacities
Design of beams in a tall building use a simplified sub-frame
Simplified sub frames for analysis columns must be free to
move vertically at the top
 Approximate determination of column and wall loads
Can be calculated using the tributary area
Hence, approximate column and wall sizes can be determined
Columns size from: N = 0.4 fcu Ac + 0.87 fy Asc
Thickness of a slab determined using deflection criterion must be minimized
Beam size has a magic number the depth is 450 to 600 mm irrespective of the
span
In office buildings with isolated columns, 600 mm and 350-400 mm width
In apartment buildings with many partition concrete walls, it is generally less than
500 mm
Wall thickness is 300 mm minimum at the lower floors
Can be reduced to 250 or even 200 mm towards to upper parts
Must carry corner reinforcement for enhanced ductility
May be generous in the use of U-bars to connect two vertical layers
Beams also can have enhanced ductility with 8 or 10 mm links at 150 c/c close to
the supports
Columns also can have close links of 8 or 10 mm for about 0.6 m
8 mm bars can bring about a very significant saving for the whole building
 Optimization techniques and risk assessment
Tall building must be designed to be economical
It cannot be overdesigned and hence must be optimized
However, optimized structures can carry a greater risk
Optimization can be started with slabs
Select the minimum thickness possible, but greater than 125 mm for
apartments and more than 150 mm for office due to sound
insulation requirements
Optimize the main reinforcement and consider using 8 mm bars as
distribution reinforcement
Any saving in a slab is repeated 40 times in a 40 storey building
Slabs never ever fail in tall buildings when the concrete is C25 or
above due to arching action possible due to restraints
Hence, designer shall have no fear for optimizing and making
substantial cost savings with reinforced concrete solid slabs
 Optimizing beams
Beams never ever fail if extra capacity is available in the span sections
Moment redistribution is allowed up to 30% for the moments at the columns
or supports
However, a good practice is to restrict it to 20% so that higher capacity will
be available over the support to take account of unforeseen effects
Hence the support moments can be reduced and no need to provide extra
reinforcement for enhanced safety or reduced risk
However, be generous with span moment capacity and provide one or two
extra bars ( provide 4 nos of H20 when only 3 nos of H20 is needed)
Axial shortening of columns and walls due to loads, shrinkage and creep can
give a significantly changed bending moment diagram
However, the extra capacity at the spans will assure absolute safety
Provide closer links at columns or walls to enhance ductility
T8 links at 150 centers can assure constructability
Provide minimum reinforcement at the ends of secondary beams to prevent
torsion on primary beams
 Optimizing columns and walls
Optimized only by selecting the minimum concrete section (cross section in
columns and thickness in beams)
Must be very generous with vertical reinforcement and hence no optimization
(provide 1.5% or more when 1% is sufficient, especially in the lower floors)
Adequate transverse links can be provided to prevent buckling of the vertical
bars
Closer restraints at the floor levels to enhance ductility for about 0.6-0.8 m
above and below a slab
T8 links at 125-150 mm is preferred at the slab levels
T8 links at 12 x diameter is sufficient in the rest
Columns can have higher strengths like C30, C35, C40 or C50
Cost of not optimizing the column r/f carry only a very little penalty, but can
reduce the risk significantly
Ideal to use fly ash in concrete used for columns since a significant increase in
strength of concrete can be gained at 90 days or 365 days
Generally many standards would not allow this to be taken into account, but in
tall buildings, this can be used as a buffer to improve safety and capacity
Assessment of column moments must look at moments
about two perpendicular axes given by M33 and M22
A 14 storey apartment building with transfer beams over the car park
A view at car park levels and piles with pile caps
Transfer floors with large beams supporting walls above and
supported by few columns below
Extruded view of transfer beams and indicate that beams may not
be loaded symmetrically
 Challenges with transfer beams
Transfer beams may not be loaded on the beam center lines
Hence, can be subjected to bending, shear and torsion
In transfer beams, depth is needed to resist flexure
The width is needed to resist torsion with links and extra longitudinal bars
Hence, 1500 mm deep and 1000 mm wide section could be common and
torsion may need 16 or 20 mm outer torsion links at 150 c/c
Will need a top slab of 200 or 250 mm useful in reducing twisting
Must carry a double mat reinforcement to ensure torsional rigidity
Can be of H12 bars with H10
 Challenges with concrete technology
A large beam concreted in warm humid tropical climates may have a
placing temperature of 32o-34o Centigrade
Due to heat of hydration, the interior of the section may reach a
temperature in excess of 700 Centigrade
Hence, the danger of Delayed Ettringite Formation (DEF)
DEF can destroy beams and hence must be prevented
Transfer beam is one of key elements of the structure
What is preferred for the transfer beams C30 or C40?
