Lecture Week 13-1

QUANTITY ESTIMATION & MASS-HAUL DIAGRAMS

TOPICS
Quantity Estimates
Earthworks Quantities
End-Area Calculations
Shrink and Swell
Interpreting Mass-Haul Diagrams

Mass Haul Diagrams

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Cost Estimation
The highway design process often requires the
designer to consider a number of constraints before
arriving at a balanced design.
In most cases, the balanced design is only achieved
after several iterations have been completed.
Political, social, environmental and economical forces
will interplay when a project is in the design stage.
The effectiveness of a design alignment is measured
using a number of methods.
One measurement tool which assists the designer to
estimate the economic implications of a project is
known as cost estimation.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Cost Estimation
Estimates can be calculated using various levels of
detail.
A simple model may have global estimates for road
construction (e.g. $1.2 million / km of two-lane-twoway highway, 110 km/h design speed), and other
components of the project ($5 million per fully
directional interchange). This model may be most
appropriate during the preliminary design process.
As a project progresses, a more detailed estimate is
normally required.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Sample of Items to Quantify

Right of way acquisition

Clearing
Grubbing
Stripping
In-situ material excavation
Fill placement
Erosion Control material
Drainage infrastructure
Granular materials
Paving
Signing
Lighting
Landscaping
Maintenance of traffic during construction

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Preliminary Cost Estimate

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Cost Estimation
One of the costliest items in the previous list is the excavation
(and placement) of existing material. Cut material, if of adequate
quality, is used to fill those locations where the existing elevation
of the ground is below the design grade.
The estimation of the quantity of material which must be
excavated (cut), and the quantity of material required to raise the
elevation of the existing ground (fill), is very useful in the
development of a cost estimate for a project.
The final cross-section and alignment characteristics of the
roadway are often adjusted to bring the two quantities to
unity. Stockpiling extra material or importing additional material
are additional costs which can be avoided if the cut and fill
quantities are in balance.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Quantity of Material
Most of the other quantities listed previously are tied
directly to the cut an fill estimates. The compilation of
their estimates and combination with unit costs, enables
the designer to arrive at an overall cost for the project.
When construction projects are publicly tendered,
quantity estimates are often part of the information
provided to contractors who bid to complete the
work. Quantity estimation by computer has provided
marginal improvements to the accuracy of estimates
However, its greater benefit has been to give designers
the ability to consider multiple design alternatives in
more detail which, in turn, enables them to arrive at
better design.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Calculating Quantities
The cross-section of the fill at three points, 1, 2, and 3,is shown. The areas of
the fill cross-sections, A1, A2, and A3, are also shown. The "cross sectional"
area of the amount of fill would be measured at standard points, or "station",
along the alignment. The distance between sections is normally constant. The
volume of fill material between Section 1 and Section 2 can be calculated using
the "Average-End-Area" method as represented by the formula:
V = ((A1 + A2)/2)*L
Where:
V = volume of material
between Stations 1 and 2
with fill end-areas A1 and
A2
L = segment length (in
meters)
V = volume (m3), and
A1 and A2 are end areas
(m2)

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Shrink and Swell

Excavated in-situ material used in embankments or fills
may swell or shrink. It is important to determine the
properties of a material in order to evaluate how these
properties will affect the earthwork volume estimates.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Shrinkage
When earth is excavated and hauled for use as
compacted fill, its volume once compacted is normally
less than its original condition before it was excavated.
This difference is defined as shrinkage.
The amount of shrinkage will depend on the type of
material used.
A shrinkage factor, or compaction factor, of 10 to 15
percent is common. Dense in-situ materials may be
somewhat lower.
Shrinkage of 40 to 50 percent for some types of material
is possible. These high shrinkage values also account
for other factors, such as loss of material in the hauling
process and loss of material at the toe of a
slope. Shrinkage should not include settlement of fills
due to consolidation.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Swell
When rock is excavated and placed in a fill, the material
will occupy a larger volume due to the air voids that are
introduced into the material.
This increase is called 'swell' or 'bulking'.
Swell can be as high as 40 percent.
Swell is only taken into account when a rock fill is
being considered.
Swell is not considered for small amounts of loose rock
or boulders placed in an embankment

