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Joost Kuckartz
NPO SODIS Australia
+61 435 484 224
1/66 Leicester Avenue
Melbourne 3150 VIC, Australia
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Introduction
In this document it is intended to provide a more detailed overview of the monitoring services and products NPO SODIS provides.
This document contains the following information:
• Regulation to monitoring• Structural monitoring• Building equipment monitoring• Building management• Historical structural failures
and issues• Selection of projects
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ContentsContact details 1
Introduction 2
Contents 3
The Company 4
The Safety of Civil Infrastructure 5
Introduction 5
Russian Regulation 5
Regulation in Other Countries 7
Building Equipment Monitoring Systems (BEMS) 8
Introduction 8
Development 8
BEMS for Maintenance and Management 8
Diff erence with Building Management Systems (BMS) 9
Structural Health Monitoring Systems (SHMS) 11
Introduction 11
Design Stage 13
Installation stage 15
Maintenance stage 16
Structural Failures and Prevention 17
Introduction 17
I-35W Bridge 17
John Hancock Tower 17
Citigroup Center 18
Lotus Riverside Residential 19
Rana Plaza Building 19
Sampoong Department Store 20
Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium 20
Other noteworthy failures 21
Possible future failures 22
Project Selection 23
Introduction 23
Sochi 2014 Olympic Complex 23
Moscow City High-rises 24
Baltic Sea Tunnel, St. Petersburg 25
Lakhta Tower, St. Petersburg 25
Summary 26
References 27
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The Company
NPO SODIS off ers a large range of services for the building and civil infrastructure industry.
The main focus of NPO SODIS and its specialized services and products,
is on the safe development and operation of buildings and civil infrastructure.
This focus comes to light in the development, installation and maintenance
of building equipment monitoring systems (BEMS) and structural health monitoring
systems (SHMS). Additionally, NPO SODIS is able to evaluate terrorist and other attacks
to civil engineering projects and provide recommendations for improvement of the safety
of building and civil infrastructure.
The company was founded in 2005, but research to SHMS and BEMS started in 1998.
As of 2013, NPO SODIS has its headquarters in Moscow, Russia and a branch
in Melbourne, Australia. In total 60 employees work for NPO SODIS, many graduated
from prestigious engineering universities. It has worked on more than 200 projects
for the development of SHMS and BEMS.
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The Safety of Civil Infrastructure
IntroductionThe failure of a structural component can lead to disastrous results. Such failure can be due
to incorrect construction, a fl aw in the design, the use of incorrect construction materials or
many other factors. It does not have to be inherent to the building, environmental events such
as earthquakes and tropical cyclones (typhoons, hurricanes) may cause structural damage.
Although many factors are taken into account in the design of civil infrastructure to cope with
these eff ects, occasionally a fl aw has been overlooked or the environmental eff ects are worse
than expected.
The failure of building equipment, such as elevators, air-conditioning systems, pumps etc. does
not necessary create emergencies, but can be a large nuisance to the users of the building. A fi re
in the building however is an emergency and can endanger the occupants. Similarly, a fl ood in a
tunnel or a boat hitting a bridge pillar can endanger the users of this infrastructure.
Russian RegulationIn 2005, the Russian Federation implemented a standard which requires a single integrated
system to monitor emergency situations. This standard, GOST R 22.1.12-2005, defi nes
a “structured system for the monitoring and control of building and construction engineering
equipment (SMIS)” as follows:
A software/hardware (program-technical) based (instrument, facilities) system, designed for the implementation of automatic monitoring of engineering-technical maintenance systems, conditions of foundations, building constructions of buildings and facilities (structures), technological processes, facilities of engineering protection on the respective categories of objects and transmission of real-time information about threats and emergencies, including caused by terrorist acts, through the communication channels to the daily management bodies of a unifi ed state system for the prevention and liquidation of emergency situations (Russian Unifi ed Emergency Rescue Service, RUERS).
