NBRO Newsletter | Volume 19 - Issue 03

Dear Esteemed Readers,

Welcome to the third issue of Volume 19 of the NBRO Newsletter, where we proudly reflect on the milestones achieved by the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) in the third quarter of 2024.

This edition presents articles on Disaster Risk Reduction, resilient housing, building materials, sustainable environment practices, and more. We sincerely hope you enjoy reading this edition and welcome your feedback and ideas for NBRO's future initiatives.

Our dedication to research and development, paired with a comprehensive range of services, continues to establish NBRO as a leader in Sri Lanka's building and construction sector. From testing and consultancy to structural and project management services, our work remains at the forefront of innovation, driving sustainable development and resilience across the nation.

We are delighted to invite you to join hands with NBRO in research and development or through collaborative consultancy efforts to create a safer built environment.

Warm regards,
Eng. (Dr.) Asiri Karunawardena
Director General

The recent inter-monsoon prevailing in the country since early October 2024 has impacted several districts of the island, including Ratnapura, Kegalle, Kalutara, Kandy, Galle and parts of Colombo, and Gampaha Districts. This has triggered landslides, cutting failures, rock falls, and related incidents. The most prominent type of incident recorded during this period was cutting failure, primarily caused by anthropogenic activities. The NBRO, through its district-level offices, has taken necessary measures to manage the landslide risk. The NBRO's early warning centre (EWC) operates 24 hours a day, continuously monitoring the situation and responding promptly. The NBRO EWC has issued 13 Landslide Early Warnings from 7th October to 16th October 2024. As a result, the impact caused by this monsoon season has been significantly reduced.

The National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) is proud to announce that we have successfully conducted the Small Hard Body Impact Test for partition wall panels according toBS 5234-Part 2 Standard, marking the first time this test has been performed in Sri Lanka.

This test, carried out at the request of a valued client, represents a significant achievement in advancing local testing capabilities and aligning with international safety standards. The test is critical for assessing the impact resistance and durability of partition wall panels, contributing to safer and more resilient building structures.

ශ්‍රී ලංකාව වසර පුරා විවිධ ස්වභාවික ආපදාවලට මුහුණ දෙමින් සිටි. එම ආපදා අතර නායයෑම් මගින් ජන ජීවිතයට, නිවාස හා දේපළවලට දැඩි හානි අත්කර දෙයි. මේ අතර කඳුකර ප්‍රදේශවල ජීවත්වන ජනතාවට, මෝසම් වර්ෂා කාලය නායයෑම්, කණ්ඩි කඩා වැටීම් හා ගල් පෙරළීම් ඇතිවීමේ අවදානම ඉහළ නංවයි. ඒ අනුව ජාතික ගොඩනැගිලි පර්යේෂණ සංවිධානය (NBRO) විසින් නායයෑම් අධි අවදානම් ප්‍රදේශවල පිහිටි නිවාස ඒකක 15,000 ක් පමණ හඳුනාගෙන ඇති අතර එම නිවාස ඒකක ආරක්ෂිත ප්‍රදේශවල නැවත පදිංචි කිරීමට නිර්දේශ කර ඇත.

එම අධි අවදානම් පවුල් ආරක්ෂිත ප්‍රදේශවලට නැවත පදිංචි කිරීම සඳහා දිස්ත්‍රික් මට්ටමින් ව්‍යාපෘතියක් 2017 වර්ෂයේ සිට ක්‍රියාත්මක වෙමින් පවතී. නමුත්, එම ව්‍යාපෘතියේ මන්දගාමී ප්‍රගතිය නිසා මේ හරහා නැවත පදිංචි කර අවසන් පවුල් සංඛ්‍යාව පවුල් 3500 කට ආසන්න ප්‍රමාණයකි. එසේ හෙයින් , මෙම ව්‍යාපෘතිය හරහා නැවත පදිංචි කරවීම සිදු වන තෙක් අධි අවදානම් ප්‍රදේශවල රැඳී සිටීමට සිදුවන පුද්ගලයින් අරමුණු කරගෙන NBRO විසින් ප්‍රජාව මූලික කරගත් ව්‍යාපෘතියක් ක්‍රියාත්මක කරමින් සිටියි.

The National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) extends heartfelt congratulations to Dr. Imaya Ariyarathna on earning her PhD in Landslide Engineering from the United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Ehime University and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development (SATREPS) between Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) and Sri Lanka. Dr. Imaya's dedication to scholarly excellence and her contributions to the field exemplify the spirit of academic pursuit and international collaboration.

