Piling Mats and Crane Platforms Virtually any soils or materials found on construction sites including organic top soils and the majority of contaminated materials (inorganic and organic) can be stabilised by the use of our unique RoadCem Technology to form fast to build cost effective Piling Mats and Crane Platforms. By using the existing 'in-situ' soils or materials, construction can in most cases be commenced far quicker with reduced planning, environmental constraint and delays. Using existing site materials instead of imported stone to form the piling mat or crane platform will not add additional weight to any potentially weak sub grade/soils and should prevent any settlement issues until your piles are safely in place. Life becomes a lot easier when existing site won materials can be used, with significant savings in lorry movements of replacement stone to site and no requirement to remove materials off site, leading to improved site safety and reductions in the environmental damage and the overall carbon footprint of the project. Recycling in-situ soils and materials has major sustainability benefits; with reductions in the extraction of primary aggregates for fill and the increasingly costly exercise of land filling excavated site waste. The early establishment of a stabilised all weather working site platform will provide a safe and sufficiently durable working surface on which trucks and construction plant, such as piling rigs and cranes can operate Effectively and safely. Clear economic and sustainability benefits can be derived from the use of soil stabilisation: Where the mats and platforms can be used and re-used and/or re engineered for a variety of ongoing purposes throughout the construction process finally becoming permanent works, without any need for sacrificial layers. RoadCem stabilised soil working mats and platforms formed by effectively engineering the existing site soils can be utilised many times through a construction site life-cycle; they may provide safe effective piling mats which can left in as blinding, formwork for casting pad foundations, provide a surface for steelwork erection even act as a structural element within a floor slab or pavement, as well as immediately providing early temporary all weather access roads, compounds and project car parking.
Piling Mats: In most circumstances the existing site soils can be stabilised with RoadCem technology to produce strong, safe and cost effective mats with predictable bearing capacities. A typical piling mat requires a level platform that can be penetrated effectively in a safe manner without losing any integrity and without deflection of the driven or bored piles. The technology behind a RoadCem soil piling mat or platform creates a strong dense impermeable layer with a high module of elasticity. The force of driving piles will be absorbed by the flexural matrix that has formed during hydration and cracking and breakaway will be limited. • •
CFA, bored piles and bored mini-piles will have no difficulty in penetrating a RoadCem piling mat and heavy plant will be able to operate close to the edge of the mat without any risk of shear. Most driven piles and bored displacement piles can penetrate RoadCem stabilised platforms cleanly without cracking allowing the rigs fast set-up and deflection free piling on the true flat surfaces.
A 6000 m2 RoadCem stabilised soil piling mat for driven pre-cast piles constructed recently for MWH Global at their Clay Mills project is a good example of how this new technology can be far better than traditional methods. Constructed in less than a week from the sites weak silty clay soils, by DNS Midlands Ltd the mat after plate testing was ready immediately for piling specialists Bullivant’s to commence their complex piling programme. This soil piling mat has recently won ICE prizes for both Bullivant’s, MWH Global and ourselves for it’s innovation and its environmental benefits and cost savings.
Clay Mills, Derbyshire. Ahead of schedule and happy the piling team were very pleased with the RoadCem stabilised soil mat. A visiting Bullivant’s quality manager confirmed that it was the best mat they had ever used.
Set up and placement on the level surface has been simple and safe, very stable with no deflection at all. The flexible nature of the stabilised soil base has prevented cracking or breakaway
A seven week piling schedule, completed in a third of the allotted time. Innovation that saves both cost and time, with positive safety values.
Photo taken by Bullivant’s safety officer, who was amazed that this 18 tonne stack of piles could stored on 10 mm slats. Without even marking the surface.
Access to the Severn T rent Water Clay Mills project required the crossing of a busy unmanned railway crossing and keeping site traffic to a minimum was a priority . We understand that the original design for a stone mat would have required an additional 2000 truck movements to and from site. In general piling operators are one of the first sub-contractors to work on a construction site. The work is dangerous; the rigs are unwieldy and tend to be top heavy, a lot of extra equipment (casing, cages, and augers) is needed and there are many daily deliveries to be unloaded and stored (concrete piles included). This leads to the need for certain facilities to be immediately available in order for the piling to commence in a satisfactory manner but also safely and in accordance with legislation. It is essential to ensure the arrangements well planned and made some weeks prior to arriving on site. An area accessible to vehicles with trailers with a safe haul route designed to take the necessary loads with sufficient space to unload items up to 20m in length, with suitable access from this area to the piling site including segregation from other workers and pedestrians. RoadCem in addition to being an ideal technology for building the piling mats, is a really good option for constructing these temporary and sometimes permanent access roads, storage, parking and work compounds. With RoadCem soil stabilisation they will be fast to build, requiring little delivery to site and easy to remediate when the project is over.
Summary: Faster, cheaper and in practically every way better than stone.
Maritime Transport Headquarters Felixstowe. Work is currently ongoing at the site of new headquarters for Maritime Transport at Trinity Distribution Park, Felixstowe. The groundworks, piling mats and large car parking areas have been designed by Rodgers Leask of Derby who specified the use of RoadCem soil stabilisation. The 300 mm deep stabilised soil piling mats, roads and car parks were constructed by Geofirma using Wirtgen 2500 soil stabilisers. Soil conditions across the site varied from alluvium to made ground in depths of 300 mm to 2300 mm covering a dense London Clay.