We have to use high strength concrete only in optimized section
A very large section means that the section is not optimized
Hence, use C30
Nothing can be gained by using C40, but it increases the potential for DEF
attack
Even for C30 concrete (a cylinder strength of 30 N/mm2 as for the Euro
Code) must be achieved with a cement content of 325 kg/m3 or less, but
addition fly ash of about 75 kg/m3 so that the total cemetitious content will
remain adequate to give the required strength with super-plasticizers
DEF in Southern Highway bridge pile caps in Sri Lanka The consultant and the
contractor could have underestimated the potential for DEF and Portland Lime
Stone Cement was allowed when specification clearly indicated only Portland
cement and also too much optimization of pile caps with much less reinforcement
than usually found in typical pile caps
 Use of charts to determine the likely temperature rise this
case has no fly ash and only the cement

Peak temperature variation of various concrete mixes with a placing temperature of 32oC
and 0% fly-ash
 Use of charts to determine the likely temperature rise 15% fly
ash to replace the cement and hence cementatious content

Peak temperature variation of various concrete mixes with a placing temperature of 32oC
and 15% fly-ash
 Use of charts to determine the likely temperature rise with 25%
fly ash the maximum that is used with confidence

Peak temperature variation of various concrete mixes with a placing temperature of 32oC
and 25% fly-ash
 Use of transfer floors
Transfer floors will be very robust due to the large thickness
This will allow a massive torsional capacity since torsional shear stress can flow
in all directions within the slab
Hence very safe irrespective of the location of loads from above
However, punching shear could be a danger
Can be prevented easily be providing vertical properly anchored bars around
the critical perimeters
It is usual to anyway have H16 or H20 bars at 400 mm to 500 mm centers to
ensure a proper support for the top reinforcement mat
These r/f can act in shear once the concrete is hardened
The weight of the transfer floor is the biggest challenge
Will need a number of floors with shoring to take the load
Casting in two stages could be a better solution the solution adopted for
Crescat Monarch
The first stage could be a 350 to 400 mm slab which is propped again after the
removal of formwork to ensure that the bottom reinforcement will be stressed
to a lesser degree during casting of the remaining portion of transfer plate
The transfer floor of Crescat Monarch
 Solution in Cinnamon Red Hotel
The construction was awarded to a leading construction firm in Sri Lanka on
fixed price design and built basis for a very high specification
The in-house design team (my students) designed the building working with the
architect nominated by the client
Due to car parks, restaurants, gymnasium, meeting rooms, etc. needed before
the start of the hotel floors, transfer floor was needed at the 10th floor level
The cost was becoming too much for the fixed price contract and I invited the
design team to go for a value engineering solution
The solid transfer plate of 1.5 m thickness was converted to a cellular structure
with top and bottom slab still looked like a solid slab, but it was hollow
The bottom slab of 350 mm thickness facilitated the construction and the top
slab of 250 assured flanged beam action
This solution resulted in a very significant reduction in the total concrete
volume and thus the weight of the super structure
The saving in the reinforcement was also very significant
The contractor was able to break even in this fixed price project due to the
massive savings possible with the value engineering solution
26 storey, 3 star city hotel with five star facilities
 Cellular Transfer Plates Optimization
It needs a bottom slab of 350 or 400 mm acting as a flat slab initially
Can have shoring when the beams and the top slab is cast although slab alone
can take all the loads
This is for better composite action and also to assure that the reinforcement in
the slab can be reduced
Cheaper formwork not suitable for quality work can be utilized to form the
beams and the top slab since formwork cannot be recovered
Bottom slab must have two mats of reinforcement
The beams can be wide, but will not need to carry torsion
Hence, a width of 600 mm will be sufficient
The torsional shear will flow through the top and bottom slabs
Hence, a top slab of minimum 200 mm is needed and must be provided with
two mats of reinforcement
For deeper transfer cellular transfer plates or 2.0 m or 2.5 m depth, it is
advisable to use a top slab thickness of 250 mm and provided with adequate
reinforcement sometimes using H12 or H16 at critical locations to provide
adequate robustness and assure neutral axis remains in the top and bottom
flanges when subjected to flexure
 Piles
A good understanding of the pile capacities is very useful
Rules of thumb 900 mm piles 3000 kN, 1000 mm 4000 kN
1200 mm 6500 kN, 1500 mm 10500 kN, 1800 mm 14000 kN, etc.