As Dr. Imaya embarks on her next chapter; we wish her continued success and fulfillment. Her achievements serve as inspiration for future generations of researchers and innovators.

Congratulations, Dr. Imaya Ariyarathna, on this well-deserved milestone!

Annual Conference of the Sri Lankan Geotechnical Society (SLGS) was held on 8th October 2024 at Galleface Hotel Colombo. The theme of the conference was " Geotechnical Engineering Challenges in Expressway Construction " . The Director General of NBRO addressed the audience on "Advancements in Ground Improvement Techniques for Sri Lankan Expressway Construction".

This year, the National Building Research Organisation (NBRO) has taken its landslide awareness and risk reduction efforts to a new dimension by actively involving school children in its mission. With the collaborative support of the Science Branch of the Ministry of Education, NBRO has rolled out the Programmed called “The Guardians” (Child-Centered Landslide Risk Management Program, an initiative designed to empower the students as proactive agents in disaster risk management. This program, which began as a pilot in 20 selected schools in landslide-prone districts, marks a shift toward community-centered resilience that starts with the younger generation.

Reduction of Landslide Vulnerability Mitigation by Measures Project (RLVMMP) addresses the national priority of lowering the risk of landslides and decreasing their severity in order to minimize loss of life and economic and social damage to affected communities. Initiated back in 2019 and scheduled to be completed in 2025, the total estimated cost of this project is USD 101.3 Mn funded by Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and GOSL. The Project includes structural mitigation of 128 landslide-prone locations dotted around the country. Major project stakeholder organizations and beneficiaries include RDA, SLRD and government-owned entities as well as private land owners. The Project consists of several other components including the preparation of legislation related to landslides and guidelines for establishing them while contributing to the economic and social development as well as reducing potential landslide disaster reliefs.

The Environmental Studies and Services Division of NBRO is cconducting Research Studies on Country-Specific Emission Factors for Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU) Sector in Sri Lanka under the Project on Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) for the climate change secretariat of Ministry of Environment.

A meeting was held at the Ministry of Environment, Battaramulla on 29 October, 2024 with technical leads from FAO - regional office, National consultants for Climate Change Adaptation, Mitigation, Measurement, Verification & Reporting to discuss the building initiative for Transparency (CBIT) Towards Enhanced Transparency in the AFOLU Sector (CBIT-AFOLU). Officials of NBRO, professionals from University of Sri Jayawardhanapura, Department of forest and officials of the ministry of Environment also presented at the meeting.

The Landslide Research & Risk Management Division (LRRMD) has been a driving force in landslide research and safety in Sri Lanka. With a focus on modern solutions, LRRMD has adopted a smart office approach, using digital tools and simplified processes to improve efficiency and make services easier to access. This setup helps LRRMD provide fast, high-quality services with fewer delays. Additionally, LRRMD is working toward accreditation, showing its commitment to meeting international standards and strengthening its expertise in landslide risk management throughout Sri Lanka.

The NBRO has launched its annual Research Awards, aimed at enhancing research capabilities and promoting innovative solutions among its staff. The award’s aim is not only to recognise exceptional work but also to drive the development of practical, technology-driven solutions that can be implemented for the benefit of communities across Sri Lanka. These awards encourage researchers to explore new knowledge, incorporating new technologies, methodologies, and collaborative efforts to address pressing issues.

The NBRO Research Awards 2024 provides a platform for NBRO researchers to bring innovative ideas and knowledge into the organisation, fostering both collaboration and innovation. The focus is on tackling real-world challenges, particularly in disaster risk reduction, environmental sustainability, and building resilience. Through this initiative, NBRO seeks to evaluate outstanding research activities and award financial prizes to researchers, encouraging their advanced research and the development of new artefacts in line with the institution's mission.

The NBRO Research Awards 2024 explore the best research in the areas of Built Environment Resilience, Innovation & Leadership, and Digital Innovation.

The NBRO is leading technical innovative research in collaboration with local and international partners on to build a resilient environment. We are currently conducting more than ten ongoing research activities aimed at creating a safer and resilient built environment for the communities. These initiatives span multiple disciplines, including environmental management, engineering, structural innovation, and urban planning.

HAG Jayatissa - jayathissa777@gmail.com
Chinthaka Rathnasiri - chinthaka_rathnasiri@yahoo.com
Madara Dissanayaka - madaradi@yahoo.com
Anuruddha Vijekumara - toanuruddha@gmail.com
Ireka Perera - ireka.nbro@gmail.com