Technological Advance in Japanese Building Design and Construction

In this state-of-the-art overview, Anthony Webster describes the influence of Japan's largest design and construction firms on the industry at large. Pointing to actual examples and case studies, Webster outlines the firms' technological capabilities, their research and development activities, and various aspects of Japan's industry in comparison with America's.
What is the relationship between the Japanese government, its universities, and the building design and construction industry? How has the industry been affected by the economics of the Japanese real estate industry? How does the competitiveness of Japan's building design and construction industry compare to that of the United States in the global marketplace? Chapters - detailed with numerous photographs, diagrams, schematics, and tables - explore these questions and more. The pneumatically sprung floor of the Edo-Tokyo Museum ... the intelligent building systems in the Makuhari Techno-Garden Complex ... the Obayashi corporation's cost-cutting hybrid precast-panel, poured-in-place frame shearwall system for earthquake resistance are among the topics discussed in this volume of technological advances.

Anthony C. Webster is Director of Building Technologies and an assistant professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.