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Correct approaches to the assessment of historic structures involve the collection of data related to materials, building technology, eventual damage and decay, and transformation that has occurred over time. The procedure proposed by the authors is based on multidisciplinary research, merging data ranging from documentary and archive research to structural modeling. In the developed procedure, the minimization of the costs and timing of the structural assessment were the main requirements. The procedure, implemented on the Arengario, the 13th-century Town Hall of Monza, focuses on the key role of historic and documentary research in order to highlight the difference in the building technology. The overall research program involves the following steps: (i) historical analysis and documentary research; (ii) visual inspections, geometric survey, and decay/damage identification and mapping; and (iii) dynamic testing and modal identification, with these steps driving the choices involved in the subsequent step: (iv) FE modeling and updating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An extensive research program is currently in progress to assess the structural condition of the bell-tower of the Church Santa Maria del Carrobiolo in Monza, Italy and to address the preservation of the historic building. The research program was consequent to the direct survey of the tower, carried out within a wide cataloguing activity of the main religious buildings in Monza and highlighting a weak structural layout of the bell-tower. The paper presents the main results of the investigation program performed to date and including: (a) documentary research, systematic visual inspection on site and experimental evaluation of the fundamental period of the tower, carried out using an industrially engineered microwave interferometer; (b) installation of a static monitoring system aimed at surveying the opening of the main cracks, possibly related to the recent construction of an underground car park in the close neighbourhood of the church; (c) dynamic tests in operational conditions, performed using conventional high-sensitivity accelerometers with the twofold objective of validating a FE model of the tower and implementing the installation of a continuous dynamic monitoring system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents and discusses the results of investigations carried out by the authors on two castles that are considered as case histories within a project financed by the European Commission (project EVK4-2001-00091 ONSITEFORMASONRY), coordinated by C. Maierhofer of Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und prüfung (BAM), Germany. An extensive investigation programme (including sonic, radar, flat-jack, coring, boroscopy, etc.) was planned to support the preservation and restoration actions of two ancient castles. The experience from this investigation shows the importance of the diagnosis project in selecting the most relevant strategies and tests for each specific problem. Cet article présente et discute des résultats des examens effectués par les auteurs sur deux châteaux, considérés comme des études de cas dans le cadre d’un projet financé par la communauté européenne (projet EVK4-2001-00091 ONSITEFORMASONRY), coordonné par C. Maierhofer de BAM (Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und Prüfung, Allemagne). Un programme d’examen détaillé (incluant sonar, radar, vérin plat, carottage, inspection endoscopique, etc.) a été planifié afin de soutenir les mesures de préservation et de restauration des deux anciens châteaux. L’expérience montre l’importance, pour le projet de diagnostic, de sélectionner les stratégies et les tests les plus adéquats pour chaque problème spécifique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The long-term research experience of the authors has highlighted the importance of gaining knowledge of the building through experimental investigation. Recently the authors intensively studied the Syracuse Cathedral (Sicily, Italy) to evaluate the structural state of the preservation of the pillars. The Cathedral of Syracuse was built in different phases on an ancient Greek temple from the fifth century bc and modified throughout later centuries. The pillars of the central nave, obtained by cutting the temple cell walls, show a complex situation of damage and repairs. An investigation program (including radar, sonic, and ultrasonic tests, for example) has been recently planned, aimed to design the preservation and restoration actions. An accurate geometric survey of the surface problems and defects allowed the localization of the most damaged area, suggesting the need for further control by non-destructive testing (NDT). The results obtained from this survey were compared with the results of the other type of tests, and the elaborated data will be used to implement an analytical model for the study of the seismic vulnerability. The preliminary results of the experimental investigation carried out by the authors are presented in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After an earthquake, which struck the Eastern part of Sicily in 1990, some structural elements of the Church of S. Nicolo` l'Arena in Catania, as the dome and the vaults, were damaged; vertical cracks on the two pillars were detected. It is not clear whether those cracks were already visible and were simply propagating during the earthquake. It is known that the two pillars probably belong to the original construction of the church.An investigation programme (including historical research and experimental investigation with sonic, radar, flat-jack, coring, boroscopy, etc.) has been recently planned to design the preservation and restoration actions.The results obtained from sonic tests were compared to the results of the other type of tests in order to set up an investigation procedure useful for these cases. The paper presents and discusses the preliminary results of the research carried out by the authors. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]