Reducing earthquake risk to non-engineered buildings in Indonesia

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the potential for reducing earthquake risk to nonengineered buildings. “Nonengineered” buildings are, in simple terms, arbitrarily designed and inadequately built structures. Such buildings are indigenous and widespread within Indonesia, and are particularly susceptible to damage and destruction from earthquake events. A range of technical and social elements are significant to reducing earthquake risk to this building type and need to be appreciated within the context of current regulatory, design, and construction practices in Indonesia. A greater awareness for, and better understanding of, both the technical and human elements which impact on the planning, design, and construction of nonengineered buildings will enable more effective earthquake risk reduction measures to be implemented within building practices throughout Indonesia. Design/methodology/approach – Research used a triangulated approach collating qualitative and quantitative data acquired by multiple collection methods of a questionnaire survey, structured and semistructured interviews, case studies, and professional practice and localcommunity workshops. Quantitative data were collated and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences to provide inferential ranking and correlation of responses. Qualitative data were processed using NVivo software to code prominent patterns in the views and opinions of the respondents. Findings – The findings highlight the following: the reasons why earthquakerelated building codes are not applied more readily to nonengineered buildings; elements of practice where problems occur and where change could improve the use of building codes in their application to nonengineered buildings; actions for change to improve planning regulation, design, and construction of nonengineered buildings; and practical and effective methods of disseminating the research to industry, academic, and community stakeholders. Originality/value – The application of the research findings is unquestionably significant and valuable to Indonesia as any measures which can reduce earthquake risk have: the potential to improve the quality and sustainability of buildings; the ability to enhance the protection of property; and the real capability to save lives. Moreover, knowledge and capabilities developed there are highly relevant to earthquakevulnerable zones within the wider AsiaPacific region.