Of the many objects the standard is required to be implemented, NPO SODIS develops
monitoring systems according to this standard for the following objects:
• Airports and related infrastructure
• Capital construction projects where in the project documentation provision is
made of at least one of the following:
• height is more than 100 m
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• span is more than 100 m
• console or overhang is more than 20 m
• the underground section (fully or partially) is more than 10 meter below the level of
land planning
• presence of structures and structural systems which are subject to non-standard
methods of calculation based on the physical or geometric nonlinear properties,
or use specially developed methods of calculation
• Objects with an estimated capacity of more than 500 people: entertainment, sports facilities,
multipurpose offi ce and shopping complexes, health care facilities, hotels
The SMIS system should monitor:
• Outbreak of fi re
• Irregularities in the heat supply system (including hot and cold water supply)
• Irregularities in the supply of electricity (power supply)
• Irregularities of the gas supply (gas transmission), including gas leaks
• Failure of the elevator equipment
• Unauthorized entry to the premises
• The maximum allowable concentration of chemically hazardous substances, biological
hazards, explosive concentrations of gas-air mixtures and high levels or radiation
• Flooding of the premises, drainage systems and technological pits
• Deviations from the standards of technological processes (if they can lead to emergency
• situations)
• Changes in substrate conditions, building (engineering-technical) constructions of buildings
and facilities
• Malfunction of emergency, security and fi re protection systems
• Engineering protection facilities (equipment)
• Site condition changes such as possible fl oods, landslides or avalanches in the neighbourhood
of the object
The SMIS system must provide:
• Prediction and prevention of accident situations by controlling the parameters of the
operational processes of objects and determine deviations from the standard from their
current values
• Continuity of data collection, transmission and processing of information about the
parametric values of the object’s operational processes
• Generation and transfer of formalized operative information about the state (condition)
of technological systems and the change of state (conditions) of engineering-technical
structures (constructions) of object to the duty and dispatch services facility of the object
• Generation and transfer of formalized emergency reports (messages about emergencies)
of facilities, including those caused by terrorist acts, to the daily management bodies of a
unifi ed state system for the prevention and liquidation of emergency situations (emergency
rescue service)
• Automated notifi cation of the occurred accident and issue the emergency action of
evacuation
• Automated notifi cation of professionals responsible for the security of objects
• Documenting and recording of emergency situations and the actions required by the duty
and dispatch services facility of the object
In summary, the building standard GOST R 22.1.12-2005 states that any situation that can cause an emergency
or equipment failure, should be monitored by a single system by means of sensors and software, where this
information is provided to the building operator and emergencies are transmitted to the local or national
emergency services.
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NPO SODIS follows this standard but markets its products internationally as building equipment monitoring
systems (BEMS) and structural health monitoring systems (SHMS). According to the GOST R 22.1.12-2005
standard, SHMS must be used in combination with a BEMS. The details of how a SHMS is set up and which
structural elements require monitoring, is defi ned specifi cally in the GOST R 53778-2010 standard.
Regulation in Other CountriesThe Russian regulation GOST R 53778-2010 has been extended and approved into the Eurasian standard
GOST 31937-2011. This standard states the implementation of structural health monitoring systems, similar
as GOST R 53778-2010, in the following countries:
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Belarus
• Georgia
• Kazakhstan
• Kyrgyzstan
• Moldova
• Russia
• Tajikistan
• Turkmenistan
• Ukraine
• Uzbekistan
In late 2012 the new International Building Code has a provision in Appendix L stating that a simple
structural monitoring system of at least 3 accelerometers is required when the 1-second ground acceleration
is larger than 0.40 g. Based on this standard, NPO SODIS in collaboration with a research project at
The University of Melbourne, Australia has created the following map indicating the regions of the world
where structural monitoring systems should be implemented, provided that the legislation of that country
has approved the International Building Code 2012 including Appendix L.
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Building Equipment MonitoringSystems (BEMS)
IntroductionA building equipment monitoring system (BEMS) keeps track of all incoming information from
individual components in a building. These components range from power systems to elevators
to safety systems.
In many tall buildings, each system has its own measurement and monitoring system. NPO
SODIS integrates these systems into one system and only one software program is needed to
keep track of all building equipment. Therefore, information about a failure or warning is directly
accessible instead of the need to browse through many diff erent software packages, each with a
diff erent method of reading information.