Such knowledge will allow easy selection of number of piles when the
column loads are known under service conditions
Must consider the effects of wind in all the critical directions
Earthquake resistance is gained by using ground beams to connect all the
individual pile caps
Ground beams can support the ground slab as well
Ground slab also can be about 200 mm thick and provided with a double
mats of reinforcement with H10 or H12 bars to assure a somewhat rigid
diaphragm at the ground floor level
Ground beams can be 800 mm to 1000 mm deep to give sufficient stiffness
to ensure the rotation at the ground level is almost zero
Ground beams are provided with little extra reinforcement to ensure extra
capacity for extreme events like earthquakes
Can we exceed the above capacities for piles? Can we optimize?
Piles carry vertical loads in end bearing and skin friction
End bearing will not generally exceed 5 N/mm2, but in very strong rock with
RQD close to 100%, can go up to 7 N/mm2
Hence the maximum capacity is limited
However, in very tall buildings, the above capacities can be totally
inadequate
In Altair, 1200 mm pile carried 11000 kN and 1500 mm diameter bored pile
carried 17000 kN
This is achieved by having 10 m socketing into the fractured rock where
almost all the load will be transferred via skin friction developed within the
severely fractured rock available over a significant depth
The geotechnical engineers general advice was not taken since it was too
conservative and would only suit a building not as tall as Altair
Test piles of 1200 mm diameter took 20000 kN without any settlement once
allowed for axial shortening
However, geotechnical engineers contribution was taken for the other
structures needed for shoring to facilitate the basement construction where
advanced 3D FEM modeling ensured minimum effect on adjacent structures
 Lateral stability of piles and the building
Deep piles in very weak peaty soils can buckle and fail individually
This possibility must be considered and if it could happen, then use large
diameter piles that will never buckle (sometimes, more than 2.0 m and up to 2.5
m which will need BG 30 machines by Baur, Germony)
Lateral loads on the building can be resisted by the piles acting as a group since
connected by pile caps and ground beams
The behavior can be simulated by having lateral springs
A proper spring constant has to be used
For very weak cohesive soils, it could be 200 to 300 kN/m3
For sandy or laterite soils of tropical climates, it varies with the depth and can
even exceed 200,000 kN/m3 at a depth of 15-20 m
Piles are generally provided with 0.8% r/f at the top 12.0 m and can be reduced
or no r/f below this
Very close links (H10 at 125 mm spiral) in the top part of the piles
Pile caps must be designed properly with adequate reinforcement
A good practice to provide reinforcement in excess of minimum specified in the
standards along with some vertical reinforcement that can enhance shear
capacity that would be very useful during extreme events like earthquakes
BG 30 from Bauer up to 2.5 m diameter, easily 30 m or more depth with piles
completed within 24 hours due to efficient tools for breaking the rock for
socketing up to 2.0 m or more and adequate supply of concrete with truck
mixers generally, a 6 m3 truck is finished in less than 10 minutes
A model with super structure and sub-structure together with
soil represented by springs
 The role of Euro Codes for Tall Buildings
Effects of axial shortening must be considered
Modern software like Midas Gen can easily handle that
Even ETABS models can be imported to Midas Gen and checked for axial
shortening
Effect of construction sequence must be considered
Even SAP 2000 allows simulation of staged construction
The forces and moments in Transfer Beams and Transfer Floors are adversely
affected by staged construction (Easily handled by ETABS and Midas Gen)
It could cause an increase of about 15-20% in the bending moments, about 10-
15% increase in shear
The effect on torsion may generally be less than 5%
The standards like Euro Codes may not be adequate sometimes since those are
written for normal structures and tall building fall to the very limit of the scope
covered with a general risk assessment
The designer must have his/her own rules that can be more stringent than what
is given in codes written for normal buildings where special attention is given to
assess the high risks and special precautions are taken to ensure absolute safety
