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Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Utility managers are always looking for appropriate tools to estimate seismic damage in wastewater networks located in earthquake prone areas. Fragility curves, as an appropriate tool, are recommended for seismic vulnerability analysis of buried pipelines, including pressurised and unpressurised networks. Fragility curves are developed in pressurised networks mainly for water networks. Fragility curves are also recommended for seismic analysis in unpressurised networks. Applying fragility curves in unpressurised networks affects accuracy of seismic damage estimation. This study shows limitations of these curves in unpressurised networks. Multiple case study analysis was applied to demonstrate the limitations of the application of fragility curves in unpressurised networks in New Zealand. Four wastewater networks within New Zealand were selected as case studies and various fragility curves used for seismic damage estimation. Observed damage in unpressurised networks after the 2007 earthquake in Gisborne and the 2010 earthquake in Christchurch demonstrate the appropriateness of the applied fragility curves to New Zealand wastewater networks. This study shows that the application of fragility curves, which are developed from pressurised networks, cannot be accurately used for seismic damage assessment in unpressurised wastewater networks. This study demonstrated the effects of different parameters on seismic damage vulnerability of unpressurised networks.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Many large-scale earthquakes all over the world have highlighted the impact of soil liquefaction to the built environment, but the scale of liquefaction-induced damage experienced in Christchurch and surrounding areas following the 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquake sequence (CES) was unparalleled, especially in terms of impact to an urban area. The short time interval between the large earthquakes presented a very rare occasion to examine liquefaction mechanism in natural deposits. The re-liquefaction experienced by the city highlighted the high liquefaction susceptibility of soil deposits in Christchurch, and presented a very challenging problem not only to the local residents but to the geotechnical engineering profession. This paper summarises the lessons learned from CES, and the impacts of the observations made to the current practice of liquefaction assessment and mitigation.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

On 14 November 2016 a magnitude Mw 7.8 earthquake struck the upper South Island of New Zealand with effects also being observed in the capital city, Wellington. The affected area has low population density but is the largest wine production region in New Zealand and also hosts the main national highway and railway routes connecting the country’s three largest cities of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, with Marlborough Port in Picton providing connection between the South and North Islands. These transport facilities sustained substantial earthquake related damage, causing major disruptions. Thousands of landslides and multiple new faults were counted in the area. The winery facilities and a large number of commercial buildings and building components (including brick masonry veneers, historic masonry construction, and chimneys), sustained damage due to the strong vertical and horizontal acceleration. Presented herein are field observations undertaken the day immediately after the earthquake, with the aim to document earthquake damage and assess access to the affected area.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

The Canterbury earthquake series of 2010/2011 has turned the city of Christchurch into a full scale natural laboratory testing the structural and non-structural response of buildings under moderate to very severe earthquake shaking. The lessons learned from this, which have come at great cost socially and economically, are extremely valuable in increasing our understanding of whole building performance in severe earthquakes. Given current initiatives underway on both sides of the Tasman towards developing joint Australasian steel and composite steel/concrete design and construction standards that would span a very wide range of geological conditions and seismic zones, these lessons are relevant to both countries. This paper focusses on the performance of steel framed buildings in Christchurch city, with greatest emphasis on multi-storey buildings, but also covering single storey steel framed buildings and light steel framed housing. It addresses such issues as the magnitude and structural impact of the earthquake series, importance of good detailing, lack of observed column base hinging, the excellent performance of composite floors and it will briefly cover research underway to quantify some of these effects for use in design.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Axial elongation of reinforced concrete (RC) plastic hinges has previously been observed in a range of laboratory experiments, and more recently was observed in several Christchurch buildings following the 2010/2011 Canterbury earthquakes. Axial restraint to plastic hinges is provided by adjacent structural components such as floors as the plastic hinges elongate, which can significantly alter the performance of the plastic hinge and potentially invalidate the capacity design strength hierarchy of the building. Coupling beams in coupled wall systems are particularly susceptible to axial restraint effects due to their importance in the strength hierarchy, the high ductility demands that they experience, and the large stiffness of bounding walls. From computational modelling it has been found that ignoring axial restraint effects when designing coupled walls can result in significantly increased strength, reduced ductility and reduced energy dissipation capacity. The complexity of the topic merits further research to better account for realistic restraint effects when designing coupled walls.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

