To Make Our Society More Earthquake-resistant
Many earthquake resistant structures were destroyed by the recent earthquakes, such as the Kobe Earthquake, 1995 in Japan, and the Kocaeli Earthquake, 1999 in Turkey.
The reliability of the structures during earthquakes must be checked again using rational design methods. For this purpose, the existing design methods must be confirmed by full-scale experiments.

Purposes of the Facility
Three-dimensional shaking tests of full-scale structures will be performed to confirm their ability to resist huge earthquakes. Analytical procedures to calculate the earthquake resistant ability of real structures will also be developed.
These innovative procedures will contribute to save human lives from large catastrophic earthquakes all over the world.

Utilization and Operation of the Facility
E-Defense will be open to the world after its completion in 2005. Furthermore, such a major facility will require coordination and collaboration of many participants, including academic institutions, government researchers, general public, and private and industrial organizations