Specifications and Inspection Methods for Construction of Earthquake Resistant Structures

During the design phase of the structures, all calculations and processes can be carried out in accordance with the rules by expert engineers. There exist comprehensive structural codes which refer to the importance of adhering to the relevant standards for assuring concrete quality and, standards for concrete in turn, prescriptively define the rules for the high-quality concrete and its constituents. However, recent earthquakes have proved that when inspection during the construction phase and concrete production is ignored, the structure would not be earthquake resistant. In order to assure the quality of earthquake resistant structures, pre-testing and testing during the production phase should be implemented. Inspection sections for materials is an essential tool for the quality assessment of the constituents for concrete. Workmanship and equipment quality should be assessed during the full-scale trial tests. Effective specifications, quality and inspection test plans are required in the production phase. These will allow for quick responses and provide solutions by the engineers for the material related problems during the production phase.