Japan Contractors Race to Develop Antiearthquake Techs

Tokyo, Jan. 13 (Jiji Press)--Major Japanese construction companies
have been racing to develop new technologies to prevent earthquake damages,
aiming for an increase in orders for skyscrapers and factories.
Kajima Corp. <1812> has put an alarm system, which can be used for
inland earthquakes, into practical use.
After seismometers installed in a building detects preliminary
tremors, or primary waves, the system predicts the magnitude of secondary
waves, based on analyses of past earthquakes, and issues a warning.
Then, the system automatically stops elevators or factory
production lines to prevent the damage from spreading.
Taisei Corp. <1801> has developed a technology that predicts how
long-period seismic waves, which can affect skyscrapers, reach the earth's
surface.
The company plans to reflect findings from the technology in
earthquake-resistant designs.
Takenaka Corp. has developed concrete that can withstand up to 2
tons of weight per one square centimeter, one of the world's highest
compressive strengths.
The company claims that the breakthrough can raise the height limit
of skyscrapers built with reinforced concrete from the current level of some
60 stories to 80-story high.
Shimizu Corp. <1803> has created a skyscraper construction method
with high quake resistance by adopting a new type of steel products made by
Nippon Steel Corp. <5401>.
The new method allows wider floor space as it requires less pillars
compared to conventional methods. It has been adopted for a research and
development facility that Fuji Xerox Co. will construct in Yokohama,
southwest of Tokyo.