Geotechnical Investigatons for Foundation Design

Soilutions are principally known as an environmental consultant, but we also have the capability to carry out geotechnical ground investigations for foundation design. We include a geotechnical assessment as standard in the majority of our Phase 2 ground investigation reports to help clients and structural engineers determine the most appropriate foundation for their development.

We have been working on a former landfill which is to become a housing development. While many people would be surprised to hear that homes are being built on landfills, with appropriate remediation these sites will pose no risk to residents. One issue associated with building houses on landfill is the need for deep foundations – the man made ground can be deep and behave unpredictably when the weight of a building is put on top of it.

With this landfill being almost ten metres deep, a piled foundation was required, resting up to a metre into the solid bedrock at the bottom of the landfill. Soilutions worked with the client’s piling contractor to carry out a ground investigation which showed the strength of the soil in the landfill and of the rock beneath it. We used a rotary drilling rig and carried out tests on the ground every 1.50m as we drilled. We also sent samples of the rock to a laboratory for strength testing.

As a result, the client now has a viable foundation design for their development. Soilutions can help you with your foundation investigations, whether they are specialist piled foundations or straight forward traditional strip foundations, and we can save you money by combining a geotechnical investigation for your structural engineer with an environmental investigation required by a planning condition.

 

If you have any questions regarding ground investigations don’t hesitate to get in touch. We’re happy to talk so feel free to contact us on 0800 0209 307 or e-mail us on info@soilutions.co.uk.

And if you need more information about Phase 1 Desk Studies or Phase 2 Ground Investigations you can download our eBooks below: