Skip to content
WSP WSP
WSP WSP
  • Who we are
    We are the sum of our collective passion, vision and expertise.

    Discover our people, purpose and stories that have helped shape the organisation we are today and are inspiring the one we will become.

    Who we are
    • Our Story
    • Corporate Responsibility
    • NZ Leadership Team
    • Our impact
    Corporate Responsibility
    • Communities
    • Corporate Governance
    • Diversity and Inclusion
    • Ethics and Integrity
    • Health and Safety
    • Sustainability
    Featured content
    thn-maori-hub
    Māori Business and Advisory Services

    We support and promote the benefits of Tiriti based partnerships for the benefit of…

  • What We Do
    We shape the communities of tomorrow and help society thrive.

    With an intimate sense of local realities, we look at complex problems from different angles and deliver solutions that break paradigms.


    View All

    • Sectors
    • Services
    • Projects
    What We Do
    • Property and Buildings
    • Transport
    • Earth and Environment
    • Digital
    • Energy
    • Water
    • Research
    Property and Buildings
    • Acoustics, Noise and Vibration
    • Architecture
    • Asset Management
    • Building Compliance and BWOF
    • Commercial and Mixed Use
    • Education
    • Existing Buildings
    • Green Building Design
    • Healthcare
    • Mechanical, Electrical and Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
    • Property Consultancy
    • Safety, Health and Environment Consultancy Service
    • Structural Engineering
    Transport
    • Asset Management
    • Aviation
    • Bridge Design
    • Landscape and Urban Design
    • Light Rail Transit
    • Maritime
    • Rail Design
    • Road Design
    • Surveying and GIS
    • Transport Planning
    Earth and Environment
    • Contaminated Land
    • Environmental Management
    • Geotechnical and Ground Engineering
    • Landscape and Urban Design
    • Occupational Hygiene
    • Resource Management Planning
    • Sustainability and Climate Change
    Digital
    • Building Information Modelling - BIM
    • Surveying Mapping and GIS
    Energy
    • Energy Management
    • Hydrogen Energy
    • Power Generation and Distribution
    Water
    • Climate Adaption and Sustainability
    • Environmental Training Centre
    • Primary Industries
    • Stormwater and Flood Risk Management​
    • Water and Wastewater Conveyance
    • Water and Wastewater Treatment
    Research
    • Built Environment
    • Environmental Effects
    • Human Centred Design
    • Instrumentation Monitoring
    • Laboratories
    • Materials Testing and Analysis
    • Research Design
    • Resilience to Hazards
    • Socio-economic Research
    • Wind Tunnel Testing
    Featured content
    thn_Sustainable Places
    Sustainable Places

    We’re in the business of creating engaging and resilient places for people.

  • Insights
    Our experts offer compelling insights that provide new perspectives.

    Read inspiring articles that challenge the status quo by reframing current issues, sparking fresh conversations and finding new solutions.

    View all
    Insights
    • Climate
    • Mobility
    • Places
    • Resources
    • Society
    • Technology
    Featured content
    WSP and Mahi a Rongo | The Helen Clark Foundation Research

    WSP has been partnering with the Helen Clark Foundation since October 2019 to take a…

  • Careers
    What if you could do the kind of work the world needs?

    With us, you can. Make your best impact with WSP, where the culture and people also make it the best work of your life.

    Find out more
    Careers
    • Job opportunities
    • Early Career
    • Experienced Professionals
    • Why join us?
  • Who we are
    • Our Story
    • Corporate Responsibility
      • Who we are
      • Accountable for Tomorrow
        • Communities
        • Corporate Governance
        • Diversity and Inclusion
        • Ethics and Integrity
        • Health and Safety
        • Sustainability
    • NZ Leadership Team
    • Our impact
  • What We Do
    • Property and Buildings
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Acoustics, Noise and Vibration
        • Architecture
        • Asset Management
        • Building Compliance and BWOF
        • Commercial and Mixed Use
        • Education
        • Existing Buildings
        • Green Building Design
        • Healthcare
        • Mechanical, Electrical and Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
        • Property Consultancy
        • Safety, Health and Environment Consultancy Service
        • Structural Engineering
    • Transport
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Asset Management
        • Aviation
        • Bridge Design
        • Landscape and Urban Design
        • Light Rail Transit
        • Maritime
        • Procurement and Contract
        • Rail Design
        • Road Design
        • Surveying and GIS
        • Transport Planning
    • Earth and Environment
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Contaminated Land
        • Environmental Management
        • Geotechnical and Ground Engineering
        • Landscape and Urban Design
        • Occupational Hygiene
        • Resource Management Planning
        • Sustainability and Climate Change
    • Digital
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Building Information Modelling - BIM
        • Surveying Mapping and GIS
    • Energy
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Energy Management
        • Hydrogen Energy
        • Power Generation and Distribution
    • Water
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Climate Adaption and Sustainability
        • Environmental Training Centre
        • Primary Industries
        • Stormwater and Flood Risk Management​
        • Water and Wastewater Conveyance
        • Water and Wastewater Treatment
        • Water Asset Management
    • Research
      • What We Do
      • Expertise at your service
        • Built Environment
        • Environmental Effects
        • Human Centred Design
        • Instrumentation Monitoring
        • Laboratories
        • Materials Testing and Analysis
        • Measurement Devices
        • Research Design
        • Resilience to Hazards
        • Socio-economic Research
        • Transport Safety
        • Wind Tunnel Testing
  • Insights
    • Climate
    • Mobility
    • Places
    • Resources
    • Society
    • Technology
  • Careers
    • Job opportunities
    • Early Career
    • Experienced Professionals
    • Why join us?
Select your language and location