This article argues that teachers deserve more recognition for their roles as first responders in the immediate aftermath of a disaster and for the significant role they play in supporting students and their families through post-disaster recovery. The data are drawn from a larger study, 'Christchurch Schools Tell Their Earthquake Stories' funded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation and the University of Auckland, in which schools were invited to record their earthquake stories for themselves and for historical archives. Data were gathered from five primary schools between 2012 and 2014. Methods concerned mainly semi-structured individual or group interviews and which were analysed thematically. The approach was sensitive, flexible and participatory with each school being able to choose its focus, participants and outcome. Participants from each school generally included the principal and a selection of teachers, students and parents. In this study, the data relating to the roles of teachers were separated out for closer analysis. The findings are presented as four themes: immediate response; returning to (new) normal; care and support; and long term effects.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

The influence of nonlinear soil-foundation-structure interaction (SFSI) on the performance of multi-storey buildings during earthquake events has become increasingly important in earthquake resistant design. For buildings on shallow foundations, SFSI refers to nonlinear geometric effects associated with uplift of the foundation from the supporting soil as well as nonlinear soil deformation effects. These effects can potentially be beneficial for structural performance, reducing forces transmitted from ground shaking to the structure. However, there is also the potential consequence of residual settlement and rotation of the foundation. This Thesis investigates the influence of SFSI in the performance of multi-storey buildings on shallow foundations through earthquake observations, experimental testing, and development of spring-bed numerical models that can be incorporated into integrated earthquake resistant design procedures. Observations were made following the 22 February 2011 Christchurch Earthquake in New Zealand of a number of multi-storey buildings on shallow foundations that performed satisfactorily. This was predominantly the case in areas where shallow foundations, typically large raft foundations, were founded on competent gravel and where there was no significant manifestation of liquefaction at the ground surface. The properties of these buildings and the soils they are founded on directed experimental work that was conducted to investigate the mechanisms by which SFSI may have influenced the behaviour of these types of structure-foundation systems. Centrifuge experiments were undertaken at the University of Dundee, Scotland using a range of structure-foundation models and a layer of dense cohesionless soil to simulate the situation in Christchurch where multi-storey buildings on shallow foundations performed well. Three equivalent single degree of freedom (SDOF) models representing 3, 5, and 7 storey buildings with identical large raft foundations were subjected to a range of dynamic Ricker wavelet excitations and Christchurch Earthquake records to investigate the influence of SFSI on the response of the equivalent buildings. The experimental results show that nonlinear SFSI has a significant influence on structural response and overall foundation deformations, even though the large raft foundations on competent soil meant that there was a significant reserve of bearing capacity available and nonlinear deformations may have been considered to have had minimal effect. Uplift of the foundation from the supporting soil was observed across a wide range of input motion amplitudes and was particularly significant as the amplitude of motion increased. Permanent soil deformation represented by foundation settlement and residual rotation was also observed but mainly for the larger input motions. However, the absolute extent of uplift and permanent soil deformation was very small compared to the size of the foundation meaning the serviceability of the building would still likely be maintained during large earthquake events. Even so, the small extent of SFSI resulted in attenuation of the response of the structure as the equivalent period of vibration was lengthened and the equivalent damping in the system increased. The experimental work undertaken was used to validate and enhance numerical modelling