DevelopmentSystems which already have a measurement and monitoring system need to be integrated into
the system developed by NPO SODIS. However, some systems are not part of the standard MEP
design and NPO SODIS can perform this design in that case. This includes:
• Fire safety systems
• Security and access control systems
• Chemical monitoring
• Flood monitoring
Structural safety and site condition monitoring can also be designed by NPO SODIS. For structur-
al safety monitoring, refer to the chapter “Structural Health Monitoring Systems (SHMS)”.
As NPO SODIS can also design a full MEP system, the integration of all systems and its building
equipment monitoring system will be seamless.
As part of the BEMS development, statistical analysis of the MEP and safety systems is performed
so correct operation is ensued and critical situations can be forecast by the system.
BEMS for Maintenance and ManagementOne could see the BEMS as an enterprise asset management system with functionality for
maintenance. The software system for BEMS reads all received data and displays this in a clear
overview for the operator. It integrates with the building information model (BIM) by indicating
the elements in a 3D model, allowing direct identifi cation and localization of the equipment.
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The software additionally has algorithms in place to detect impending failures and of course deals with
warning and failure messages from the equipment itself. As it is based on existing building standards, it is
capable of monitoring:
• Outbreak of fi re
• Irregularities in the heat supply system (including hot and cold water supply)
• Irregularities in the supply of electricity (power supply)
• Irregularities of the gas supply (gas transmission), including gas leaks
• Failure of the elevator equipment
• Unauthorized entry to the premises
• The maximum allowable concentration of chemically hazardous substances, biological haz-
ards, explosive concentrations of gas-air mixtures and high levels or radiation
• Flooding of the premises, drainage systems and technological pits
• Malfunction of emergency, security and fi re protection systems
• Engineering protection facilities (equipment)
• Site condition changes such as possible fl oods, landslides or avalanches in the neighbour-
hood of the object
Due to the integration with the BIM, an emergency, failure or pending problem is immediately identifi ed in
the model by its location. It will also analyse the scale of the problem, and recommend further tasks to be
performed (such as evacuation in case of a fi re). The software for BEMS has the special capacity to report
messages automatically to emergency services, thus direct safety response is ensured (in case of fi re, fl ood-
ing, terrorist attacks).
It must be noted that the building information model is the model shown as-built – sometimes when BIM is
employed in the construction and MEP design, modifi cations are made which are not referred in the BIM. A
clear diff erence between the ‘design-BIM’ and ‘as-built-BIM’ is when offi ces with infi ll walls are implemented
and communication and power cables are laid out according to the offi ce layout.
Together with the BEMS, a ‘service desk’ such as a web portal, can be implemented. This allows the tenants
to directly communicate with the operators and maintenance crew of the building, so that complaints or
requests for maintenance can be handled accordingly.
If a structural health monitoring system (SHMS) is implemented in the building, the software for BEMS can
also receive messages from this system.
Difference with Building Management Systems (BMS)Building management systems are used to control all parameters of the building’s equipment instead of only
monitoring them. A building management system allows to:
• Set the temperature of a certain room
• Turn on or off the lights in a certain room
• Control the power to certain equipments
• Control the elevator’s locations
The term “building management system” (BMS) is sometimes used when a “building equipment monitoring
system” (BEMS) is meant. As described before, the BEMS keeps track of all incoming information, but it
cannot send commands back to the equipment to control them. A BMS extends a BEMS by being able to
send commands for control.
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Current BMS have the issue that for almost every building system, a separate management system is needed.
NPO SODIS is capable of developing a single software program that interfaces with every building
equipment management system, so that only one software program is needed to control all equipment
in a building. Therefore, a real, integrated BMS.
A large disadvantage is that the system developers, who create management systems for their own
equipment, do not want single-software integration. This is the reason why building operators have to deal
with a large amount of diff erent software packages when operating a building. The suggestion of NPO SODIS
is that, if a single software system is recommended for building operation, to indicate this requirement to the
system developers so NPO SODIS can integrate the management into a single system.
