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Abstract
A risk assessment is conducted to assess the risks and economic impact of roof cladding wind damage for low rise metal-clad industrial and commercial buildings located in non-cyclonic regions of Australia. Roof cover loss includes structural, interior, contents and business interruption losses. The economic risks are calculated as the product of hazard likelihood, fragility, and loss, over the 50-year design life of metal-clad buildings representative of new construction and designed to be nominally sealed. The analysis includes time-dependent changes in wind patterns due to a changing climate. The climate adaptation (or risk mitigation) strategy examined is a change to the Australian National Construction Code requiring that all roller, sectional or large access doors for metal-clad buildings in non-cyclonic regions of Australia be wind-rated according to Australian Standards. It was found that a wind-rated door reduces damage risk by 15–35%. Specifying wind-rated doors for all new construction in non-cyclonic regions enhances resilience and is cost-effective if the additional cost per building is less than $10,000. Climate change has a minor effect on the cost-effectiveness of wind-rated doors.
Acknowledgements
The author gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Flagship Cluster Fund through the project Climate Adaption Engineering for Extreme Events, in collaboration with the Sustainable Cities and Coasts Theme of the CSIRO Climate Adaption Flagship. Advice and guidance from Dr Paraic Ryan, Associate Professor John Ginger and Dr David Henderson are gratefully appreciated.