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

MASS-HAUL DIAGRAMS & DECISION TABLES

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass Haul Diagram

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass-Haul Diagrams
A Mass-haul diagram is a useful method to
graphically represent the amount of material that
will be cut and used for fill on any earthwork
job, particularly for highway or railway projects.
It illustrates the location of the mass balance
points, the direction of haul, and the amount of
earth to be taken to or from any location along
the alignment.
Mass diagrams are also extremely useful in
determining the most economical distribution of
material.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass-Haul Definitions
Excavation (E) Excavation refers to any material
removed from its original location. Excavation is
commonly split into two categories - ordinary material
(OM) and rock. Both OM and rock are generally
calculated by volume (cubic yard or meter) and costed
in this manner; that is, in $/yd3 or $/m3. These two
quantities are normally handled as a separate cost items
because rock is substantially more expensive to
excavate.
Occasionally, the estimator may not classify the
material separately and attribute a cost to the total
volume of material. This might be the case where
geotechnical information is not complete enough to
accurately assess the depth of bedrock, or if rock in the
area can be easily excavated without blasting.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass-Haul Definitions
Free haul (F) When material is excavated, construction
contractors will normally move it over an established
distance free of charge. This distance is the "free haul",
and is normally agreed upon between the client and
builder.
Overhaul (O) Overhaul is defined as the distance over
which the excavated material must be hauled, less the
free haul distance. The cost for overhaul is normally
specified by the contractor. This rate is normally given
in $/yd3/unit-distance or $/m3/unit-distance .

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass-Haul Definitions
Borrow (B) Borrow refers to the fill material that must
be brought to the proposed highway site from outside
the highway corridor. Borrow does not include the
material that is excavated on site for use as fill . The
borrow cost is normally given $/yd3 or $/m3, and this
rate normally includes the cost of excavating and
transporting borrow.
Limit of Economic Overhaul (L) The limit of
economic overhaul is a distance beyond which it is not
economic to overhaul. At this point, the cost to
excavate and overhaul on-site material is equal to the
cost of excavating and delivering borrowed material.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Mass-Haul Definitions
Waste (W) Waste is the excavated material that cannot
be used for fill on the project site. Normally, the
designer will try to roughly balance the amount of cut
and fill required on a project at the design stage, so that
the amount of fill that must be transported in (borrow)
or the amount of waste that must be hauled away are not
excessive. Waste can also include excavated materials
that are unsuitable for use as a fill because they have
unacceptable engineering properties (such as peat, clays,
etc.). Sometimes it is more economical to waste
material and use borrow material from a borrow
pit. This occurs where it is necessary to haul excavated
material long distances to use as fill.

Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Properties of Mass-Haul Diagrams

The ordinate at any point of the curve of a mass haul diagram is
the cumulative volume of material from the initial project station
to that point.
The rate of excavation/placement is indicated by the slope
curve. A rising curve indicates a cut; a falling curve indicates a
fill.
Where the earthwork changes from a cut to a fill, or a fill to a cut,
the slope of the curve is 0.

Balanced section

a = volume of borrow required

b = locations where borrowed is required
c = volume of waste = location where waste will occur.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Properties of Mass-Haul Diagrams

Any horizontal line which joins points on the curve where
balance is achieved is called a balance line. Balance lines need
not be continuous. In most cases, the free haul distance or the
limit of economic overhaul are established and plotted on the
mass haul diagram.
A vertical break between any two balance lines indicates an area
where balance does not occur. At these breaks a shortfall or
excess material exists. The location and volume of waste or
borrow can be determined in this manner.
Balanced section

a = volume of borrow required

b = location where borrowed is required
c = volume of waste
d = location where waste will occur.
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007

Properties of Mass-Haul Diagrams

F = freehaul
O = overhaul
W = waste
B = borrow
L = limit of economic overhaul
Lecture 13-1. Geometric Highway Design Spring 2007