NPO SODIS has the software developers working on the development of such system, provided that the
individual system developers are willing to cooperate. The goal of NPO SODIS is to use the building
information model used in the building’s design to also be used for the successful operation
and management of the building.
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Structural Health Monitoring Systems (SHMS)
IntroductionA structural health monitoring system (SHMS) can be developed for any civil infrastructure
project. NPO SODIS has experience with and has developed SHMSs for buildings, stadiums,
bridges and tunnels.
The main goal of a SHMS is to keep track of the safety and trends of the structural elements
of a structure. The items of a SHMS are:
• Sensors
• Connectivity (data transmission, power)
• Server and operator computer
• Software
The design of a SHMS is not only the selection of sensors and the installation is not only
installing them at their intended location. Three stages can be identifi ed: design, installation and
maintenance. In the design stage, which is generally started when the structural design of civil
infrastructure is being fi nalized, the system is designed to be integrated in the structure. In the
installation stage the sensors and other equipment is installed; this commonly begins when a
structure’s MEP systems are being installed or nearing installation completion. The maintenance
stage is ongoing after installation and continues throughout the lifetime of the structure.
The complete design and installation procedure is shown in the fl owchart on the next page and
includes the following steps:
1. Estimation of project time, Determination of cost
2. Creation of 3D model(s)
3. Threat modelling
4. Structural & dynamic analysis
5. Determination of critical structural elements
6. Determination of measurable parameters
7. Determination of safety criteria
8. Choice of sensors
9. Choice of locations
10. Construction & installation documentation & drawings
11. Installation of equipment in building
12. Initial measurements
13. Matching of mathematical model
14. Additional measurements
15. Updating of processing software
16. Installation of management software
17. Commissioning
18. Data analysis
19. Technical support
Each step is described in more detail and uses buildings as an example.
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Estimation of project time, determination of cost
The process for the development and installation of a structural monitoring system always consists of three
stages: the design, installation and maintenance stage. The client can decide to split the process into three
contracts, one for each stage (most common in Russia) or as a single contract. Splitting up the development
into three separate contracts however is not as effi cient as complete development and therefore can add
extra costs and will require more time. A better cost and time effi ciency is achieved when all three stages are
performed by NPO SODIS.
To estimate the time and cost for a design contract only, we ask the client to provide at least the building’s
height, amount of fl oors, surface area and construction type. For a total contract, more detailed information is
needed such as the structural design and generic fl oor plans. The more information is present and provided,
the better the estimation of project time and cost will be.
At this point the client discusses the contract items and terms with us and if the client decides to employ the
services of NPO SODIS, the client signs the contract.
Design StageCreation of 3D model(s)
Many of the monitoring analysis processes require the use of 3D models. The creation of 3D models is
continuous and parallel to the other processes. 3D models are used in:
• Structural and dynamic analysis
• Determination of critical structural elements
• Determination of parameters
• Choice of sensor locations
• Mathematical model matching
• Updating of the processing software
If not present yet, the client is requested to provide building plans or building models to aid in the creation of
the analysis models.
Threat modelling
With the building information, threats have to be identifi ed and modelled. These can include seismic events,
large wind loads, extreme thermal conditions but also terrorist threats can be modelled when requested. In
this process the threats are identifi ed and modelled to be used in the following processes.
Structural & dynamic analysis
Based on the threats and regular environmental loads, the building is extensively analysed. As many diff erent
loads are present and analysed, the ANSYS package is used for all analysis done. Non-linear analysis can also
be performed.
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Determination of critical structural elements
Based on the threat modelling and structural design of the building, critical structural elements can be
determined. The structural & dynamic analysis will additionally assist in determining these elements, where
the weakest points or sections of the building might be located. These critical elements will be used in
determining the parameters for measurement and the sensor locations, so that reactions of these elements
to the environmental loads can be determined.
Determination of measurable parameters
A measurable parameter is not only the data of a sensor itself; it can also be a combination of multiple
sensors with a mathematical model behind it or a set of processing algorithms. In this process these
parameters are determined so to give an optimal view of the structure’s total response in combination with
the response of the critical structural elements.