We are locally dedicated with international scale.

International
  • Global
    English — Français
Americas
  • Brazil
    Português
  • Canada
    English — Français
  • Chile
    Español
  • Colombia
    Español
  • Mexico
    Español
  • Panama
    Español
  • Peru
    Español
  • United States
    English
Africa
  • South Africa
    English
Asia
  • China
    中文(简体) — English
  • Hong Kong
    English
  • India
    English
  • Indonesia
    English
  • Malaysia
    English
  • Philippines
    English
  • Singapore
    English
  • South Korea
    한국어(대한민국) — English
  • Thailand
    English
Europe
  • Denmark
    Dansk
  • Finland
    Suomi
  • France
    Français
  • Germany
    Deutsch
  • Hungary
    English
  • Italy
    Italiano
  • Netherlands
    Nederlands
  • Norway
    Norsk
  • Poland
    Polski
  • Romania
    English
  • Spain
    Español
  • Sweden
    Svenska
  • Switzerland
    Deutsch — Français
  • Turkey
    Turkish
  • United Kingdom
    English
Middle East
  • Kuwait
    English
  • Oman
    English
  • Qatar
    English
  • Saudi Arabia
    English
  • United Arab Emirates
    English
Oceania
  • Australia
    English
  • New Zealand
    English
Worldwide offices
    • Investors
      Discover our diverse business, financial results and strategic ambitions.

      We are committed to delivering sustainable value to our shareholders and exceptional professional services to our clients.

      Find out more
      Investors
      • Corporate governance
      • Press releases
      • Reports and filings
      • Stock information
      • Shareholder information
      • Presentations and events
      Corporate governance
      • Audit committee
      • Board of directors
      • Business Conduct Hotline
      • Constating documents
      • Governance documents
      • Governance ethics and compensation committee
      • Mandates
      Reports and filings
      • AIF
      • Annual
      • Information circular
      • Quarterly
      • SEDAR+ filings
      • Sustainability
      Stock information
      • Analyst coverage
      Shareholder information
      • Acquisitions
      • Dividends
      • FAQ
      Featured content
      Thn-Web-IR-2025-Q1-Results
      WSP's Q1 2025 Results

      We released our 2025 first quarter results on May 7, 2025 after market close.

    • Investors
      • Corporate governance
        • Investors
        • Corporate Governance
          • Audit committee
          • Board of directors
          • Business Conduct Hotline
          • Constating documents
          • Governance documents
          • Governance ethics and compensation committee
          • Mandates
      • Press releases
      • Reports and filings
        • Investors
        • REPORTS & FILINGS
          • AIF
          • Annual
          • Information circular
          • Quarterly
          • SEDAR+ filings
          • Sustainability
      • Stock information
        • Investors
        • Stock Information
          • Analyst coverage
      • Shareholder information
        • Investors
        • Shareholder Information
          • Acquisitions
          • Dividends
          • Drip
          • FAQ
      • Presentations and events
    • News
    • Contact us
      We are dedicated to our local communities and driven by global talent.

      Contact us to find out how our diversified offering, world-class expertise and geographical reach can assist you in achieving your vision.

      Contact Us

      Follow us

      Contact us
      • Request a proposal
      • Send a message
      • Find an expert
      • Offices
      Featured content
      Our Offices

      With offices throughout the world, you can connect with one close to you.

    • Investors
      Discover our diverse business, financial results and strategic ambitions.

      We are committed to delivering sustainable value to our shareholders and exceptional professional services to our clients.

      Find out more
      Investors
      • Corporate governance
      • Press releases
      • Reports and filings
      • Stock information
      • Shareholder information
      • Presentations and events
      Corporate governance
      • Audit committee
      • Board of directors
      • Business Conduct Hotline
      • Constating documents
      • Governance documents
      • Governance ethics and compensation committee
      • Mandates
      Reports and filings
      • AIF
      • Annual
      • Information circular
      • Quarterly
      • SEDAR+ filings
      • Sustainability
      Stock information
      • Analyst coverage
      Shareholder information
      • Acquisitions
      • Dividends
      • FAQ
      Featured content
      Thn-Web-IR-2025-Q1-Results
      WSP's Q1 2025 Results

      We released our 2025 first quarter results on May 7, 2025 after market close.

