You may have already planned a wind load analysis on your new high-rise complex. You need to know how the wind might affect your buildings and how you can keep them safe.

However, wind load isn't the only issue you have to think about. If people will walk around your complex between buildings, then a pedestrian wind comfort survey is also worth doing. This analysis tells you how wind and other weather conditions might impact on people outside your buildings. Why is this important?

1. Get Increased Comfort

High-rise buildings affect local weather conditions. They can block and redirect wind direction and strength. If you don't design the pedestrian areas around your complex carefully, then things might get uncomfortable for your residents and the people who visit them.

For example, if you inadvertently end up with a wind tunnel between buildings, then anyone walking through the area will be battered and blown about when winds are high. This makes things uncomfortable for pedestrians.

In some cases, it might be enough to put tenants off from moving into your building. However, if you have a wind comfort survey, you can ensure that your plans factor in typical weather conditions and avoid these types of problems.

2. Ensure Better Onsite Safety

Gusting winds around high rises aren't just uncomfortable; they can also make areas riskier to walk through. If winds are high enough, people could lose their balance and fall. Any loose items outside your complex, like A-frame business signs or planters, could blow about and hit something or someone.

A wind comfort survey reduces the chances of this happening. You can identify potential problem areas and work around them to make them safer.

3. Find Wind Management Solutions

A wind comfort analysis shows you any flaws in your overall building design where weather conditions might be a problem. Luckily, this gives you time to make the necessary changes to improve the situation.

While you might not know what steps to take, your structural engineering consultant will have some solutions. In some cases, you might need to make tweaks to your plans; however, a lot of the time, you can wind-proof problem areas.

For example, your engineer could help you design a planting plan that uses trees, hedges or shrubs as windbreaks. Awnings and balustrades could also help.

To find out more about pedestrian wind comfort issues, talk to a representative of a local structural engineering firm.