Determination of safety criteria
A unique element in the design of NPO SODIS’ structural monitoring system is setting the criteria for building
safety. This process sets limits to the parameters after which the building’s response is considered in a
dangerous area. These limits allow for real-time monitoring of the building and immediately detecting issues
with the building as a whole but also the critical structural elements.
Choice of sensors
Based on the measurable parameters sensors have to be chosen which can accomplish the measurement
of these parameters. Depending on the previous analyses, the amount and type of sensors is determined
in this process. Although accelerometers are the most common instrument for measurement of building’s
responses, this is not always enough nor does it always identify all issues with the building. NPO SODIS is
able to work and has experience with a wide variety of diff erent sensors.
Choice of locations
Based on the sensors and the critical structural elements, locations have to be determined for the sensors.
The goal is position sensors as effi cient as possible, without interfering with building operation but still able
to identify the total response of the building and its critical structural elements.
If the client only signed a design contract, this is the point where a defi nite list of equipment, their costs and
the costs for installation are made. At this point the client is requested to evaluate the further involvement
of NPO SODIS in the installation of the structural monitoring system into the building. At this point the
installation contract will be drafted.
Construction & installation documentation & drawings
As an output of the structural monitoring system design process, construction and installation
documentation and drawings are made to allow for the installation of the sensors. These drawings of course
also include all required cabling such as data transmission and power to the sensors. These drawings are
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requested to be evaluated by the client as not to interfere with other systems or possible changes to the
layout.
Installation stageInstallation of equipment in building
By following the construction and installation drawings, the sensors and all cabling is installed in the building.
Additionally a server is set up and connected to the sensor cabling, which stores all measurement data and
processes the algorithms. The installation takes place while the building is still under construction, which
means that the building does not have to be operational at that time.
Initial measurements
After the construction of the building is fi nished, a period of time is used to collect initial measurements.
Although measuring the building will continue as long as the sensor system is within the building, this set of
measurements is used to identify the building in its ‘complete and undamaged’ state, obtaining the natural
responses of the building. These measurements are then used in the next process.
Matching of mathematical model
All measurements of the building need to be matched to the mathematical model of the building, running
on the server. The initial measurements of the building are used to update the mathematical model, so
that both the measurements and mathematical model provide an equal result. If this is not performed, the
mathematical model as used in the design stage for structural and dynamic analysis might be slightly off , and
measurements might indicate a problem with the building or its critical structural elements, even though this
is not the case.
Because this matching is performed, the mathematical model represents the structure as newly built.
Additional measurements
In exceptional cases the building reacts diff erent to environmental loads than as was modelled, determined
by the initial measurements results. This would require more detailed measurements so that the mathematical
model can be modifi ed accordingly. If additional measurements for analysis are requested by the client, this
can also be performed at this point.
Updating of processing software
When the matching of the mathematical model has been performed, the initial mathematical model running
on the server has to be updated to the matched model. Now when the server receives the sensor data and
calculates the measurable parameters (as determined in the design stage), it can identify if there is a potential
problem in the building by matching them to the safety criteria limits (also determined in the design stage).
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Installation of management software
All sensor data and measurable parameters stored and calculated in the server can be accessed by
management software running on the building operator’s computer. This management software also
receives messages from the server when safety criteria limits are exceeded, therefore allowing for real-time
monitoring of the building.
Commissioning
At this point the structural monitoring system has been completed for the building, and can be handed over
to the owner(s) and operator(s) of the building.
Maintenance stageData analysis
We are able to analyse all sensor data and measurable parameters and evaluate the building’s performance,
even when the software does not indicate any issues with the building. We can make a periodic report on the
building’s status and performance and issue this to the people responsible for handling the analysis reports.
Any analysis requests should of course be discussed with us.
Technical support
We can provide technical support for when issues arise with the monitoring system and when sensors
need replacement. Technical support also includes updates of the software to newer versions and
implementations of feature requests from the owner(s) and operator(s).
Maintenance training
We can provide training for the responsible maintenance personnel to also include maintenance to the
monitoring system, when maintenance is needed. This would then limit the necessity of NPO SODIS to come
on-site when issues arise.
