oq-gem

Glossary for gem taxonomy

Authors: Luke Allen, Andrew Charleson, Svetlana Brzev, and Charles Scawthorn

This online Glossary explains around 400 terms contained in the GEM Building Taxonomy v 2.0 and nearly 700 images.

The terms have been listed in alphabetical and numerical order. Text description of each term is accompanied by illustrations (photos and/or drawings) where possible.

We welcome contributions in the form of photographs or images, illustrating glossary terms. If you have any questions you can also contact us at buildingtaxonomy@globalquakemodel.org


Structural irregularity is a feature of a building's structural arrangement, such as one storey significantly higher than other storeys, an irregular building shape or a change of structural system or material, that produces a known vulnerability during an earthquake. The user can choose a maximum of two vertical and two plan irregularities for a building. However, if a building has two irregularities of the same type (plan/vertical), the user needs to prioritize them by identifying the primary irregularity first and the secondary irregularity next.