    • Investors
      • Corporate governance
        • Investors
        • Corporate Governance
          • Audit committee
          • Board of directors
          • Business Conduct Hotline
          • Constating documents
          • Governance documents
          • Governance ethics and compensation committee
          • Mandates
      • Press releases
      • Reports and filings
        • Investors
        • REPORTS & FILINGS
          • AIF
          • Annual
          • Information circular
          • Quarterly
          • SEDAR+ filings
          • Sustainability
      • Stock information
        • Investors
        • Stock Information
          • Analyst coverage
      • Shareholder information
        • Investors
        • Shareholder Information
          • Acquisitions
          • Dividends
          • Drip
          • FAQ
      • Presentations and events
    • News
    • Contact us
      • Request a proposal
      • Send a message
      • Find an expert
      • Offices
  1. We are WSP
  2. Insights

Building resilience in an age of change

A host of challenges are forcing engineers to reflect on different and more holistic ways of achieving resilience in the built environment. WSP national technical leader Brabhaharan investigates how best we can construct the next generation of functional structures.
map marker New Zealand | Wednesday, 11 May 2022
New-Transmission-Gully-Expressway---photo-credit---Wellington-Gateway-Partnership

New Transmission Gully Expressway - photo credit - Wellington Gateway Partnership

1 / 3
SH1-and-rail-link-closed-by-large-landslide-in-the-2016-Kaikoura-earthquake

SH1 and rail link closed by large landslide in the 2016 Kaikoura earthquake

2 / 3
FerrymeadBridgefromabovebeforeitsopeningPhotocreditBeckerFraserPhotos

Ferrymead Bridge from above before its opening. Photo credit - Becker Fraser Photos

3 / 3
Previous Next

With some of the best brains in the business and access to the latest technology, Aotearoa New Zealand’s engineers do a first-rate job of building safe structures. But the engineering community is facing a perfect storm of challenges, including raising the seismic performance of the country's built environment and designing for more extreme weather events.

Throw into the mix the pressing need to design with lower-carbon materials and supply chain pressures from COVID-19 and it can be hard to know where to start in designs that are resilient enough to take the knocks and can bounce back from whatever nature throws at them.

We don’t need to look far to see how disruptive natural events can be for people and society. After the 2016 Kaikōura Earthquake, parts of State Highway One and the Main Trunk Line were closed for months by landslides. Recent storms at the top of the South Island and elsewhere around the country caused significant loss of functionality to much infrastructure.

As engineers, we must build functional, resilient structures that can survive the effects of these kinds of events - while keeping a close eye on carbon inputs so as not to make the problem even worse for future generations.


Site right

Sensible land use planning has a vital role to play in building resilience. Hazardous areas should be zoned for low intensity land use, while low risk areas should be selected for high intensity land use, including housing, and critical energy, water and telecommunications infrastructure.

Unfortunately, we don’t always seem to get this right. Much of our built environment is still being sited in areas that are highly susceptible to a range of hazards – from liquefaction and flooding to coastal inundation and sea level rise.

In an example of what good looks like, Blenheim recently decided to extend to less hazardous areas to the North and West of the township. Growing to the more vulnerable South-East would have meant more expensive (and carbon intensive) groundworks. Making this decision came at no extra cost and demonstrates the long-term value of planning for hazards.

In another example, a recent apartment project undertaken by WSP saw the building positioned well away from current and old stream beds. The more hazardous ground prone to damage was used for parking. In this way, greater resilience was achieved – in fact, the client was able to save on foundation costs and reduce the structure’s embodied carbon.


Form and function

Designing building forms that fit within the context of local hazards is one of the most important things we can do when thinking about resilience and getting things back up and running after catastrophic natural events.

Doing this early lets us select design approaches that are resilient, low carbon and economic. But leave it too late, and we’ll just have to throw more cost and carbon at the problem - and still not achieve the resilience needed.

Canterbury’s new Ferrymead Bridge is a great example of how focussing on form can enhance a structure’s resilience. It’s been designed with a pier in the middle of the river – well away from the riverbanks – and features slender piles that reduce the effects of ground movement. The bridge can be quickly restored to provide temporary access if another major seismic event rocks the region.

Resilience in this context is our ability to continue to function - or return to functionality quickly. It’s a hallmark of the Remutaka Hill alignment North of Wellington. Early plans featured bridges, but embankments able to cope with ground displacement and rock cuttings ended up being the centrepiece of the design. In this way, the project team achieved enhanced resilience, reduced the amount of concrete and steel used and made serious dollar savings.