techniques that are simple yet sophisticated and promote interaction between geotechnical and structural specialists involved in the design of multi-storey buildings. Spring-bed modelling techniques were utilised as they provide a balance between ease of use, and thus ease of interaction with structural specialists who have these techniques readily available in practice, and theoretically rigorous solutions. Fixed base and elastic spring-bed models showed they were unable to capture the behaviour of the structure-foundation models tested in the centrifuge experiments. SFSI spring-bed models were able to more accurately capture the behaviour but recommendations were proposed for the parameters used to define the springs so that the numerical models closely matched experimental results. From the spring-bed modelling and results of centrifuge experiments, an equivalent linear design procedure was proposed along with a procedure and recommendations for the implementation of nonlinear SFSI spring-bed models in practice. The combination of earthquake observations, experimental testing, and simplified numerical analysis has shown how SFSI is influential in the earthquake performance of multi-storey buildings on shallow foundations and should be incorporated into earthquake resistant design of these structures.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

There is very little research on total house strength that includes contributions of non-structural elements. This testing programme provides inclusive stiffness and response data for five houses of varying ages. These light timber framed houses in Christchurch, New Zealand had minor earthquake damage from the 2011 earthquakes and were lateral load tested on site to determine their strength and/or stiffness, and to identify damage thresholds. Dynamic characteristics including natural periods, which ranged from 0.14 to 0.29s were also investigated. Two houses were quasi-statically loaded up to approximately 130kN above the foundation in one direction. Another unidirectional test was undertaken on a slab-on-grade two-storey house, which was also snapback tested. Two other houses were tested using cyclic quasi-static loading, and between cycles snapback tests were undertaken to identify the natural period of each house, including foundation and damage effects. A more detailed dynamic analysis on one of the houses provided important information on seismic safety levels of post-quake houses with respect to different hazard levels in the Christchurch area. While compared to New Zealand Building Standards all tested houses had an excess of strength, damage is a significant consideration in earthquake resilience and was observed in all of the houses. http://www.aees.org.au/downloads/conference-papers/2015-2/

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the effects of a major disaster on the management of human resources in the construction sector. It sets out to identify the construction skills challenges and the factors that affected skills availability following the 2010/2011 earthquakes in Christchurch. It is hoped that this study will provide insights for on-going reconstruction and future disaster response with respect to the problem of skills shortages. Design/methodology/approach A triangulation method was adopted. The quantitative method, namely, a questionnaire survey, was employed to provide a baseline description. Field observations and interviews were used as a follow-up to ascertain issues and potential shortages over time. Three focus groups in the form of research workshops were convened to gain further insight into the feedback and to investigate the validity and applicability of the research findings. Findings The earthquakes in Christchurch had compounded the pre-existing skills shortages in the country due to heightened demand from reconstruction. Skills shortages primarily existed in seismic assessment and design for land and structures, certain trades, project management and site supervision. The limited technical capability available nationally, shortage of temporary accommodation to house additional workers, time needed for trainees to become skilled workers, lack of information about reconstruction workloads and lack of operational capacity within construction organisations, were critical constraints to the resourcing of disaster recovery projects. Research limitations/implications The research findings contribute to the debate on skills issues in construction. The study provides evidence that contributes to an improved understanding of the industry’s skills vulnerability and emerging issues that would likely exist after a major disaster in a resource-limited country such as New Zealand. Practical implications From this research, decision makers and construction organisations can gain a clear direction for improving the construction capacity and capability for on-going reconstruction. Factors that affected the post-earthquake skills availability can be considered by decision makers and construction organisations in their workforce planning for future disaster events. The recommendations will assist them in addressing skills shortages for on-going reconstruction. Originality/value Although the study is country-specific, the findings show the nature and scale of skills challenges the construction industry is likely to face following a major disaster, and the potential issues that may compound skills shortages. It provides lessons for other disaster-prone countries where the resource pool is small and a large number of additional workers are needed to undertake reconstruction.