1.0earthwork Operation

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Site Clearing Chapter-1
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Site clearing
Clearing is the first operation to be carried out once
the detailed road alignment has been established.
 It consists of the removal and disposal of all
unwanted (unsuitable) materials from the road
reserve.
These are:
 Bush clearing
 Trees and Stump removal
 Boulders removal
 Grass and topsoil removal
 Anthills removal
It consists of all preparatory activities before
excavation and fill works.commence for the road
formation and drainage structures.
Clearing is carried out covering the entire width of

the road plus the space required for drainage and
side slopes.
This activity is also required before any borrow pits

or quarries can be effectively utilized.
Bush Clearing
Bush Clearing
Bush clearing consists of cutting and removing
bushes and shrubs within the road reserve.
It is carried out as the first work activity when
constructing a road, normally scheduled to take
place just before the earthworks commence.
If it is done too far in advance, the bush grows
back and the exercise needs to be repeated.
Some bush clearing may also be required during
the surveying works in .order to provide access
and clear sightlines for the surveyors.
Bush clearing is essentially carried out using
bow saws, axes and bush knifes.
 The bush should be disposed of well outside the
roadway or stacked in a cleared area for
burning.
 Removed bush and debris should be discarded at
locations from where it cannot return to the
road reserve and so blocking drains and cross-
drainage structures.
Tree and Stump Removal
 Removing large trees is an expensive operation,
. digging out the roots.
especially when it comes to
 Trees are often a social amenity providing shade,

fodder or firewood for the local community.
 If large trees stand in the way, realignment should be

considered to avoid them.
 Trees growing near the road can have a good effect on
the strength of the road because they can act as a
countermeasure to soil erosion.
In hilly terrain, trees protect the exposed faces of cuts

against erosion.
 Equally, trees can stabilize materials on the fill side.
Before cutting down trees outside the roadway,
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it is therefore worthwhile considering letting
them remain.
For trees within the roadway, an assessment
should be made whether it is possible to find
technical solutions which still safeguard the
performance of the road.
For example, instead of cutting down a tree
standing in the side drain, a solution may be to
install a miter drain (turn-out) in front of the
tree and continue the side drains behind the
tree.
Trees outside the roadway can normally be left,
unless there is a danger of the tree falling when
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high winds are blowing.

With small-sized trees within the roadway, a good
way of removing both the tree and its stump is to
pull down the whole tree.
 This is done by using a long rope attached to the
top of the tree and removing the soil around the
roots.
Take care that the tree is secured and cannot fall
until all workers are at a safe distance from it (at
least twice the height of the tree).
The combination of leverage and dead weight is very
convenient.
Grubbing
Grubbing
 Grubbing consists of removing roots of grass
and other light vegetation.
 It may also include the removal of topsoil
containing considerable amounts of organic
material.
 Roots need to be dug out to a depth that
ensures that the trees or bushes do not
continue growing and reappear in the road
reserve.
 If the topsoil consists of the same material as
. is no reason to remove
the soil below it, there
it.
 Topsoil should only be removed if it appears to
contain organic material and small roots.
 On most sandy soils the surface can be left
undisturbed.
 This may help to minimize erosion. On the other
hand, if the soil underneath is to be excavated
and dumped outside the road (spoiled), it is not
necessary to carry out any grubbing.
Topsoil Removal
Topsoil Removal
Topsoil is the soil near the surface , in which
plants grow. The underlying material is
called subsoil.
Topsoil removal is usually only where the
topsoil is deep (10-15cm), appears to be
inferior in strength than the soil below.
If the topsoil layer is very thin, it has very little effect
on the compaction and resulting strength of the
road
If it is dumped on the high side of the road, it
may be washed back into the drainage system
of the road during heavy rains.
Equally, it may cause damage to farmlands
and residential areas.
Topsoil can often be reused on the slopes next
to the road or spread on adjacent farmlands.
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 Similarly, organic soils can also be used at

the end of the project when reinstating
borrow pits and gravel quarries.
Why remove it?

 Topsoil contains a lot of organic which decay,
so it is not a strong layer for building the road
on.
 Topsoil allows grass and plants to grow
through onto the roadway.
Is removal of topsoil always necessary?
 Remove topsoil where it is different from the subsoil.
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 Leave undisturbed sandy soil, which is a strong layer.

 Learn to distinguish between organic and inorganic
mater.
 Organic mater includes humus, decayed vegetation
and even roots.
 Organic soils usually smells.
What to do with topsoil?