Similarly, flexible and easily restorable embankments have been adopted on the just-opened Transmission Gully Expressway to enable rapid reopening if the Ohariu Fault that crosses it was to rupture.

In thinking about resilience, it’s important to understand that not everything can (or should) be designed to be 100 percent bullet proof. Focusing our energies on critical facilities that are essential to the functioning of society should be the priority. Areas of the built environment where we can accept a level of damage – such as parks and gardens – aren't so important and can be repaired over time.


Putting it all together

Taking a more holistic approach to resilience that’s sensitive to decarbonisation, climate change and seismic impacts will require a 360° change in mindset. Location, form and focus on functionality needs to be topmost in mind.

The best place to start is to have all construction industry disciplines work closer together with a common goal of achieving greater resilience and sustainability from the outset. Without taking this integrated focus, projects won’t be able to deliver the change needed.

The big question is will we get serious as an industry about making this paradigm shift? I certainly hope so. As a hedge against the impacts of adverse shocks and our climate future, it's more necessary than ever.


More on this subject

thn-public-transport-loneliness

July 2025

Alone Together

New Zealand
svg-icon Helen Clark Foundation
Resilience , Society
thn-still-alone-together

July 2025

Still Alone Together

New Zealand
svg-icon Helen Clark Foundation
Resilience , Society
thn-Airport Master Planning

July 2025

Enhancing Airport Master Planning in Latin America

Global
svg-icon White Paper
Decarbonization , Mobility , Resilience , Technology
thn-Navigating-Data-Center-Resilience

May 2025 | 4:52 minutes

Navigating Data Center Resilience

United States
svg-icon Feature
Resilience , Technology , Energy Transition
thn-Advancing-Electrifications-Role-in-our-Energy-Systems

May 2025 | 5:22 minutes

Advancing Electrification’s Role in our Energy Systems

United States
svg-icon Feature
Resilience , Climate , Energy Transition , Decarbonization
thn-energy-transition

May 2025

Advancing Energy Transition? Count Your Assets Too!

svg-icon Feature
Decarbonization , Energy Transition , Resilience
thn-thermal-energy-networks-2

May 2025 | 4:00 minutes

Perfect TENs

United States
svg-icon Feature
Decarbonization , Energy Transition , Resilience
thn_rebalancing the infrastructure equation

May 2025

Rebalancing the infrastructure equation

New Zealand
svg-icon Helen Clark Foundation
Resilience
thn-na-clean-energy-feature

April 2025 | 00:30 seconds

North American Clean Energy Feature: Improving grid security

United States
svg-icon Feature
Resilience , Energy Transition
Tunnels-FFFS_article-Thumbnail

April 2025

Exploring Road Tunnel Fixed Fire Fighting Systems

Global
svg-icon Feature
Resilience , Technology
Tunnels-AI-Article-Thumbnail

April 2025

Exploring AI Impact on Tunnel Design

Global
svg-icon White Paper
Resilience , Technology
thnHealthier Products Global Benefits

April 2025 | 5 Minutes

Healthier Products Global Benefits

Global
svg-icon Blog
Society , Resilience

Author

img-brabha
Brabha
Technical Director Geotechnical Engineering, Tunnels and Resilience
New Zealand
See more

Share this page

  • Share on Facebook - Warning, this link will open a new tab.
  • Share on Linkedin - Warning, this link will open a new tab.
  • Share on Twitter - Warning, this link will open a new tab.
  • Share on Skype - Warning, this link will open your Skype application.

Related themes and tags

  • Resilience (206)

  • Climate (179)


  • Buildings (112)
  •   Page will open in a new tab
  •   Page will open in a new tab
  •   Page will open in a new tab
  •   Page will open in a new tab
  •   Page will open in a new tab
  • Who We Are
  • Our Story
  • Future Ready
  • New Zealand Leadership
  • Global Leadership
  • Our offices
  • What We Do
  • Sectors
  • Services
  • Projects
  • Insights
  • Climate
  • Mobility
  • Places
  • Society
  • Resilience
  • Technology
  • Careers
  • Join Our Team
  • Holiday Act Remediation for Former Employee
  • Early career
  • Experienced professionals
  • Why join us?
  • Corporate
  • Sustainability
  • Health and Safety
  • Investors
  • Business Conduct Hotline
  • News
  • Corporate Governance
  • Ethics and Integrity
  • Engineer in Safety
    ©2025 WSP
    • The WSP Logo
    • Privacy Policy
    • Anti-Spam Commitment
    • Cookie Notice
    • Terms of Use
    ©2025 WSP
    Exiting our Website

    You are about to leave WSP.com and are being redirected to a job opportunity at Louis Berger, which has been recently acquired by WSP in the US.