Earthquake engineering: just F = ma?
From inertia and Newton’s second law to the equations of motion used in seismic analysis.
Read post
Contact North Star Design & Build
Media coverage featuring Scott Chen, alongside his own writing on engineering, construction and the built environment.
Reporting & interviews
Reporting and interviews published by media organisations, featuring Scott Chen’s engineering expertise.
Media feature
The New York Times
432 Park Avenue · New York
Scott Chen was interviewed and quoted in The New York Times’ reporting on the structural issues at 432 Park Avenue.
Read in The New York TimesExpert commentary
ABC News
McCrae landslide · Victoria
ABC News quoted Scott Chen on landslide risk on the Mornington Peninsula, including drainage, slope stabilisation and monitoring.
“Mornington Peninsula has a well-documented history of landslides.”
Scott Chen · Civil Engineer
Radio interviews
Conversations with Scott Chen on building safety, structural failures and construction.English summaries · Original interviews in Mandarin
Scott discusses factors behind the rapid spread of the Hong Kong fire and the Australian approach to building safety.
An interview on potential causes of building collapse in the Türkiye earthquake and seismic provisions in Australian building standards.
Scott joins a talkback discussion on the skills and practical preparation needed to take on an owner-builder project.
Scott explains the preliminary engineering findings on cracking at Sydney’s Opal Tower and their implications for building quality.
A discussion of delays, extended waiting periods and the additional costs that can arise in house-and-land packages.
Scott outlines contract issues to consider before paying a deposit or committing to a house-and-land package.
Written by Scott Chen
Scott’s own analysis, professional commentary and observations from practice. Full text, figures and videos are available here.

From inertia and Newton’s second law to the equations of motion used in seismic analysis.
Read post
A hot-rolled H-section springs apart during cutting. Residual stress and stored elastic strain energy help explain why.
Read post
Laser cleaning offers precise, non-contact rust removal with fewer consumables. Surface cleanliness, coating profile and safe operation still need to be verified.
Read post
A twin-span industrial building in Melbourne’s western suburbs, with two overhead bridge cranes. Explore the working bays, steelwork, foundations and six principal connections.
Read post
From China to Melbourne: explore a factory’s structure, foundations and connections, then see how two selected models respond to wind and earthquake inputs.
Read article
A two-image roadmap covering the main requirements, certification routes and contacts for overseas building products entering the Australian market.
Read post
A steel lattice-column splice at height: alignment, connection assembly and temporary stability during erection.
Read post
An eight-round comparison of aluminium and steel, covering weight, stiffness, strength, heat sensitivity, corrosion, fabrication, site work and cost.
Read post
Drawing on ten years of Australian practice and experience in Chinese design institutes, Scott examines how regulation, technical guidance and fragmented design responsibilities contribute to leaking homes.
Read article
What does an industry award actually verify? Scott draws on his forensic clients’ experience to ask for clearer disclosure and independent scrutiny.
Read post
Scott interprets Geoscience Australia’s event details and intensity map, distinguishing regional ground shaking from a building’s response.
Read post
Scott explains magnitude and intensity, qualifies his preliminary estimates, and discusses hazards from falling non-structural elements.
Read post