This project supports a US-Bangladesh Workshop on Innovation for Windstorm Mitigation Construction, to be held in Dhaka, Bangladesh December 20-21, 2005. The U.S. organizer is Dr. Nasim Uddin, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama. The Bangladesh co-organizer is Dr. Sk. Sekender Ali, Department of Civil Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Dhaka. The workshop will be hosted by BUET with the Bangladesh Building Research Institute. The goal is to promote global interaction and foster research collaboration towards innovative construction for windstorm mitigation technology. The meeting will cover: advances in the field; interaction of materials and structural scientists; identification of locally available natural fibers like jute fabrics for strengthening of building materials; identification of gaps in knowledge; identification of barriers to the effective utilization of advance composites and innovative materials for windstorm resistant construction; and prioritization of effective research programs in the area of repair, reinforcing, rehabilitation, and new construction. Research related to these topics has been carried out in the US, Canada, Europe, Japan, India and Bangladesh, with little communication between these groups. There is a need for an international exchange of experience to increase the efficiency, and to ensure that the U.S. is at the leading edge of this critical area. Site visits will be organized to hurricane prone areas in Bangladesh. Workshop Proceedings will be produced and widely disseminated to researchers and code writers as well as in professional journals.
Scope: Coastal States and many Island States and territories are vulnerable to the hazards of windstorms. In the U.S., many states are vulnerable to the hazards of tornadoes and thunderstorms, while increased building activity is occurring in high-risk areas. Hurricanes, combining high winds and flooding cause enormous loss of life, injury, destruction of property, and economic and social disruption, as evidenced by the 56 deaths and $6 Billion in property damage in 1999 from Hurricane Floyd. Every year, thousands of people die in Bangladesh, and the southeastern part of India, due to hurricanes. The fiercest such windstorm was of 29 April 1991, when material damage was to the tune of about $2.4 billion and human casualty of about 140,000 lives. The workshop is organized on the premise that the exchange of existing American and foreign experience in the area of innovative windstorm mitigation construction is beneficial for both parties. This project is funded jointly by OISE and the Division of Civil and Mechanical Systems.