 Conclusions
Design of tall buildings is a very challenging task that involves a great deal of
risk assessment and taking additional precautions beyond normally
considered by standards
The designer can relax only if he is an expert and has an assurance that
his/her buildings are absolutely safe
Still, the analysis and design can be simplified significantly which will allow
optimization and must be very generous with the r/f of vertical members
Beams also need extra capacity in spans, but not over the supports
Transfer beams and transfer floors must be designed considering the loads as
for columns and also considering the additional moments due to construction
sequence
Pattern loading need not be considered for transfer beams and floors
Cellular transfer floors can easily replace more expensive thick solid slabs
that would be very difficult to construct due to weight and expensive due to
massive amount of concrete and reinforcement needed
Foundations need a very careful attention and modeling
Geotechnical engineer must advice, but structural engineer can work with
him/her to further optimize (joint work can bring better results)
 Conclusions
The 3D computer model can be either a representation of the actual structure
(results in very heavy models that takes few hours or days to run) or
A very simple mathematical model that is very different to the actual structure,
but can give a very accurate simulation of behaviour and all the forces and
moments needed for design
My preference is for a mathematical model since I am a structural engineer
Architects are more interested in the real structure and its appearance since
they have to convince a lot of concerned parties like clients, authorities, etc.
However, some structural engineers like models that is appreciated and
understood by the architects/clients and hence produce very heavy models that
are very difficult to optimize
Sometimes, those heavy models are considered superior as well
However, the reality is that an accurate simple mathematical model which can
give answers in few seconds is the one that show the creativity of the structural
engineer and allow the rapid optimization as in a true design cycle where the
design engineer is expected to respond to the feedback obtained
We must understand the first principles very well to be successful as a tall
building designer and must have a well developed rules to handle situations,
most of which may be the structural engineers innovations
 Acknowledgement
Excellent academic staff of University of Moratuwa who gave me a solid start
Prof Chris Burgoyne, my mentor and a brilliant engineer who showed me the way
forward when I read for Ph.D. at Engineering Department
Prof Christoper Calladine and other staff who made my life in Cambridge very
enjoyable and a life time experience and Cambridge Commonwealth Trust that
supported my scholarship
My very good friends, Prof Campbell Middleton and Prof Tim Ibell I am very lucky
to meet them in Cambridge as a student when they were also students and even today
that friendship continues with a deep understanding
Both, Cam and Tim and also my wife Chintha proof read my thesis and I was told
that there are no corrections after the viva by two top examiners, Prof Peter Waldron
from Bristol University and Dr Chris Morley from Cambridge University
The staff at University of Moratuwa for all the support and encouragement for career
development and generous funding for research and development
The Sri Lankan construction industry that allow us almost any wish we have to be
fulfilled with the research and development work with whole-hearted support
All my co-researchers for their hard work and support for research
Cambridge University Engineering Department academic and academic support staff
for their kind assistance to organize the lecture
Staff of University of Bath for facilitating our sabbatical leave at Bath
 Opportunities for research collaborations
We have very strong links with the rapidly expanding construction industry in Sri Lanka
So, any joint research on tall buildings, highway bridges, box culverts, irrigation structures,
coastal structures, etc. would be possible
The model is that all the data collection to be in Sri Lanka and then data analysis, computer
modelling, etc. at Cambridge
Data collection can be by post graduate students reading for M.Sc. on fulltime or part-time
basis registered for M.Sc./M.Phil. degree at UOM
Split degrees are possible for those reading for Ph.D.