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Structural Failuresand Prevention
IntroductionThere have been a large number of structural failures, even collapses. Many of these could have
been prevented or repair could have been made when a structural health monitoring system
was installed.
I-35W BridgeMinneapolis, USA
This bridge collapsed in 2007 due to
a ‘design fault’, killing 13 and injuring
145. The bridge however operated for
40 years before its collapse.
The collapse could have been
prevented if it was instrumented
with a structural monitoring system
which monitored the distribution of
forces along its structural members.
Even though visual inspection was
performed, the bridge was considered
stable. Afterwards, the slight bowing
of the gusset plates, detected
on an image made 4 years before
the collapse, indicated the location
of eventual failure.
The current replacement bridge is the most instrumented bridge in the USA.
John Hancock TowerBoston, USA
The tower is still standing, but had many problems during construction and operation. During
construction, a retaining wall to hold back clay and mud bent and damaged the site and nearby
buildings. This could have been prevented with a stronger wall, but could be predicted if soil
pressure monitoring was performed.
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The original glass windows would detach from the frame
and fall down to the fl oor. This was attributed to thermal
stress. Although this could not have been prevented by
monitoring (as this is a design fault), thermal stresses can be
monitored with a structural monitoring system.
The occupants of the upper fl oors were nauseated by the
excessive building motion, and a tuned mass damper was
installed to counteract this. This could have been prevented
by measuring the vibrations from the construction start,
thus determining the need for a damper earlier.
Finally, due to all the research performed on the building, it
came to light that the building could have fallen over under
certain kind of wind loading, and diagonal steel bracing was
added to the building. This could have been detected earlier
if a SHMS was monitoring the wind, structural vibration and
foundation tilt.
Citigroup CenterNew York, USA
Also this building is still standing, but only a year after its construction in 1977 it came to light that a strong
wind could have toppled the building, only weeks before a large storm was approaching which, when it hit
New York, would have caused the building to collapse. Luckily the storm changed course and strengthening
of the structure was performed.
Again, in this case, even the
development of a monitoring
system would have detected
the fl aw, as during the design
all critical events are evaluated.
One must note however that
this example is of the 1970s,
and monitoring systems were
unavailable at that time.
In 2002, the building received
blast resistant shields and
steel bracing to enforce the
building in case of terrorist
attacks. NPO SODIS is able to
determine the weak spots of
buildings in their anti-terrorism
analysis, and recommend these
improvements. Additionally, the
structural monitoring system
can issue evacuation messages
when a terrorist attack is
detected.
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Lotus Riverside ResidentialShanghai, China
This building collapsed in
2009 not long after it fi nished
construction, killing 1. The
collapse happened as an
underground parking lot was
being dug on one side of the
building, and the excavated
earth was positioned on the
other side. The diff erence in soil
pressure caused the building to
tilt until it collapsed. The two top
shareholders were sentenced to
life in prison.
This collapse could have been
prevented if inclinometers were
installed on the foundation slab,
which would measure a small
inclination before a fi nal collapse.
Reports state that poor quality of Chinese construction is a large problem: the building lifespan is estimated
to be only 25 to 30 year instead of the blueprints’ stated 50 years. If regulations are set in place to monitor
buildings, suffi cient building quality will be certain as building quality is a long-term monitoring parameter.
Other failures in China are:
1. Wuhan 6-storey apartment block collapse, 2009
2. Nanjing construction pit collapse which also created cracks in nearby buildings, 2009
3. Taizhou 18-storey building leans, underground pillar fails, then being demolished, 2011
4. Chengdu 5-storey cinema collapse, 2013
Rana Plaza BuildingSavar, Bangladesh
The commercial building
collapsed in 2013 after
cracks were discovered the
day before and evacuation
recommendations were partially
ignored. The shops on the
ground fl oor were empty on
recommendation; however the
garment factories continued their
work.
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The collapse killed 1126 people and injured more than 2500, making it the deadliest structural failure.
The building at the moment had a 9th fl oor under construction. According to several sources, the 5th to 9th
fl oors were illegally constructed and the building was not designed to house factories. The rubble indicated
the use of poor building material.
