Building Reinforcement: In 1987, Baumann Research and...

Building Reinforcement: In 1987, Baumann Research and Development Corp. of Newport Beach invented an earthquake-resistant building reinforcement that got its first field test in the Northern California quake three years ago. A 17-story San Francisco dormitory building that was near completion survived the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake without so much as a hairline crack, thanks in part to Baumann Research’s high-strength wire reinforcement for concrete.

Apparently, what works in earthquakes works in hurricanes. Tests at UC Irvine’s Civil Engineering Laboratory indicate that BauMesh is capable of resisting 240-m.p.h. winds as well as earth movements.

That finding inspired a sixth-generation Hawaiian family to hire Baumann Research to build its luxurious housing compound on the island of Kauai, which was recently devastated by Hurricane Iniki. The three posh homes will replace houses on the same site that were leveled by the hurricane.