All the data collected will be made available in raw form to Cambridge
Instruments needed must be provided from Cambridge
A lot of funds are available to buy when can be used in future projects and hence less
burden on our overseas research partners if such equipment could be identified
So, we like to initiate a discussion on research collaboration with our friends at Engineering
Department, University of Cambridge
For example, every student of Faculty of Engineering of University of Moratuwa is entitled
to all the Midas software (Gen, Civil, FEA, GTS NX, Soil Works, NFX, NFX CFD, etc.)
on their laptops renewable on annual basis, so as all the staff for research and
developments, and teaching Midas is one of the best software platforms for structural
and geotechnical, but can be used in bio-medical, mechanical, robotics, air-craft, etc.
Such exceptional facilities are yet to become the norm even in advanced economies
 Key words for searching on Internet about Sri Lanka (please see the images)
Altair Sri Lanka
Fairmount Rajagiriya
Sky-garden Rajagiriya
Clearpoint Rajagiriya
Elements Rajagiriya
Crescat Monarch
Heritanc, Kandalama, Cinnamon Bay, Beruwala Earls Regency, Kandy Citrus,
Wadduwa Magampura holiday resort Blue waters Wadduwa Rest house,
Polonnaruwa Jetwing Blue, Negambo
Ruins of Anuradhapura, Ruins of Polonnaruwa, Galle Fort, Sigiriya frescos
Dambulla rock temple, Yala Safari, Udawalawe Safari, Wilpattu Safari
Kandy perehera, Temple of tooth relic, Kandy, Colombo skyline
MAS Intimates Thurulie, Nelung Art Center (for green buildings)
Green projects in Sri Lanka
Solar revolution in Sri Lanka
Economic indicators for Sri Lanka
Architect Moshe Safdie the world famous architect of Altair
ICSECM 2017 The international conference on Structural Engineering and Construction
Management to be held on 7th, 8th and 9th of December, 2017 for the 8th consecutive year
 Useful information about other projects of
Prof M T R Jayasinghe
B.Sc. Eng. (Moratuwa), Ph.D. (Cambridge), C.Eng., MIE (SL), MSSE (SL)
Senior Professor,
Department of Civil Engineering
University of Moratuwa
Moratuwa,
Sri Lanka
Few other useful products and
rapidly constructable systems
Initiatives by Prof M T R Jayasinghe to apply
the findings of the published research and
development carried out at Department of
Civil Engineering of University of Moratuwa
by himself and by his colleagues
Straw panels as a walling material where each board is 2.4 m
x 1.2 m where the flexural strength in 1.2 m direction
Testing on Durra panels (compressed straw panels) with model
testing and the construction of walls for the two storey house
Construction of a two storey house with straw panels as loadbearing
walls, slabs, and ceiling material
Method used to convince the general public of the load
carrying capacity of compressed straw panels by the
manufacturing company
 The completed house with straw panels

The two storey house with the walls, floors and the ceiling all out of Durra
including bathroom areas
 Use of precast prestressed concrete panels of 1.0 m width, 75 mm
thickness and up to 6.0 m length for concrete floors - Panels connected
with 40 mm thick reinforced chip concrete screed and also made
continuous over the steel beams with special arrangements

Pre-cast Pre-tensioned slabs spanning on steel beams with a reinforced in-situ topping on top
Precast prestressed concrete panels made continuous with
an innovative method to reduce vibrations in thin panels
A/C ducts of air conditioning system with 100% recharge mounted under the
structural members for the four operation theaters in the ground floor
 Precast concrete floor completed with ceramic tiles and the ceiling erected
rapidly with Durra Panels (only two days were needed in this of 50 m length x
15 m width for the completion of the ceiling) the same Durra panels with
flexi-sheet mounting have been used for the interior skin of the walls to have
adequate water proofing capacity needed in a hospital to allow cleaning
 Rapidly constructed buildings with alternative materials and
systems the background
Serious problem in a 8 storey building of a base hospital in Sri Lanka managed by the
Western Provincial Council
We issued the evacuation order after the investigation
The total area of the hospital was 110,000 sq ft
8 storey building had 70,000 sq ft