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Reinforced concrete buildings that satisfied modern seismic design criteria generally behaved as expected during the recent Canterbury and Kaikoura earthquakes in New Zealand, forming plastic hinges in intended locations. While this meant that life-safety performance objectives were met, widespread demolition and heavy economic losses took place in the aftermath of the earthquakes.The Christchurch central business district was particularly hard hit, with over 60% of the multistorey reinforced concrete buildings being demolished. A lack of knowledge on the post-earthquake residual capacity of reinforced concrete buildings was a contributing factor to the mass demolition.Many aspects related to the assessment of earthquake-damaged reinforced concrete buildings require further research. This thesis focusses on improving the state of knowledge on the post earthquakeresidual capacity and reparability of moderately damaged plastic hinges, with an emphasis on plastic hinges typical of modern moment frame structures. The repair method focussed on is epoxy injection of cracks and patching of spalled concrete. A targeted test program on seventeen nominally identical large-scale ductile reinforced concrete beams, three of which were repaired by epoxy injection following initial damaging loadings, was conducted to support these objectives. Test variables included the loading protocol, the loading rate, and the level of restraint to axial elongation.The information that can be gleaned from post-earthquake damage surveys is investigated. It is shown that residual crack widths are dependent on residual deformations, and are not necessarily indicative of the maximum rotation demands or the plastic hinge residual capacity. The implications of various other types of damage typical of beam and column plastic hinges are also discussed.Experimental data are used to demonstrate that the strength and deformation capacity of plastic hinges with modern seismic detailing are often unreduced as a result of moderate earthquake induced damage, albeit with certain exceptions. Special attention is given to the effects of prior yielding of the longitudinal reinforcement, accounting for the low-cycle fatigue and strain ageing phenomena. A material-level testing program on the low-cycle fatigue behaviour of grade 300E reinforcing steel was conducted to supplement the data available in the literature.A reduction in stiffness, relative to the initial secant stiffness to yield, occurs due to moderate plastic hinging damage. This reduction in stiffness is shown to be correlated with the ductility demand,and a proposed model gives a conservative lower-bound estimate of the residual stiffness following an arbitrary earthquake-type loading. Repair by epoxy injection is shown to be effective in restoring the majority of stiffness to plastic hinges in beams. Epoxy injection is also shown to have implications for the residual strength and elongation characteristics of repaired plastic hinges.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Terminus calving of icebergs is a common mass-loss mechanism from water-terminating glaciers globally, including the lake-calving glaciers in New Zealand’s central Southern Alps. Calving rates can increase dramatically in response to increases in ice velocity and/or retreat of the glacier margin. Here, we describe a large calving event (c. 4.5 × 106 m3) observed at Tasman Glacier, which initiated around 30 min after the MW 6.2 Christchurch earthquake of 22 February 2011. The volume of this calving event was equalled or exceeded only once in a subsequent 13-month-long study. While the temporal association with the earthquake remains intriguing, the effects of any preconditioning factors remain unclear.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

During many years the analysis of some geophysical results of Charles Darwin was being carried out in Department. Darwin has connected almost 200 years ago results of catastrophic earthquakes with vertical movement of a surface of the Earth. Usually this movement less horizontal movement and its influence on destruction of cities is not considered. Earthquake hazard assessment studies were focused usually on the horizontal ground motion. Effects of the strong vertical motion were not, practically, discussed. The margins of safety against gravity-induced static vertical forces in constructed buildings usually provide adequate resistance to dynamic forces induced by the vertical acceleration during an earthquake. However, the earthquake in Christchurch is an example of the vertical seismic shock . The earthquake magnitude was rather small - nearby 6.3. However, the result was catastrophic. The same took place in 1835. It allowed to Darwin to formulate a few great ideas. Charles Darwin has explained qualitatively results of an interaction of huge seismic waves with volcanoes and the nature of volcanism and seismicity of our planet. These important data of Charles Darwin became very actual recently. It is possible to tell also the same about tsunami and extreme ocean waves described by Charles