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Report - PEER - University of California, Berkeley

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A developed nation generally establishes a building code <strong>of</strong> the nation, to whichall design and construction should conform. The scope <strong>of</strong> the building code variesfrom a nation to another. The code should include the minimum statements about thefollowing structural design and construction issues; (a) code enforcement in designand construction, (b) structural performance under normal loading as well as extremeevents, (c) specifications for materials and construction and (d) inspection during andafter construction.It should be noted that the building code normally outlines the minimumperformance requirements for the society. The minimum performance (acceptabledamage) <strong>of</strong> buildings varies from a country to another because each country hasdifferent levels <strong>of</strong> (a) seismic risk, (b) hazard tolerance, (c) economic background, (d)social acceptance <strong>of</strong> damage, (e) technical development, and construction practice.Even in a country, the performance level <strong>of</strong> a building, above the code specifiedminimum, should be selected by the owner after the engineer provides informationabout the building performance to the building owner.This paper introduces the system <strong>of</strong> building codes in Japan and the performanceobjectives outlined in the Building Standard Law. The building codes <strong>of</strong> Japan consist<strong>of</strong> (a) Building Standard Law (national law), (b) Building Standard Law EnforcementOrder (cabinet order), (c) Notification <strong>of</strong> Ministry <strong>of</strong> Land, Infrastructures andTransport (previously Ministry <strong>of</strong> Construction), and (d) By-laws <strong>of</strong> municipalgovernments.2. BUILDING STANDARD LAWThe Building Standard Law <strong>of</strong> Japan was proclaimed as a national law in May 1950,and has been revised from time to time to meet the change in demand <strong>of</strong> the society.The objectives were to “safeguard the life, health, and property <strong>of</strong> people byproviding minimum standards concerning the site, structure, equipment, and use <strong>of</strong>buildings, and thereby to contribute to the furtherance <strong>of</strong> the public welfare.” Itshould be noted that the law sets up the minimum standards necessary for the life,health, and property <strong>of</strong> people.The framework <strong>of</strong> Building Standard Law was significantly revised in 1998, e.g.,(1) Introducing performance-based regulations wherever feasible,(2) Allowing private agencies to execute the building confirmation andconstruction inspection works during and after the construction,(3) Deregulating urban land use, and(4) Allowing public access to design and inspection documents.The performance-based requirements in building codes are generally encouragedin recent years with the expectation to expand the scope <strong>of</strong> structural design,especially for the application <strong>of</strong> new materials, construction technology and structuralsystems. It is further expected to remove international trade barriers in the design andconstruction markets and to encourage the engineer to develop and apply newconstruction technology and engineering.518

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