Conceptual design vulnerability assessment of the housing light roofs to strong winds

Abstract

Hurricanes are one of the most significant causes of human and material losses in the Caribbean region. These events have demonstrated their devastating impact on housing and infrastructure. The assessment of the vulnerability of buildings with light roofs, at the initial design stage, is considered to be a fundamental step in the mitigation of these damages and losses. This paper presents the introduction of an indicator-based vulnerability assessment in an effort to mitigate these damages in advance. This indicator facilitates the design team's decision to select the appropriate light roof alternative subject to strong winds at the conceptual stage of the process. The indicators that contribute to the conceptual assessment of vulnerability were identified based on a comprehensive review of the literature and numerical simulations of the risk scenarios using CFD/FEM software’s. The ranking of indicator weights was determined by the Kano method according to experts' opinions. A desktop application has been developed for the assessment of the vulnerability of light roof variants for buildings at the conceptual design stage. The results reported in a case study demonstrate the viability of the desktop application based on the vulnerability indicator to assist decision making in the conceptual design stage.