Darwin. Therefore this data were analyzed using modern mechanics, mathematics and physics in Department. In particular, the theory of catastrophic waves was developed based on Darwin's data. The theory tried to explain occurrence, evolution and distribution the catastrophic waves in various natural systems, since atoms, oceans, surfaces of the Earth and up to the very early Universe. Some results of the research were published in prestigious magazines. Later they were presented in two books devoted to Charles Darwin's anniversary (2009). Last from them was published in Russian (2011). We give here key ideas of this research which is a part of interdisciplinary researches of Department. Some ideas are discussed. Not less important purpose is very short historical review of some researches of Darwin. In particular, we underline Darwin' priority in the formulation of the bases of Dynamics Earth.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

A non-destructive hardness testing method has been developed to investigate the amount of plastic strain demand in steel elements subjected to cyclic loading. The focus of this research is on application to the active links of eccentrically braced frames (EBFs), which are a commonly used seismic-resisting system in modern steel framed buildings. The 2010/2011 Christchurch earthquake series, especially the very intense February 22 shaking, which was the first earthquake worldwide to push complete EBF systems fully into their inelastic state, generating a moderate to high level of plastic strain in EBF active links, for a range of buildings from 3 to 23 storeys in height. This raised two important questions: 1) what was the extent of plastic deformation in active links; and 2) what effect does that have to post-earthquake steel properties? This project comprised determining a robust relationship between hardness and plastic strain in order to be able to answer the first question and provide the necessary input into answering the second question. A non-destructive Leeb (portable) hardness tester (model TH170) has been used to measure the hardness, in order to determine the plastic strain, in hot rolled steel universal sections and steel plates. A bench top Rockwell B was used to compare and validated the hardness measured by the portable hardness tester. Hardness was measured from monotonically strained tensile test specimens to identify the relationship between hardness and plastic strain demand. Test results confirmed a good relationship between hardness and the amount of monotonically induced plastic strain. Surface roughness was identified as an important parameter in obtaining reliable hardness readings from a portable hardness reader. A proper surface preparation method was established by using three different cleaning methods, finished with hand sanding to achieve surface roughness coefficients sufficiently low not to distort the results. This work showed that a test surface roughness (Ra) is not more than 1.6 micron meter (μm) is required for accurate readings from the TH170 tester. A case study on an earthquake affected building was carried out to identify the relationship between hardness and amount of plastic strain demand in cyclically deformed active links. Hardness was carried out from active links shown visually to have been the most affected during one of the major earthquake events. Onsite hardness test results were then compared with laboratory hardness test results. A good relationship between hardness from onsite and laboratory was observed between the test methods; Rockwell B bench top and portable Leeb tester TH170. Manufacturing induced plastic strain in the top and bottom of the webs of hot rolled sections were discovered from this research, an important result which explains why visual effects of earthquake induced active link yielding (eg cracked or flaking paint) was typically more prevalent over the middle half depth of the active link. The extent of this was quantified. It was also evident that the hardness readings from the portable hardness tester are influenced by geometry, mass effects and rigidity of the links. The final experimental stage was application of the method to full scale cyclic inelastic tested nominally identical active links subjected to loading regimes comprising constant and variable plastic strain demands. The links were cyclically loaded to achieve different plastic strain level. A novel Digital Image Correlation (DIC) technique was incorporated during the tests of this scale, to confirm the level of plastic strain achieved. Tensile test specimens were water jet cut from cyclically deformed webs to analyse the level of plastic strain. Test results show clear evidence that cyclically deformed structural steel elements show good correlation between hardness and the amount of plastic strain demand. DIC method was found to be reliable and accurate to check the level of plastic strain within cyclically deformed structural steel elements.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