These existing soils which were stabilised without added stone were found to be very susceptible to wetting up in the rainy September weather.
Bored piling was specified to avoid noise and vibration problems and early piling work on the mats has been highly successful, with fast clean penetration, easy set-up and no absolutely no deflection. With no risk of shear the rigs have been able to work close the edge of the mats with no tracking or break away.
These strong flexible mats will be left in place once piling is completed as blinding for final building construction. The stabilised soil access roads and car parking areas which will eventually act as base for block paving, after serving their original purpose of providing an all weather construction compound and truck roads.
The sustainable use of new PowerCem soil stabilisation technology can save both time and money when it becomes part of the overall construction design.
Other Construction applications: Construction Platforms; A durable and level surface improves the efficiency and safety of all construction activities, particularly a RoadCem soil stabilisation with its high module of elasticity. Particular examples requiring significant support may be steelwork erection, mobile cranes, and any heavy plant operations. Soil sampling and strength tests will be needed to ensure that the strength and platform thickness are sufficient for all the activities to take place on the platform.
Formwork; RoadCem soil stabilisations, which are produced without any aggregate or stone can be sawn through accurately to provide in situ formwork for foundation pads and services. The strength of the stabilisation is generally not an issue, but if formwork is planned this should be taken in to consideration when the platform thickness is considered.
Blinding; the surface of the stabilised soil platform if it is to be later used for blinding layer for a ground bearing slab may need to be graded and cleaned off prior to concreting. In many applications where concrete would have been used, such as store or warehouse floors, a thin (60 mm) layer of roller compacted concrete with added ConcreCem will bind directly on to the stabilised soil will be the most cost effective and lasting solution. In January this year RoadCem soil stabilisation was the chosen technology for the construction of the piling mats and construction platforms for Costain Groups prestigious £45,000,000 Walton on Thames Bridge over the river Thames. The platforms constructed from the weak organic bank side soils were designed by Lawrence Pacey of Derby based consulting civil and structural engineers Rodgers Leask. The platforms have been designed to support large tracked cranes and piling rigs with wide track loadings up to 80 tonnes/m2.
2013 Major Project winner Walton on Thames Road Bridge, built by Costain using RoadCem Technology The construction was again carried out DNS Midlands Ltd in cold very wet conditions. The Cowey Sale marshland on the Walton bank of the river was particularly challenging once the trees had been removed.
Christmas 2012 saw the erection of the new span less bridge. A brilliant bit of engineering by Costain, we also celebrated just a little.
The soft weak organic soils proved quite a challenge for the DNS (Midlands) Wirtgen.
Until the RoadCem technology took effect and things started to rapidly firm up.
Summary: In this heavily trafficked part of London, avoiding the removal from site of over 10,000 tonnes of organic soil to be replaced with an equivalent tonnage of stone was always a big priority. Using the existing wet organic site soils has been an economic and logistical success with an immediate saving of £300,000 and several months of construction time.
Temporary Works: RoadCem stabilisations are 100% recycleable and can after a period of 5 to 6 weeks or more can be safely milled back to soil, without leaving any harmful substances in the ground. This makes the reinstatement of temporary groundworks quick, simple and cost effective.
Temporary roads; the stabilised soil can be used with or without a wearing surface, where traction is considered a potential problem or in areas where spin turning is expected a sacrificial layer of stone can be added.
Building Compounds and temporary parking; A RoadCem stabilised soil layer will make a very effective temporary compound area for Cabins and material storage. If suitable sloped to fall it will stay dry throughout the project and can be very quickly returned to soil when required. Crane Platforms & Piling Mats; RoadCem stabilised layers can be used effectively for heavy crane platforms and for piling mats. Far safer and more predictable than stone. The high module of elasticity and impact resistance of RoadCem stabilisations together with resistance to shearing allows design engineers to build smaller, safer platforms and mats.
Permanent Works: RoadCem stabilisations, like concrete will continue to increase in strength. Ground bearing slab; the stabilised soil layer can be used to improve the foundation for ground bearing slabs. When designing the slab the high tensile strength of the RoadCem stabilised soil layer will allow reductions in the final slab thickness. In most circumstances the RoadCem stabilised layer can be used to totally replace the slab.
Car parks; RoadCem stabilised layers can be used effectively as car parking base with any type of wearing course laid on top. A simple 40 mm asphalt layer can be applied most effectively directly onto the stabilised soil. RCC (Roller compacted concrete) will provide a stronger longer lasting surface
Non-adopted roads; the stabilised layer is a great pavement foundation and can be used with just with just a 40 mm asphalt wearing course, enabling roads to be built quickly and far more cost effectively. (ask to see our Delft University report)
Adopted roads; HBM foundations such as the RoadCem stabilisation can be used with approval even for adopted roads, and a RoadCem stabilisation is classified as a hydraulically bound material (HBM) allowing a significant reduction in the required thickness of pavement layers. HD 25/94 (now replaced by IAN73/06) describes the current design methodology adopted by the Highways Agency. This should be sufficient for roads to be adopted by Local Authorities, but please check first.
