Proceedings of the 22nd NZGS Symposium
The 22nd New Zealand Geomechanics Symposium was held in Auckland on 15 – 18 October 2025. All available papers (over 110) are provided below.
Type
Rocking foundations: geotechnical considerations
L.B. StorieNZ Transport Agency | Waka Kotahi, New Zealand, Auckland M.D.L. MillenTonkin & Taylor Ltd., New Zealand, Christchurch.University of Canterbury, New Zealand, Christchurch. ABSTRACT The recent release of the draft Technical Specification TS 1170.5 (2024) includes guidance for the design of rocking foundations. Despite the…
Foundations for a clarifier at the Te Maunga Wastewater treatment plant; design and construction
C. Santamaria, H. Wahab, F. Bruce & S. EdmondsBeca Limited, New Zealand ABSTRACT The Te Maunga Wastewater Treatment Plant required the design and construction of a new clarifier as part of the Tauranga City Council plan to provide a resilient treatment process path. This required…
Geotechnical assessments for design of foundations in lower-seismicity liquefaction prone areas – a case study
M. C. McLean, B. O’LoughlinENGEO, Tauranga. ABSTRACT This paper presents a case study of a Ministry of Education (MoE) building project on potentially liquefiable dune sands at Mount Maunganui, Tauranga. It presents our methodology for assessing liquefaction vulnerability including triggering response and step change behaviour,…
Design of shallow foundations on soft lacustrine silt in Rotorua, New Zealand
J.R. FlynnWSP NZ Limited, Tauranga. R.P. OrenseUniversity of Auckland, New Zealand. ABSTRACT Thick layers of soft lacustrine silts are often encountered below a shallow surface crust around the southern margins of Lake Rotorua and can present challenges for engineering projects in the region due to…
Inertia and Kinematic Soil-structure Interaction Foundation Design in Response to Seismic Events
Y.Y. Tay EDG Consulting Pty. Ltd., Australia. G. Carnero, A. Beall & R. E. MayWSP Australia Pty. Ltd., Australia. ABSTRACT In the field of earthquake engineering, structural response studies address the inertial loading of the superstructure that results in tower lateral, rotational and torsional movements….
Liquefaction Hazard Assessment of Pumice Rich Sands – Case Study of Rangipo Substation
S. Anwar, G. Blakeley & Z. Rana AECOM, Auckland, New Zealand. ABSTRACT For any proposed development site, it is standard geotechnical practice to assess the foundation soils for their strength and load-bearing capacity. In seismically active regions, it is also customary to evaluate the liquefaction…
MBIE Building Performance Update
Tim Farrant – Engineering ManagerKiran Saligame – Senior Geotechnical Engineer Key highlights include:
Simplified CPT-based liquefaction ejecta severity model using Christchurch data
K.M. Azul, R.P. Orense & L.M. WotherspoonUniversity of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand. ABSTRACTChristchurch, New Zealand, and its surrounding areas experienced significant liquefaction-induced damage during the 2010-2011 Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (CES) events. Ejecta is one of the liquefaction manifestations commonly observed and can cover significant parts…
Liquefaction Characteristics of Gravelly Soils Prepared by Water Sedimentation Method
L. Wang, G. Chiaro & S. ReesDepartment of Civil and Natural Resource Engineering, University of Canterbury, ChristchurchC. CappellaroTonkin & Taylor, ChristchurchA. PokhrelBeca Limited, Christchurch ABSTRACTField observations and evaluations from 32 case histories of liquefaction in gravelly soils worldwide, including three in New Zealand, have indicated…