As a real-life demonstration, the Great East Japan Earthquake provided the best selling point for buildings with base isolation structures that reduce shaking during major ground tremors.
As a real-life demonstration, the Great East Japan Earthquake provided the best selling point for buildings with base isolation structures that reduce shaking during major ground tremors.
Many of these high-rise structures proved a safe haven for people seeking shelter and allowed companies to continue working after the March 11 quake, which is now a hot selling point for the technology.
"The building didn't move much and this helped our patients feel at ease," said a spokesperson for Aizu Chuo Hospital, located in Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture.
There were around 1,000 patients and staff at the hospital when an upper-5 intensity earthquake struck. The seven-story earthquake-proof hospital building experienced minimal shaking, and medical examinations continued without a hitch.
Base isolation buildings are built with a layer of rubber and so on that fits into the building's foundations and provides a buffer from earthquake tremors. Construction costs are between 10 to 20 percent higher than usual.
"I had read the pamphlets and heard the construction company's explanations, but even still, I was surprised by how well the structure actually coped," says a senior hospital official.
The Tokyo-based real estate company Mori Trust Co. has the Sendai MT Building, an 18-story office building in Sendai.
Also fitted with a base isolation structure, the building managed to stay relatively still despite an upper-6 tremor, and even served as a temporary shelter for people facing difficulties returning home after the disaster. Companies and other tenants have streamed into the building following the earthquake, with tenancy rates up 20 percent and most rooms now full.
"It is very impressive that we were able to carry on working despite the earthquake," said a Mori Trust official.
Suzuden Corp., based in Tokyo, is a distributor of industrial equipment whose distribution center in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture is also fitted with a base isolation structure. The company says that no products were damaged or knocked over by the quake, despite the lower-5 intensity. Though some at the company had argued against the necessity of the structure due to the higher costs involved, upper management had decided to invest in the technology on the grounds that "we would like to minimize any damage caused, even in the event of an epicentral earthquake."
In the aftermath of the disaster, construction companies have reported an increase in inquiries regarding base isolation buildings and apartment blocks. One such company, Taisei Corp., says base isolation inquiries have nearly trebled from pre-quake levels since April onwards, with more people asking about the possibility of installing base isolation technology, even if it meant higher costs.
Kashima Corp. has also seen inquiries more than double. Many customers have asked about fitting such structures to factories and buildings currently in the planning stage.
At the beginning of July, in a quiet, residential area around a 10-minute walk from JR Urawa Station, a sign went up reading "Model rooms now open: Only 2 apartments left."
The sign was for "Branchera Urawa," an 18-floor, 69-apartment condominium built by Haseko Corp. The average apartment costs around 65 million yen ($846,500), a little expensive for the area, but one of the building's selling points is its resistance to earthquakes.
Earthquake-resistant buildings are built with a reinforced structure that dampens vibrations during a quake. The condominium earned an "Earthquake-resistance Class 2" rating according to the government-stipulated housing performance indication system, which designates how resistant a building is to collapse during a quake. This rating means the building is 1.25 times stronger than an average apartment building, the same level as local authority-designated earthquake shelters.
The company was barely selling one apartment a month before the quake, but it subsequently sold eight units between April and June.
"Before the earthquake I was focusing on location and price, but the quake brought home to me just how important safety and security are. I don't mind if that costs a little extra," says one of the buyers, a female executive in her 40s.
Nomura Real Estate Development Co. is selling apartments at "Proud City Inage Kaigan," a 555-unit condominium with an average unit cost of 29 million yen, located in Chiba's Mihama Ward. From late May onwards, the company has sold a total of 267 units, with each apartment selling out on the day it was listed. This is despite the condominium lying next to the coast in an area at risk of liquefaction.
"After the earthquake, the needs of our customers have changed," says a company sales representative.
The condominium contains facilities such as a disaster-ready well and an emergency storehouse fitted with food and water. One purchaser in his 40s says, "I wouldn't have bought if it wasn't for the thorough explanation I received about the disaster prevention facilities."
According to the real estate appraiser Tokyo Kantei Co., 19,074 condominium units were reported as sold in the Tokyo area between January-June, a 9.8 percent year-on-year fall. Sales in the Kinki area were down 26.9 percent at 7,390 units. As consumer sentiments have cooled and fallen sharply in the aftermath of the disaster, buildings with strong disaster-prevention facilities have been gaining in popularity.
As Yukio Tanaka, a real estate appraiser at Nippon Tochi-Tatemono Co., says, "A building's ability to cope with a big disaster has now become one of the factors buyers look for when making a purchase."