All piling mats and crane working platforms must be constructed with rig and crane safety as the main design criteria.
PowerCem Technologies in the UK, manufacture a cement modification product RoadCem, which based on zeolite Nano technology radically changes the way cement binds soils. The brittle particle gluing bind which takes place when cement alone is used, is changed by RoadCem to a flexural wrapping crystallisation which reduces cracking and increases dynamic stiffness. Reducing the risks of ground movement and shear during piling.
In-situ soils can often contain organic and/or sulphate bearing materials, these when treated with cement and/or lime can create weak or even dangerous voids or heave risks. Which could cause mat failures under use by heavy rigs or cranes.
It is particularly important that the piling mat or crane platform does not deteriorate or suffer from any movement and/or heave because in piling work the specialist equipment used has a high centre of gravity and the consequences of a collapse can be fatal.
The traditional method of constructing a piling mat is to import and lay a deep layer of stone.
Reductions in stone depth have been mitigated by adding plastic containment grids at the base of the structure to spread loadings and limit shear.
Importing stone is an unsustainable method of construction adding numerous unnecessary lorry movements of materials to and from the site. Whilst a graded stone mat with a well-designed geogrid giving under support and containment has been proven to meet safety requirements. It is a compromise as the stone in the mat can cause deflection and require longer setup. In addition, piles have been known to snag going through the plastic geogrid base layer an unnecessary safety issue.
PowerCem have for ten years have been offering onsite stabilisation of in-situ soils to meet all UK piling mat standards. We can achieve loading specifications to meet the requirements of the heaviest of rigs and our bound soil mats can be constructed in-situ from any soil/ground type.
The stabilisation process of the bound soil mat will be carried out with either Wirtgen self-drive or Stehr tractor pulled dust free soil mixers.
The wrapping cage like cement bonds created by our patented zeolite technology allows weak, organic, and even sulphate bearing soils to bound together to form impermeable heave resistant monolith layers that will have a flexural easy to work nature allowing easier pile penetration with very little deformation during the lifetime of the mat.
The high modulus of elasticity of RoadCem bound soil mats has a dampening effect which will make driven piling operations, safer and far quicker with easy setup and zero deflection.
The ductile RoadCem mat will eliminate breakaway, and cracking around the piles, allowing ongoing construction use of the bound soil mat as a cost-effective, sustainable foundation element.
We believe that we can save time, cost, and embodied carbon for most piling mat requirements: Driven, Auger and Sheet.
Strength testing can allow early commencement of piling operations and all plant operational certifications can be arranged by our partner team engineers, Rodgers Leask Consulting Engineers of Derby, as part of the installation package.
Please send us your piling mat requirements, which should include any ground investigations reports and the piling rig specifications. We can quickly prepare a cost indication, together with linear strain analysis and a construction schedule for your engineers.
We can also provide carbon reduction guidance and further options to reduce embodied carbon if required.
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