EA Books

Wind Loading of Structures, 2 e.
John D Holmes
2007, 9780415409469, 392pp, $198

When it was announced that Dr J Dean Holmes was to spend the Fall 2001 semester at Louisiana State University* he was described as “one of the leading authorities on Wind Engineering in the world”. The content and quality of this book is consistent with that assessment of his standing. The book provides a comprehensive, practical examination of wind loading of structures.

The text is structured as follows:

• An introductory chapter considers meteorological aspects and wind-induced damage.
• Chapters 2-7 cover basic aspects of wind loading common to most structures – wind speed prediction, wind characteristics, bluff-body aerodynamics, dynamic response, internal pressures, wind-tunnel techniques.
• Chapters 8-14 deal with wind loading for particular types of structures – buildings (low-rise, tall, large roofs and sports stadiums), slender vertical structures (towers, chimneys, masts), long-span bridges, transmission lines & system risks, miscellaneous other structures (walls, hoardings, free-standing roofs, antennas, building appendages).
• Chapter 15 reviews the provisions of six major standards for wind loading, including AS/NZS 1170.2-2002.
• Six appendices cover terminology, symbols, probability distributions relevant to wind loading, a world survey of extreme wind climates (74 countries), approximate formulae for natural frequencies, an application of the effective static load method to a simple structure.

This structure is unchanged from the first edition but there have been changes to almost every chapter and appendix. Chapter 15 has been completely re-written because of the extensive revisions to most of the codes reviewed.

Features that add considerably to the appeal of the book include:

• Each chapter has a careful, thoughtful introduction and a brief concluding summary.
• Each chapter has an extensive reference list; including all the references you would expect to find (with the possible exception – for an Australian author – of the major report on Tracy) and giving due weight to the significant historical developments, unlike some recent authors who seem unaware that much happened before the advent of the Internet. Australian researchers are well represented in the lists.
• Many firms are working on overseas projects and the survey in Appendix D provides a convenient first look at the likely wind loading requirements.
• Chapter 7 will assist the structural or other engineer to prepare an appropriate brief for the wind-tunnel specialist and will aid in the interpretation of the test results.

The impressive cover image portrays some interesting aspects of failure and warranted identification and a brief discussion.

All engineers should be seeking to improve and increase their understanding of the processes they deal with rather than simply following codes and standards. For structural engineers concerned with wind loading of structures this book will assist them greatly in this endeavour.

* hurricane.lsu.edu/newsarchives.htm

Review by Bill Boyce FIEAust CPEng, 2004 John Connell Gold Medallist.Formerly Reader in Civil Engineering at University of Queensland & Technical Advisor Structural at Kellogg Brown & Root.