Don’t just pile (Laying) it up on the roadside; it’s to valuable.
Spread it on the agricultural land.
 Consider spreading topsoil on the sides of a road embankment, to
be grassed later for protection against soil erosion.
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Anthills removal
• Anthills need to be removed to the full depth and
treated, to avoid that they grow back out again.
• If the ants or termites continue their activities it may
undermine the stability of the road, eventually leading
to a collapse of the road formation above the voids
created by the insects.
• The voids resulting from digging out the ants need to
be filled and compacted in layers similar to the method
used for mending a pothole.
Boulder Removal
Boulder removal can involve.
 Hand carrying small boulders

 Rolling
 Breaking
Digging
Burying large boulders.

Productivities for site clearing
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Terrain
Chapter-2
classification

Terrain classification according
to transverse slope
• Terrain according to the transverse slope

through which the road passes.
1) Flat Terrain
2) Rolling Terrain
3) Mountainous Terrain
4) Escarpment Terrain

Flat Terrain
• Flat offers few obstacles to the construction of a

road, having continuously unrestricted horizontal
and vertical alignment.
• Transverse terrain slope 0-10 %.

Rolling Terrain
• Rolling country where the slopes generally rise
and fall moderately and where occasional steep
slopes are encountered, resulting in some
restrictions in alignment .
• Transverse terrain slope from 11%-25%

Mountainous Terrain
• Rugged, hilly and mountainous country and river
gorges.
• This class of terrain imposes definite restrictions on the
standard of alignment obtainable and often involves
long steep grades and limited sight distance.
• Transverse terrain slope from 26%-60 %.

Escarpment (Steep) Terrain
• Inclusive of switchback roadway sections, or side

hill transverse sections where earthwork quantities
are considerable, with transverse terrain slope in
exceed of 60 %

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Earthwork Operation
E arthworks
 The most common form of earthworks consists of the preparation of a level
base on which the road body is constructed.
 The existing terrain where the road passes is seldom flat.
 The ground on which the road is built therefore needs to be reshaped to form
level base on which the road pavement can be constructed.
 Consist of :
 Excavations works
 Building up earth fills or embankment
 Loading
 Unloading
 Transport of soils,
 Spreading and compaction
 It is the largest operation when building road, often accounting for more
than half of the construction cost.

 The terrain can be classified according to its overall characteristics,
such as flat, rolling and mountainous.
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 Flat or gently rolling terrain normally involves the least amount of

earthworks.
 In gently sloping terrain (less than 10% slope) you should choose the
alignment to get equal cut and fill.

 In steep terrain in sidelong ground (more than 10% slope) you
should make all the formation in cut , so that none of the road is in
fill which would be unstable.
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 Road alignments are often selected to take advantage of gently

rolling terrain with good natural drainage features.
 Entirely flat terrain may be prone to flooding, and in such

conditions the level of the road needs to be lifted by building an
embankment.
 To avoid excessive embankment works, it is useful to keep the

alignment away from the lowest points in the terrain.
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F T errain
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Side Cut

Cut to Fill

Embankment and fills

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Basic activities of earthwork

Slotting
Excavation to level
Road formation

Slotting
Slotting is a sample cross section of the road or drain
constructed as a guide for following earthworks or
reshaping.
Setout a slot at every 10m or even closer if the ground
is changing.
This is important in sidelong ground where excavation
will be large.
You use slots to measure the volume of excavation.
The slots visualize the amount of cut and fill over the
cross-section of the road.
Provide a clear guidance to the laborers on how to
prepare a level platform from left to right.
• Set out a slot at right angle to the centre line.
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• Each slot is 50cm wide.
• The length depends on the chosen cross-section and should

extend from back of ditch to back of ditch.
• If the slot is more than 0.5 m high at any point, the sides of
the slot excavation should be back-sloped instead of vertical.
• Compact the fill side of the slot using a hand rammer.
• Ensure with a straight edge and spirit level that the slot is
exactly horizontal.
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0+000 0+020 0+025
After the slot is excavation:

 Look at the material and see whether it is ordinary ‘ or
weathered , or hard rock.
 Choose a task per person in m3. For example:
For hard soil or weathered rock use a task rate of 1.5m3.
For a firm soil use a task rate of 3m3
For a loose soil use a task rate of 3m3
 Check the quality of in-situ material !!!
Excavation to Level (ETL)
With ETL a level platform is created from left to right over the entire
grubbed width.
If the ETL is not done correctly, e.g. there are differences in level
from left to right, it will be very difficult, to construct a correct final
cross-section.
Ditches will end up being at a different level, and it will be hard to
achieve the same camber at both sides of the road.
Expensive correction works may have to be ordered to the
contractor.
In order to avoid this, the contractor should take good care that ETL
is carried out to the correct standards.
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Excavation and fill
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Area of excavation including Back slope (V:H =
1:1)

Example
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Left side Centerline Right side
Chainage
Profile Cut (-) / Profile Cut(-) Profile Cut(-) Fill
reading Fill (+) reading Fill (+) reading (+)
0+000 10 -90 100 --- 30 -70
0+020 40 -60 80 -20 50 -50
0+025 20 -80 50 -50 80 -20
0+040 75 -25 75 -25 10 -90
0+060 160 +60 150 +50 180 +80
0+080 30 -70 80 -20 70 -30

Compaction of ETL
• The platform should be compacted to the
required standards as specified in the
contract.

Road construction in cross sloping terrain has the following
features:
The high side drain will have to be dug deep,
The low side drain is normally not needed, and
The road will have to be built on a fill on the low
side.
The general checks should include.
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Check the quality of ETL on a regular basis and take corrective measures if
required.
Who: Contractor’s supervisor as well as the consultant Supervisor.
Why: To ensure that ETL is carried out correctly.
When: Before the start of ditch excavation.
Supervisor should carry out following checks:
1. Uniform levels over cross-section
What: 2. Smooth gradients in longitudinal direction
3. Width of platform is conform specifications
4. Platform is properly compacted
Tools: Boning rods, line level and a 25m tape measure.

Formation of the road
 After Excavation to Level is completed, the contractor must start
building up the road formations per the contract specification and
designed road cross sections.
 In labour based road construction, the formation of the road is

built up in four steps, which are all to be carried out separately.
1. Excavate rectangular ditch and spreading
2. Back sloping and spreading
3. Fore sloping
4. Camber formation, final shaping

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Formation of the road in flat terrain

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1. Ditch excavation

2. Throw the material from the side
ditch to the center.

3. Excavate the high side drain and form
the camber.

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 The main advantage of working in stages is
 the amount of excavation can be balanced with the
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quantity of fill needed.

 Secondly, the fill material can be obtained as close as
possible to where it is required - eliminating the demand
for longitudinal haulage.
The excavation and fill can often be balanced on each side

of the centre line, however, the width of the excavation
also has to provide sufficient space for the side drain.
 This fixes the setting out dimensions for the excavation on

the high side.

Estimating earthworks
• On steeper cross slopes, there is too much
excavation for a practically sized gang to finish in
one day.
• In these cases, the excavation is divided into two

or three days work.
• By calculating the volumes involved, we know

that the following setting out dimensions will give
roughly equal amounts of work for the days
involved.
Determine width of excavation in
uniform sloppy terrain.

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 If the required side cut is not too deep, it is recommended
to provide a back slope with a gradient of 1:1, similar to
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the back slope commonly applied to side drains.
 In hilly or mountainous terrain, it may not be possible to

obtain this gradient.
 Depending on the stability of the soils, the back slope

may be set at a steeper grade, preferably not more than
2:1.
 If steeper gradients are required, it may be necessary to

consider installing retaining walls.
When the centre line profiles are set out at 1m above ground level, we
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can measure the height of the high side profile to tell us:
how steep the slope is,
how deep we will have to dig,
The volume we will have to dig.

Give and take line (Proposed line)

The Fill Side
 The fill side is constructed using the materials from the cut
side.
 If the fill at the low side road shoulder is higher than 0.3m,
there is no need for any side drain on this side of the road.
 Make sure that the slope of the fill is neatly shaped with a
gradient not steeper than 1:2 (50%), as shown in the figure
below.
 In order to produce a good quality fill, it is important that all
soils are properly compacted.
 The fill is therefore built-up in layers each not more than
15cmthick and properly compacted before the next layer is
added.
 Watering may be required to secure optimum moisture content
during compaction.
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Benching and Filling .

Side Borrow
 Side borrow is any material required to build or repair the
road embankment, which is excavated from the side drains.
 The standard ditch of 60cm wide by 30cm deep should be

widened by app. 30cm on each side to provide for this extra
quantity of soil.
 In general, following formula can be drawn up to calculate

the re-quired ditch widening for a certain extra required
quantity of fill:
 If the required extra volume is large, so that the extended
side drain falls outside the cleared and grubbed width, the
contractor should be paid extra man days for clearing and
grubbing of the extra area.
Borrow pits

Camber formation
Formation of camber

E mbankment C onstruction
 Embankments require large amounts of fill material and
are expensive to construct.
They should be avoided or minimized when possible by
selecting an alignment following higher ground.
This however, is not always possible in low, flat,
agricultural land, where alternative routes are difficult to
find.
The embankment slope not less than 1:2 to prevent erosion.
To reduce the required earthworks, it is important to keep
the embankment to the least required height.
 This is normally considered to be 0.50m above the level to
which the surrounding terrain floods.
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Volume calculation

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Borrow Pits
The use of borrow pits is necessary when large fills are
required.
In rolling and mountainous terrain, any demand for fill
materials should be sourced from within the road reserve by
utilizing soils from the side cuts.
Widening the side drains or reducing the gradient on back
slopes is also a feasible way to obtain additional fill
material.
In flat terrain, where the road needs to be lifted to a level
above the surrounding terrain, it is often necessary to open a
borrow pit.
To access appropriate soil materials, any vegetation and
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topsoil need to be cleared away.
Topsoil should be stored at a safe distance from the work
site and returned once the borrow pit is no longer in use.
Excavation works in borrow pits need to be planned in a
manner so it causes the least damage or interference to the
normal use of the land.
Deep borrow pits should be avoided as they may become a
hazard to people and animals.
Equally, deep pits will fill with stagnant water and
thereby cause health problems.
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When using labour- based work methods, it is possible to operate
. friendly manner by
borrow pits in a more environmentally
increasing the area of excavation and thereby limiting the depth of
excavation.
By limiting the excavation depth, it is easier to reinstate the land
and allow the continuation of previous farming activities.
Equally, the opening of a borrow pit should not commence before
farmers have been allowed to harvest their crops.
Although it is preferable to be as close as possible to the road site,
the borrow pit should be located at a safe distance from the
embankment or fill thus avoiding that the borrow pit causes any
damages to the road.
The exact location of the borrow works is set out by the supervisors.
Super-elevation of Curves
Super-elevation is applied to sharp curves to counteract the centrifugal
force exerted on vehicles travelling through the curve.
Super-elevation is created by inverting the camber slope on the outer
half of the roadway, thereby preventing vehicles from slipping of the
road while negotiating the curve.
For rural roads, the super-elevation can be built up over a 20m section
before entering into the curve.
Equally, the super-elevation is gradually run off over a 20m section
starting at the end of the curve.
Throughout the curve, the super-elevation is constant.
On gravel roads a cross slope of 8% across the road carriage width is
recommended (10% before compaction).
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Compaction
• Compaction decreases the volume of a layer of soil. By
forcing soil particles close together, the soil becomes stronger.
• By applying compaction to the materials used for road
construction, the road body will be strengthened, and better
withstand the envisaged traffic loads and natural erosion.
• There are four methods of compaction:
 Manually or mechanically operated tampers or rammers,
 Deadweight rollers,
 Vibrating compaction
 Natural compaction
Watering

Volume Conversion
The volume measure varies with the state of the soil.
There are three states of soil of encountered in earth-
moving operations. Theses are:
In-place natural soil
Loose excavated bulk soil
Compacted soil
The volume of soil in its in-place natural state is usually,
reffered to as the bank volume.
It swells when the heaped in a loose state after
excavation, and shrinks when mechanically compacted.
The relationship for volume conversion of soil into its
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three states prior to laboratory testing can be taken as

shown in table below.
Volume conversion of soil into its three states

Nature of soil Bank volume Loose volume Compacted volume
Common 1.00 1.25 0.90
earthwork
Sand 1.00 1.12 0.95
Clay 1.00 1.27 0.90
Rock 1.00 1.50 1.30

E xample
1. 100m3 of unexcavated earth (bank volume) is required to
be hauled.
a) What will its volume be when it has been excavated and
its ready for hauling?
b) What will its volume be if it is compacted?
Solution:
Nature of soil Bank volume Loose volume Compacted volume
Common earthwork 100 125 90
Sand 100 112 95
Clay 100 127 90
Rock 100 150 130
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Example .
 Thickness of the layer (h)=30cm

 Width of road=5m
 Dump-truck capacity, V=15m3
 Shrinkage Factor=0.8 .
Box Length; L= ___________
[[[
Example-1
 𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒅𝒕𝒉, (𝒘) = 𝟔𝒎
 𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 = 𝟑𝟎𝒄𝒎
 𝑳𝒐𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 = 𝟏𝟎𝟎𝒎
 𝑩𝒖𝒍𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 = 𝟏. 𝟓
 𝑽𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏; 𝑽 = _________________________
Answer; Volume after, V=270m3

The site supervisor is responsible for calculating the area in order to ensure the correct distributio
and thickness of gravel.
Example:
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With a carriageway width of 5.5m, 𝑉: 𝐻 = 1: 2 and a desired gravel thickness of

20cm, then one linear meter of the road will need a gravel volume as follows:
.𝑣 = 𝑤𝑥𝑡𝑥𝑙
1
𝑣 = 5.5𝑚𝑥 0.20𝑚𝑥 1𝑚 + 𝑥0.2𝑚𝑥0.4𝑚𝑥2𝑚
2
𝑣 = 1.10𝑚3 + 0.08𝑚3 = 1.18𝑚3
If the average load of a truck is 11.8m³, this load covers a road section with the following length:
𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦(𝑚3 ) 11.8𝑚3
𝐿= 3
𝐿 = 3
= 10𝑚
𝑡𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒(𝑚 ) 1.18𝑚
To avoid excessive moisture contents during spreading and compaction, it is recommended t
carry out the delivery of gravel during dry weather. The project management needs to monitor th
quality of the supplied gravel. Any
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Spreading of gravel .
• The material from one trailer is unloaded and

spread within a "box" marked by pegs and
sisal twine.
• The box has the width of the road running-
surface and a length calculated to ensure the
correct thickness of loose material.
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The box length can be calculated with the
formula as given below:

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• The best practice for a Labour Based site is shown on
Picture below, where gravel, once dumped, is spread
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and compacted immediately.
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Area of Regular boundary

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𝐴 = 𝑠 𝑠−𝑎 𝑠 − 𝑏 (𝑠 − 𝑐)
1
𝐴 = 𝑎𝑏 sin 𝑐
2
1
𝑠 = (𝑎 + 𝑏 + 𝑐)
2
𝑎, 𝑏, 𝑐 = 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒
ℎ = 𝑎𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑏 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒
𝑐 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝐴𝐵

Area of Irregular boundary
Mid-Ordinate rule
Average Ordinate rule
Trapezoidal rule
Simpson’s rule
Area by circular and parabolic segment

Mid-Ordinate rule
The tract is divided into segments and the offsets, etc., at
the midpoint of each interval.
The measured offsets are the mid-ordinates.
𝑳
𝑨 = 𝒅𝒙 𝑴𝟏 + 𝑴𝟐 + 𝑴𝟑 + 𝑴𝑳𝟒 𝒐𝒓 𝑨 = (𝑴𝟏 + 𝑴𝟐 + 𝑴𝟑 + 𝑴𝟒 )
𝑨 = 𝒅𝒙 𝑴𝟏 + 𝑴𝟐 + 𝑴𝟑 + 𝑴𝟒 𝒐𝒓 𝑨 = (𝑴𝟏 + 𝑴𝟐 + 𝑴𝟑 +𝟒𝑴𝟒 )
𝒏 𝟒 Where L=length o
𝑳𝒏 Where L=length of the baseline
𝑨 =𝑳 𝑴
𝑨 = 𝒏 𝑴𝒊 𝒊 n= numbe
𝒏 𝒊=𝟏 n= number of segments
𝒊=𝟏
L L
d=n d=n

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Average-Ordinate
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𝑂1 + 𝑂2 + 𝑂3 + 𝑂4 + 𝑂5
𝑂𝑚 = .5
In general
.
𝑂1 + 𝑂2 + − − − − +𝑂𝑛 +1
𝑂𝑚 =
𝑛+1
Therefore,
𝑛 +1
𝐴= 𝑂𝑖
𝑖 =1
Where L= length of the baseline

n= number of segments
If the offsets are not taken at regular interval as shown in
figure below, then the area.of each trapezoid is computed
separately and added together to get the total area.

Trapezoidal rule
In this method, the area is divided into a number of
trapezoids assuming the short lengths between the offsets
are straight lines as shown in figure below by dashed lines.
The area of each is determined and added to get total area
of the tract.

the offsets are straight lines as shown in figure below by dashed lines. The area of each is
determined and added to get total area of the tract.
𝑂1 + 𝑂2 𝑂2 + 𝑂3 𝑂3 + 𝑂4 𝑂4 + 𝑂5 𝑂5 + 𝑂6 𝑂6 + 𝑂7
𝐴= 𝑥𝑑 + 𝑥𝑑 + 𝑥𝑑 + 𝑥𝑑 + 𝑥𝑑 + 𝑥𝑑
2 2 2 2 . 2 2
𝑂1 + 𝑂7
𝐴 = 𝑑𝑥 + 𝑂2 + 𝑂3 + 𝑂4 + 𝑂5 + 𝑂6
2
.
In general
𝐿 𝑂1 + 𝑂𝑛
𝐴= ( + 𝑂2 + 𝑂3 + − − − − − + 𝑂𝑛−1
𝑛 2
𝐿 𝐹𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑂𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑒 + 𝐿𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑂𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑒
𝐴= + 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑂𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑡𝑒
𝑛 2
While using the trapezoidal rule, the end ordinates must be considered even if they happen to be zero.
While using the trapezoidal rule, the end ordinates

must be considered even if they happen to be zero.

Simpson’s rule
• In Simpson's rule it is assumed that the irregular boundary
is made up of parabolic arcs.
• The areas of the successive pairs of intercepts are added
together to get the total area.
• Since pairs of intercepts are taken, it will be evident that

the number of intercepts n is even.
• If n is odd then the first or last intercept is treated as a
trapezoid.
Area by circular and parabolic segment
.

Volumes
Volume is the quantity of the three dimensional space
enclosed by some closed boundary .
Is often quantified numerically using the SI derived
unit , cubic meter.
Earthwork operations involve the determination of the
volumes of materials that must be excavated or
embanked in an engineering project to bring the ground
surface to a predetermined grade, and the setting of
stakes to aid in carrying out the construction work
according to the plans.
Calculation of volumes from cross-sections
The volume of the earthwork between cross-
sections taken along a route may be calculated
by one of the following methods:
Average end area formula
Prismoidal formula

Volume by Average end-area (trapezoidal )
formula
𝐴1 + 𝐴2
. 𝑣= 𝑥𝐿 .
2
𝐴1𝐴1++𝐴𝐴22 𝐴𝐴2 2++𝐴3𝐴3 𝐴3 +𝐴𝐴3 4+ 𝐴4𝐴4 + 𝐴𝐴5 4 + 𝐴𝐴55+ 𝐴𝑛 𝐴

=𝑣𝐿𝑥
= 𝐿𝑥 ++ ++ + + + +
22 22 2 2 2 2 2
𝐴𝐴1 ++𝐴𝑛𝐴
𝑣 = 𝐿𝑥
𝑣 = 𝐿𝑥 2
1 𝑛+ 𝐴2 + 𝐴3 + − − − − +𝐴𝑛−1
+ 𝐴2 + 𝐴3 + − − − − +𝐴𝑛−1
2
Prismoidal formula
• If exact volume is required .
𝐿
. 𝑣 = 𝐴1 + 4𝐴𝑚 + 𝐴2 .
6
If L=2d
𝒅
𝒗 = 𝒔𝒖𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 + 𝟒 𝒔𝒖𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏
𝟑
+ 𝟐 𝒔𝒖𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒅𝒅 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔

.
.
143
144
.

Converting Task Rates to linear meters
 Productivity rates are measured in units of
length, area, volume and numbers.
 Normally, task rates given in area and volume
cannot be easily visualized or perceived by the
workers.
 For example if a worker on site is told to
excavate 3m3 as the task for the day, it is
difficult for him/her to determine the actual
extent of the task.
 It is therefore useful to convert the task rates
to linear-meters which are easy to perceive by
the workforce.
.
Measuring earthwork quantities
 Used to guide site supervisors through the
concepts of accurately measuring earthworks
quantities either for payment or reporting
purposes.
 Excavating soils by hand and depositing the
material adjacent to the excavated section or away
from it, both come under the term earthworks.
 Soil excavation from the existing ground is

known as ‘a cut’ and depositing the earth at some
place is commonly referred to as a fill or an
The cross section of a trench may be rectangular or trapezoidal.
.
In rocky or hard soils the cross-section may be rectangular but in