Sampoong Department StoreSeoul, South Korea
This department store collapsed in 1995,
killing 502 and injuring 937, making it
the second deadliest collapse related to
structural failure while not being related to
terrorism. The building collapsed due to the
cutting corners in construction such as not
enough and too small columns, incorrect
fl oor slab construction and the addition of a
fi fth fl oor with heavy equipment.
Although the building was fl awed, vibrations
of the air-conditioning unit caused cracks
in the concrete, which a monitoring
system would be able to measure. Also, the
monitoring system would be able to detect
the overloading of the fi fth fl oor.
Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin StadiumKuala Terengganu, Malaysia
One year after construction, the roof of
the stadium collapsed while there were
no special weather or seismic conditions.
Loud noises were heard before the collapse
occurred but luckily the stadium was not in
use at the moment.
While reconstruction work of the roof
was undergoing in 2013, two thirds of the
roof’s old structure collapsed again, again
with loud noises followed by the collapse
of the steel pillars. This time it injured 5
construction workers.
No investigation has been performed to
the reason of the collapse. A structural
monitoring system could have identifi ed
pending failure or fl aws in the construction.
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Other noteworthy failures:• Seongsu, South Korea, 1994: a bridge slab of the Seongsu
Bridge collapses, killing 32 and injuring 17. The investigation
concluded that the slab’s trusses were not fully welded and
that the pins for the steel bolts were insuffi cient.
• Cartagena, Columbia, 2007: the 206 meter steel structure
of the Torre de la Escollera twisted due to a storm – the steel
structure was dismantled the year after. If the building had
been completed, it would likely have collapsed.
• Malahide, Ireland, 2009: a 20 meter section of the
Broadmeadows train viaduct collapses after a passenger train
passed and only 3 days after visual inspection identifi ed no
issues. The piers of the viaduct did not go into bedrock and
river erosion in combination with train vibration caused the
collapse.
• Indonesia, 2011: the full 720-meter span of “Indonesia’s
Golden Gate Bridge” collapsed, killing 11, injuring 39. The
hypothesis is that the weight was incorrectly distributed over
the suspension cables, causing a progressive failure after the
cable with the largest load failed fi rst.
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2012: 20-storey building collapses
and takes a 10-storey building and 4-storey building, kills 17.
Illegal construction work in the building compromised the
structural integrity.
• Thane, India, 2013: under-construction building (6 storeys at time of construction) collapsed,
killing 74 and injuring 62. Building was being constructed illegally, was of poor build quality
and weakly built.
Many other collapses are listed on the following Wikipedia lists:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_structural_failures_and_collapseshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_bridge_failures
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Possible future failures
The Ping-An Financial Center, a 660 meter high skyscraper currently under construction, and 14 other high-
rises, are under discussion of using concrete with insuffi cient strength due to the mixing of sea sand in the
mix. The sea sand can, if untreated, cause corrosion of the steel material in the building and weaken the
structural structure. A structural monitoring system can keep track of the structural strength throughout the
lifetime of the structure.
Simulations in South California performed in 2009 suggest that at least 5 steel high-rise buildings would
collapse in a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Current building standards and earthquake models do not predict
any collapses, signifying incorrect building standards.
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Project Selection
IntroductionNPO SODIS has since 2005 worked on more than 200 diff erent projects for the development and
installation of monitoring systems. The following are a selection of NPO SODIS’ projects.
Sochi 2014 Olympic ComplexIn 2014 the Winter Olympic Games are held in Sochi. For this event, a large amount of new
stadiums are being constructed. NPO SODIS is heavily involved in this project by designing and
installing structural health monitoring systems (SHMS) in all stadiums and building equipment
monitoring systems in several stadiums.
Not only stadiums are being monitored, the ski jumping centre and bobsled track are also
equipped with structural monitoring systems. New residential buildings and a hotel under
renovation in the city of Sochi itself also require monitoring systems.
NPO SODIS is not only working on monitoring at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games. The security
and access control system for two stadiums is also designed by NPO SODIS, and an overall
emergency management plan is created.