The full scale, in-situ investigations of instrumented buildings present an excellent opportunity to observe their dynamic response in as-built environment, which includes all the real physical properties of a structure under study and its surroundings. The recorded responses can be used for better understanding of behavior of structures by extracting their dynamic characteristics. It is significantly valuable to examine the behavior of buildings under different excitation scenarios. The trends in dynamic characteristics, such as modal frequencies and damping ratios, thus developed can provide quantitative data for the variations in the behavior of buildings. Moreover, such studies provide invaluable information for the development and calibration of realistic models for the prediction of seismic response of structures in model updating and structural health monitoring studies. This thesis comprises two parts. The first part presents an evaluation of seismic responses of two instrumented three storey RC buildings under a selection of 50 earthquakes and behavioral changes after Ms=7.1 Darfield (2010) and Ms=6.3 Christchurch (2011) earthquakes for an instrumented eight story RC building. The dynamic characteristics of the instrumented buildings were identified using state-of-the-art N4SID system identification technique. Seismic response trends were developed for the three storey instrumented buildings in light of the identified frequencies and the peak response accelerations (PRA). Frequencies were observed to decrease with excitation level while no trends are discernible for the damping ratios. Soil-structure interaction (SSI) effects were also determined to ascertain their contribution in the seismic response. For the eight storey building, it was found through system identification that strong nonlinearities in the structural response occurred and manifested themselves in all identified natural frequencies of the building that exhibited a marked decrease during the strong motion duration compared to the pre-Darfield earthquakes. Evidence of foundation rocking was also found that led to a slight decrease in the identified modal frequencies. Permanent stiffness loss was also observed after the strong motion events. The second part constitutes developing and calibrating finite element model (FEM) of the instrumented three storey RC building with a shear core. A three dimensional FEM of the building is developed in stages to analyze the effect of structural, non-structural components (NSCs) and SSI on the building dynamics. Further to accurately replicate the response of the building following the response trends developed in the first part of the thesis, sensitivity based model updating technique was applied. The FEMs were calibrated by tuning the updating parameters which are stiffnesses of concrete, NSCs and soil. The updating parameters were found to generally follow decreasing trends with the excitation level. Finally, the updated FEM was used in time history analyses to assess the building seismic performance at the serviceability limit state shaking. Overall, this research will contribute towards better understanding and prediction of the behavior of structures subjected to ground motion.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

Soil-structure interaction (SSI) has been widely studied during the last decades. The influence of the properties of the ground motion, the structure and the soil have been addressed. However, most of the studies in this field consider a stand-alone structure. This assumption is rarely justifiable in dense urban areas where structures are built close to one another. The dynamic interaction between adjacent structures has been studied since the early 1970s, mainly using numerical and analytical models. Even though the early works in this field have significantly contributed to understanding this problem, they commonly consider important simplifications such as assuming a linear behaviour of the structure and the soil. Some experimental works addressing adjacent structures have recently been conducted using geotechnical centrifuges and 1g shake tables. However, further research is needed to enhance the understanding of this complex phenomenon. A particular case of SSI is that of structures founded in fine loose saturated sandy soil. An iconic example was the devastating effects of liquefaction in Christchurch, New Zealand, during the Canterbury earthquake in 2011. In the case of adjacent structures on liquefiable soil, the experimental evidence is even scarcer. The present work addresses the dynamic interaction between adjacent structures by performing multiple experimental studies. The work starts with two-adjacent structures on a small soil container to expose the basics of the problem. Later, results from tests considering a more significant number of structures on a big laminar box filled with sand are presented. Finally, the response of adjacent structures on saturated sandy soil is addressed using a geotechnical centrifuge and a large 1g shake table. This research shows that the acceleration, lateral displacement, foundation rocking, damping ratio, and fundamental frequency of the structure of focus are considerably affected by the presence of neighbouring buildings. In general, adjacent buildings reduced the dynamic response of the structure of focus on dry sand. However, the acceleration was amplified when the structures had a similar fundamental frequency. In the case of structures on saturated sand, the presence of adjacent structures reduced the liquefaction potential. Neighbouring structures on saturated sand also presented larger rotation of the footing and lateral displacement of the top mass than that of the stand-alone case.