most cases the cross section is almost always trapezoidal.
The cross section of an embankment is always trapezoidal, as the
filled earth or rock cannot be properly placed with vertical faces.
The trapezoidal sections of earth work in cuts and fills
Area of cross-sections
 Cross sections are invariably (always) employed in route survey for
road, railways, and canal works.
 For estimate of volume of earthworks, cross-sections are taken at

right angles to a fixed line, generally, the centerline, which runs
longitudinally through the earthwork.
 The spacing of the cross-sections depends upon the accuracy required

and the character of the ground.
 The earthwork involved may be excavation (cutting) or in

embankment(filling), depending on the relative values of the
formation level and natural ground level at the centerline of the
route; and on the configuration of the ground surface.
 Other values which are relevance are breadth or width of the

formation and side slopes of the cut or fill.
.

.
The cross-sections generally occurring in practice

are of the following types:
Level section
Two-level section
Three level section
Side hill two-level section
Multi-level section
Level Section
.
Two-level section
.
.
Side-hill two level section
.
.
.
Example
A 100-m length of earthwork volume for a
proposed road has a constant cross-section of cut
and fill, in which the cut area equals the fill area.
The level formation is 30 m wide, transverse
ground slope is 20◦.
The side slopes in cut-and-fill are 1 horizontal to 2
vertical and 1 horizontal to 1 vertical, respectively.
Calculate the volume of excavation in the 100-m
length.

.

Methods of calculating sectional
area and volume of earthwork
Approaches of Earthwork Estimation
 Earthworks quantities may be calculated using various

approaches.
 The following describe the most common
methods:
a) Mid-sectional area method
b) Mean sectional area method
c) Prismoidal formula method
Mid-sectional area method
 When the ground is sloping longitudinally the height of
the embankment or the depth of cutting may not remain
the same throughout the length L.
 In this case, the representative cross-sectional area is
not measured at the ends but at the mid-length.
 This section when multiplied by the length L gives the
volume of earthwork.
 if d1 and d2 are the fill or cut heights at each of the end
sections, B is the formation width, s is the side slope, and
L is the total length of the fill or cut, then:
.
.

Mean sectional area method
• With this method, the respective cross-sectional
areas of the ends are calculated using the
respective depths.
• The mean area is calculated using the calculated
end areas.
• If A1 and A2 are the cross-sectional areas at the
two ends where d1 and d2 are the respective
depths:
.
.
Prismoidal Rule
The Prismoidal rule assumes that the earth forms a
Prismoidal between two cross-sections 2d apart.
The Prismoidal formula gives very nearly correct
volume of earthwork even for irregular end
sections and sides that are warped surfaces.
The Prismoidal formula though being more
accurate than end-areas rule, in practice.
But the end areas rule is more frequently adopted
because of the ease of its application.
End-areas rule gives the computed volumes
generally too great which is infavour of contractor.

Prismoidal Rule
.
Since the end-areas rule gives volume larger than
.
the Prismoidal rule, accurate volume by the

former can be obtained by applying a correction
known as Prismoidal correction given below.

1.0earthwork Operation

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Site Clearing Chapter-1

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Clearing is carried out covering the entire width of

This activity is also required before any borrow pits

 Trees are often a social amenity providing shade,

 If large trees stand in the way, realignment should be

In hilly terrain, trees protect the exposed faces of cuts

high winds are blowing.

 Similarly, organic soils can also be used at

Why remove it?

 Leave undisturbed sandy soil, which is a strong layer.

What to do with topsoil?

 Hand carrying small boulders

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• Terrain according to the transverse slope

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• Flat offers few obstacles to the construction of a

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• Inclusive of switchback roadway sections, or side

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 Flat or gently rolling terrain normally involves the least amount of

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 Road alignments are often selected to take advantage of gently

 Entirely flat terrain may be prone to flooding, and in such

 To avoid excessive embankment works, it is useful to keep the

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Basic activities of earthwork

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• Each slot is 50cm wide.

• The length depends on the chosen cross-section and should

• Compact the fill side of the slot using a hand rammer.

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After the slot is excavation:

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0+000 10 -90 100 --- 30 -70

0+020 40 -60 80 -20 50 -50

0+025 20 -80 50 -50 80 -20

0+040 75 -25 75 -25 10 -90

0+060 160 +60 150 +50 180 +80

0+080 30 -70 80 -20 70 -30

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 In labour based road construction, the formation of the road is

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