Investigation on seismic performance of for-profit buildings in terms of economics

Abstract

For-profit buildings in cities such as commercial buildings for rent play a significant role in urban economic activities, and their failure would cause enormous economic loss. To reduce such losses in the event of a severe earthquake, it is necessary to clarify the damage limits of for-profit buildings in terms of business continuity. This paper investigates the seismic performance of for-profit buildings in terms of economics by introducing an economic damage indicator and discusses the following issues. 1 Permissible repair cost for buildings derived from property information such as construction cost, projected revenues and discount rate, and a resulting "damage limit" for failure in business continuity. 2 Upper-bound investment for earthquake resistance derived from a balance between cost for earthquake resistance and its benefit, and resulting "inevitable damage" in terms of economics. 3 Vulnerability of urban for-profit buildings with low business risk to earthquakes, compared with rural for-profit buildings with high business risk. 4 Significance of establishing a design procedure that considers the "damage limit" and "inevitable damage" in order to reduce economic losses caused by failure in business continuity of urban commercial buildings due to earthquakes.