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

This thesis describes the management process of innovation through construction infrastructure projects. This research focuses on the innovation management process at the project level from four views. These are categorised into the separate yet related areas of: “innovation definition”, “Project time”, “project team motivation” and “Project temporary organisation”. A practical knowledge is developed for each of these research areas that enables project practitioners to make the best decision for the right type of innovation at the right phase of projects, through a capable project organisation. The research developed a holistic view on both innovation and the construction infrastructure project as two complex phenomena. An infrastructure project is a long-term capital investment, highly risky and an uncertain. Infrastructure projects can play a key role in innovation and performance improvement throughout the construction industry. The delivery of an infrastructure project is affected in most cases by critical issues of budget constraint, programme delays and safety Where the business climate is characterized by uncertainty, risk and a high level of technological change, construction infrastructure projects are unable to cope with the requirement to develop innovation. Innovation in infrastructure projects, as one of the key performance indicators (KPI) has been identified as a critical capability for performance improvement through the industry. However, in spite of the importance of infrastructure projects in improving innovation, there are a few research efforts that have developed a comprehensive view on the project context and its drivers and inhibitors for innovation in the construction industry. Two main reasons are given as the inhibitors through the process of comprehensive research on innovation management in construction. The first reason is the absence of an understanding of innovation itself. The second is a bias towards research at a firm and individual level, so a comprehensive assessment of project-related factors and their effects on innovation in infrastructure projects has not been undertaken. This study overcomes these issues by adopting as a case study approach of a successful infrastructure project. This research examines more than 500 construction innovations generated by a unique infrastructure alliance. SCIRT (Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team) is a temporary alliancing organisation that was created to rebuild and recover the damaged infrastructure after the Christchurch 2011 earthquake. Researchers were given full access to the innovation project information and innovation systems under a contract with SCIRT Learning Legacy, provided the research with material which is critical for understanding innovations in large, complex alliancing infrastructure organisation. In this research, an innovation classification model was first constructed. Clear definitions have been developed for six types of construction innovation with a variety of level of novelties and benefits. The innovation classification model was applied on the SCIRT innovation database and the resultant trends and behaviours of different types of innovation are presented. The trends and behaviours through different types of SCIRT innovations developed a unique opportunity to research the projectrelated factors and their effect on the behaviour of different classified types of innovation throughout the project’s lifecycle. The result was the identification of specific characteristics of an infrastructure project that affect the innovation management process at the project level. These were categorised in four separate chapters. The first study presents the relationship between six classified types of innovation, the level of novelty and the benefit they come up with, by applying the innovation classification model on SCIRT innovation database. The second study focused on the innovation potential and limitations in different project lifecycle phases by using a logic relationship between the six classified types of innovation and the three classified phases of the SCIRT project. The third study result develops a holistic view of different elements of the SCIRT motivation system and results in a relationship between the maturity level of definition developed for innovation as one of the KPIs and a desire though the SCIRT innovation incentive system to motivate more important innovations throughout the project. The fourth study is about the role of the project’s temporary organisation that finally results in a multiple-view innovation model being developed for project organisation capability assessment in the construction industry. The result of this thesis provides practical and instrumental knowledge to be used by a project practitioner. Benefits of the current thesis could be categorized in four groups. The first group is the innovation classification model that provides a clear definition for six classified types of innovation with four levels of novelty and specifically defined outcomes and the relationship between the innovation types, novelty and benefit. The second is the ability that is provided for the project practitioner to make the best decision for the right type of innovation at the right phases of a project’s lifecycle. The third is an optimisation that is applied on the SCIRT innovation motivation system that enables the project practitioner to incentivize the right type of innovation with the right level of financial gain. This drives the project teams to develop a more important innovation instead of a simple problemsolving one. Finally, the last and probably more important benefit is the recommended multiple-view innovation model. This is a tool that could be used by a project practitioner in order to empower the project team to support innovation throughout the project.