Hospital lost nearly 2/3 of space overnight
This created a very serious situation needing the GOSL Minister of Health to intervene
So, I promised 50,000 sq ft in 50 days out of which, 30,000 sq ft in 30 days at a total cost
of Rs 200 million (1,000,000 GB pounds or a good house close to Cambridge city with
2000 sq ft) to be constructed by a Semi Government Construction Company
We gave 58,000 sq ft in three numbers of two storey buildings (50 m x 15 m footprint
per two storey building) and a three storey building with 30 m x 12 m foot print) in 52
days
We also met the 30 day dead line by completing two numbers of two storey buildings
We used alternative materials and systems to achieve this
Most of the buildings came in prefabricated form which means when one Durra Panle
was fixed, an area of 1.2 m x 2.4 m is completed
One precast panel of 6.0 m length x 1.0 m width is placed as a slab, a total of 6.0 m2 of
slab would be ready receive the insitu cast screed to complete the upper floor
 Alternative systems have resulted in a much shorter construction time at
Negambo hospital the progress at 6th of July at foundation level where a
foundation consisting of a cellular raft combined with isolated footings could
be completed only in two days covering an area of 50 m length x 15 m width
Progress 16th July the buildings with 3.0 m long eaves
to ensure adequate shading
 23rd of July, 2015 Two storey buildings that can resist cyclones of probable
magnitude in Negambo and also an earthquake up to 7 on Richter scale
completed with actual work started on 24th of June, 2015 A classic example for
countries needing rapidly completed shelter for those displaced by natural events
Three story building the same concept can be used even in a tall
building once adequate attention is paid to detail the cost was Rs
3600/= per sq ft or 18 GB pounds per sq ft
 Two storey house with light weight panels the structrue to be completed in 20
days for a two stoery house with living, dining, pantry, a bed room in ground
floor, a toilet and bath at ground and upper, a store room, three bed rooms in the
upper floor with one study room and a balcony and a roof top garden at the
second floor level with a water tank located over the staircase, floor to floor height
of 3.0 m cost of the structure to be Rs 3000 per sq ft or 15 GB pounds per sq ft
and also using a lot of waste materials
Staircase out of lightweight panels with a density of 600 kg/m3 due to the
use of recycled Expanded Poly-Styrene with cement, sand, fly-ash and fire
resistance given by the two cement fiber boards of 5 mm on wither side
Precast prestressed concrete beams used for slabs to give a light weight,
but very robust slab (in innovation by Dr A N S Kulasinghe, the eminent
civil engineer of Sri Lanka and now coordinated by the NERD center)
 Placing of precast beams for the upper floor slab manufactured by Ekala
Concrete Works under license from NERD Center
https://www.construction360.lk/construction-company-srilanka/m5c=/Ekala_Prestressed_Concrete_Industries_(Pvt)_Ltd.html
Two storey house with the beams of roof slab placed prior to concreting Also shown is the
factory used for manufacturing the light weight panels and a heap of used EPS kept ready
for crushing to form individual beads to be mixed with cement, sand, fly-ash and admixture
to create foam concrete of very low density - This two storey house will be instrumented
and then load tested for both vertical and lateral loads to determine the behaviour under
service conditions and with limited overload as part of a final year undergraduate research
project of Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
 Tiered house for areas prone to landslides where the foundation and retaining
walls constructed with cement stabilsed rammed earth (6% cement) and also
with cement stabilised earth blocks (CSEB), micro concrete tiles at a cost of 10
GB pounds per square foot (Rs 2000 per sq ft) for a CSR initiative of a
leading cement manufacturing company in Sri Lanka in year 2014
 For further information or research
collaborations, please contact Prof M T R
Jayasinghe, Senior Professor, Department of
Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa,
Moratuwa, Sri Lanka at
mtrjayasinghe@yahoo.com
http://www.civil.mrt.ac.lk/Academic_Profiles/mtrj/index.html