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NPO SODIS works on the following projects:
• Bolshoy Ice Dome (Ice Hockey Arena)
• Fischt Olympic Stadium
• Adler Arena
• Iceberg Skating Palace
• Shayba Arena
• Russki Gorki Jumping Centre
• Ice Cube Curling Centre
• Bobsled Track
• Organising committee offi ce building
Moscow City High-risesThe business centre of Moscow is rapidly expanding with a master plan for more than 15 high-rise buildings.
When completed, the top 10 of Europe’s tallest buildings will be rewritten with more than 7 being located in
this business centre.
In its initial stage, NPO SODIS worked closely with the planning authority in creating an emergency response
plan for the complete area. This included the analysis of terrorist actions, how the public would react and how
emergency response would deal with it. Additionally, improvements for safety were given.
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Currently, NPO SODIS is involved in many individual buildings, designing and installing structural monitoring
systems (SHMS) and building equipment monitoring systems (BEMS).
Baltic Sea Tunnel, St. PetersburgSt. Petersburg’s expanding city required
a new ring road highway to the north
of the city. This ring road would
require a bridge or tunnel across the
Baltic Sea inlet. However, this inlet is
a busy shipping route and therefore
a tunnel was required. Additionally,
fl ood protection was needed to protect
St. Petersburg from fl ooding. Both a
submersible storm surge barrier and a
1.2 kilometre underwater tunnel were
constructed at the same location.
NPO SODIS designed and installed the
building equipment monitoring system
(BEMS) and structural health monitoring
system (SHMS) for Russia’s longest
underwater tunnel.
The SHMS consists of many pressure gauges to measure soil pressure (in particular of interest for when
the storm surge is closed) and strain gauges in the critical tunnel connecting elements. A total station and
several measurement points within the tunnel keep track of tunnel deformation. Additionally, borehole
inclinometers are installed to keep track of soil and bridge movement and tilt.
The BEMS consists of all video security systems for the road tunnel, to keep track of traffi c safety. Fire and gas
detection systems were also designed and installed.
Lakhta Tower, St. PetersburgThe Lakhta Tower in St. Petersburg will
become Europe’s tallest building at a
height of 463 meter when construction
fi nishes. NPO SODIS is currently
developing the building equipment
monitoring system (BEMS) and structural
health monitoring system (SHMS).
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Summary
NPO SODIS is able to provide building equipment monitoring systems (BEMS) and structural health monitoring systems (SHMS), and is developing a fully integrated building management system (BMS). The engineers of NPO SODIS have the expertise to specify a monitoring system for many civil infrastructure projects and base their design on local and international standards.
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References
These references indicate mainly websites as sources for the news reports on structural failures.
1. Matthys Levy and Mario G. Salvadori. Why Buildings Fall Down: How Structures Fail. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2002.
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I-35W_Mississippi_River_bridge3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hancock_Tower4. http://www.hoax-slayer.com/13-story-buliding-collapse-china.shtml5. http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/2010-04/06/content_11017532.htm6. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-212428127. http://english.cri.cn/6909/2013/03/27/2561s756285.htm8. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampoong_Department_Store_collapse9. http://www.nema.go.kr/eng/m4_seongsu.jsp10. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_Thane_building_collapse11. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultan_Mizan_Zainal_Abidin_Stadium12. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torre_de_la_Escollera13. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-12/08/content_14230102.htm14. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/indonesia/8919923/11-dead-
after-Indonesias-Golden-Gate-bridge-collapses.html15. http://www.indii.co.id/news_daily_detail.php?id=245116. http://www.thedailystar.net/beta2/news/like-a-pack-of-cards-it-crumbles/17. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rana_Plaza18. http://www.wired.com/design/2013/03/poor-quality-chinese-concrete-could-lead-
to-skyscraper-collapses/19. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jan/02/local/me-steeltower2
For information on how NPO SODIS can assist in your projects, please contact our international director for more
information or to set up a meeting.
Joost Kuckartz
NPO SODIS Australia
+61 435 484 224
1/66 Leicester Avenue
Melbourne 3150 VIC, Australia
