CYCLONE RESISTANCE
All of our wooden houses with destination "cyclone or hurricane belt" will be analyzed on cyclone wind forces per the United States governing codes and regulations, subject to local amendments and provided such analysis is mandatory for the location to build.
Wind loads during a cyclone, named a Hurricane in the Caribbean and a Typhoon in the Pacific, are enormously powerful and can be deadly and destructive. Refer to Hurricane Katrina which hit New Orleans very hard and Typhoon Haiyan which played havoc in the Philippines. A mature hurricane or typhoon consists of bands of rotating thunderclouds and heavy rainstorms. Hurricanes (only occurring in the Northern Hemisphere) spiral in a counterclockwise direction around the center (eye) of the storm. Typhoons (only occurring in the Southern hemisphere) rotate in a clockwise direction. The wind speeds are highest along the outer ring of the eye. The whole storm system can consist of hundreds of thunderstorms and measure up to 1,000 km (over 150 miles) in diameter. To qualify as a hurricane or typhoon a storm must produce winds of over 33 meters per second (193 Mph, or 119 Km/h). Cyclones can be devastating, in particular when a structure has low stability.
Cyclone (this is a hurricane since its rotation is in clockwise direction)
The wind loads in the Hurricane or Typhoon belt depend on the Saffir-Simpson scale in which category such a storm is assigned. A category 5 storm may well reach a devastating wind speed of 155 mph (252 km/h). Per the IBC 2009, the highest basic wind speed may occur in the Southern Hemisphere (Typhoon) measuring 170 Mph (276 Km/h). The Hurricanes in the Caribbean storm belt are mostly assigned to a maximum of a category 4 storm with a maximum speed of 145 Mph (235 Km/h). The Hawaiian islands are assigned to category 2 with a maximum wind speed of 105 Mph. Recent scientific studies, however, reveal that the Hurricane and Typhoon wind forces will increase considerably during the next decennium due to global warming. In consequence and as per the scientific prediction we have arbitrarily increased the standard IBC wind loads by 10% for extra safety. The standard construction for our houses is based on a normal general highest wind load, however, the construction will be modified based on the results of our structural analyses for the hurricane or cyclone area where the house is to be built
We will use hurricane anchors in the structure when the design needs to withstand cyclone wind forces.
Prefabricated wooden houses are very sensitive to unbalance (refer to paragraph A above) it is therefore a prerequisite that wooden prefab houses be designed per the proper codes and standards if such house is to be built in a cyclone area. Based on the 40 years of experience of our Senior Technical Advisor we guarantee that your Prefab Bali House will be designed by the appropriate codes. We hereto apply the USA codes and regulations (IBC 2018), including the applicable amendments which are in force for the County where the unit will be built will be applied. Many other countries acknowledge the IBC 2018.