Civil Engineering

The Record of Discussions (R/D) and other relevant documents among Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Economic Relations Division(ERD) of the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Housing and Public Works(MoHPW), The Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, signed on 22th Feb. 2016, on the Japanese Technical Cooperation for the Project for “Technical Development to Upgrade Structural Integrity of Buildings in Densely Populated Urban Areas and its Strategic Implementation towards Resilient Cities (TSUIB)” that is implemented under the “Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS)” promoted by JICA and Japan. The University of Tokyo (UTokyo) and Housing and Building Research Institute (HBRI) execute the project as described in the R/D and have agreed to conduct the collaborative research. UTokyo shall be responsible for coordinating its research team consisting of UTokyo, Tohoku University and Osaka University, and HBRI shall be responsible for coordinating its research team consisting of HBRI, University of Asia Pacific (UAP), Bangladesh University for Engineering and Technology (BUET), Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology (AUST), Urban Develop Directorate (UDD), and Public Works Department (PWD).

Aims of the Project

To improve Dhaka's earthquake resilience, the joint project aims to develop seismic evaluation and retrofit techniques suitable for buildings in Bangladesh, and to develop urban planning upgrading scenarios for efficiently deploying them on a societal level. By upgrading Dhaka's building performance and urban resilience against earthquake damage, the project aim to develop a safe and secure city and civil infrastructures for stable economic activity. As the techniques developed through this project address urban and building-related issues that are also commonly found in other developing countries, their worldwide dissemination has the potential to contribute to the safer global society.

Project Goals (for AUST-Tohoku team)

• Propose a low-cost retrofit techniques using ferro-cement that can easily be applicable for Bangladesh buildings.
• Development of a Retrofit manual for Bangladesh buildings and their application.
• Develop a Research laboratory and strong research collaboration between Japan (Tohoku Univ.) and Bangladesh ( AUST and HBRI).

Contact Person of AUST Team:

Prof. Dr. Sharmin Reza Chowdhury (2016-2019)

Dr. Fatema-Tuz-Zahura(2019-2022)

Achievements:

• Debasish Sen, Assistant Professor, AUST, achieved Doctor of Philosophy degree under the banner of the project from Tohoku University, Japan.
• Zasiah Tafheem, Assistant Professor, AUST, is pursuing Doctor of Philosophy degree under the banner of the project from Tohoku University, Japan.