PURPOSES OF A SITE INVESTIGATION

A site investigation program is necessary to provide

information for design and construction and for
environmental assessment. The purposes of a soil
investigation are:
• To evaluate the general suitability of the site for the
proposed project.
• To enable an adequate and economical design to be
made.
• To obtain physical and mechanical properties of soils
for design and construction.
• To obtain groundwater conditions.
• To disclose and make provision for difficulties that may
arise during construction due to ground and other local
conditions.
• To determine suitability of materials for construction.
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 NEED FOR SITE CHARACTERIZATION
1. As the soil and rock deposition is irregular, they are notoriously
variable and often have the properties which are undesirable for
the proposed structure which jeopardize the structure if not
understood and mitigated.
2. Site characterization helps in determining the nature of the site
and its behaviour which influences the project.
3. The main purpose of site characterization is to reduce the
economy.
4. It plays a very important role in the assessment and determination
of the environmental effects.
5. Site characterization provides information regarding the geology,
hydrology, hydrogeology, climatic conditions, radioactivity, etc., of
the site. 10
PLANNING FOR SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION
 location and depth of borings,
 test pits or other methods to be used, and
 methods of sampling and tests to be carried out
The purpose of the exploration
 to determine, within practical limits, the stratification and
engineering properties of the soils underlying the site.
 properties of interest will be the strength, deformation, and
hydraulic characteristics
 planned so that the maximum amount of information can be
obtained at minimum cost.

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COLLECTION OF EXISTING INFORMATION
Since the design of the investigation depends on the Civil
Engineering Project and the soil conditions, we must
collect all the relevant information that will enable us to
proceed rationally. There are four sources for collecting
this information:
• the client
• through actual observations at the site
• from municipal records
• Investigations conducted earlier by fellow consulting
geotechnical engineers

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Information collected from the client/architect/structural
engineer and we will need to know:
• Type of proposed structure- dimensions and layout
• Structural loads that need to be transferred to the soil
• Permissible settlement

From the observations at the site we need to collect the

following information:
• Nature of exposed surface soil and/or rock outcrops
• Surface drainage conditions and whether the site is prone
to water logging or flooding
• Evidence of landslides, or problems related to slope
stability
• Depths to ground water level and to bed rock as
determined from water bodies, wells, local residents on the
basis of any previous drilling operations
• Size and type of nearby structure, foundation system used,
their performance and record of any problems encountered13
From municipal records we need to collect:
• Topographic maps so as to understand terrain and drainage
pattern
• Ground water maps or records of observations of ground
water level at different times of year and
• Geologic maps so as to gain knowledge of depth to bed
rock as well as any structural features such as folds and
faults
From other friendly consulting engineers who may have
worked in the locality we need:
• Site investigation reports for projects in the neighborhood
and
• Performance data of foundation in the neighborhood

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PHASES OF SUBSURFACE EXPLORATION

1. Fact finding and geological survey

2. Reconnaissance

3. Preliminary exploration

4. Detailed exploration

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 FACT FINDING AND GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
 Assemble all information on dimensions, column spacing,
type and use of structure, basement requirements, and any
special architectural considerations of the proposed building.

 Foundation regulations in the local building code should be

consulted for any special requirements.

 For bridges the soil engineer should have access to type

and span lengths as well as pier loadings. This information
will indicate any settlement limitations, and can be used to
estimate foundation loads. 16
 RECONNAISSANCE
 This may be in the form of a field trip to the site which can
reveal information on the type and behavior of adjacent sites
and structures such as cracks, noticeable sags, and possibly
sticking doors and windows.

 The type of local existing structure may influence, to a

considerable extent, the exploration program and the best
foundation type for the proposed adjacent structure. Since
nearby existing structures must be maintained, excavations or
vibrations will have to be carefully controlled. Erosion in
existing cuts (or ditches) may also be observed.

 For highways, run off patterns , as well as soil stratification to

the depth of the erosion cut , may be observed.

 Rock outcrops may give an indication of the presence or the

depth of bedrock. 17
 PRELIMINARY EXPLORATION
 In this phase a few borings are made or a test pit is opened to
establish in a general manner the stratification, types of soil to
be expected, and possibly the location of the groundwater
table.
 One or more borings should be taken to rock, or competent
strata, if the initial borings indicate the upper soil is loose or
highly compressible. This amount of soil exploration is usually
the extent of the site investigation for small structures.
 A feasibility exploration program should include enough site
data and sample recovery to approximately establish the
foundation design and identify the construction procedures. It
is common at this stage to limit the number of good quality
samples recovered and rely heavily on strength and settlement
 correlations using index properties such as liquid limit,
plasticity index, and penetration data together with unconfined
compression tests on samples recovered during penetration
testing. 18
 DETAILED EXPLORATION
 Where the preliminary site investigation has established the
feasibility of the project, a more detailed exploration program
is undertaken.
 If the soil is relatively uniform in stratification, a rather orderly
spacing of borings at locations close to critical superstructure
elements should be made.
 On occasion additional borings will be required to delineate
zones of poor soil, rock outcrops, fills, and other areas which
can influence the design and construction of the foundation.
 Sufficient additional samples should be recovered to redefine
the design and for any construction procedure required by the
contractor to install the foundation. This should avoid an
excessive bid for the foundation work, cost overruns, and
damage to adjacent property owners from unanticipated soil
conditions discovered when the excavation is opened.
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 METHODS OF SITE EXPLORATION

The various types of site investigation are:

1. Open excavation
2. Boring
3. Subsurface Sounding
Geophysical Methods
These available methods of exploration can be broadly classified
into two categories:
1. Direct methods
2. Indirect methods

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 CLASSIFY THE SITE INVESTIGATION IN
ANOTHER WAY

1. Investigation of site for new works

2. Investigation of defects or failure of existing works

3. Investigations as the safety or stability of existing works.

4. Investigations relating to the suitability of material for various

constructional purposes.

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 GUIDELINES FOR CHOOSING SPACING AND
DEPTH OF BORINGS
 Depth of investigation is decided based on the intensity of
structured loading and the type of foundation contemplated.
This depth up to which the increase in stress due to
structural loading causes shear failure or excessive
settlement of foundation is known as Significant Depth.
 This depth of investigation is generally taken as the depth of
pressure bulb of intensity 0.1q where ‘q’ is the intensity of
loading at the base of foundation.
 IS 1892 provides the guidelines for depth of exploration for
different types of foundations.
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 DEPTH OF EXPLORATION (IS: 1892-1979)
Sl Type of foundation Depth of
no. exploration
1 Isolated spread footings or raft or One and half times
adjacent footings with clear spacing the width
equal or greater than four times the
width
2 Adjacent footings with clear spacing One and half times
less than twice the width the length
3 Adjacent rows of footings
i. With clear spacing between rows less Four and half times
than twice the width the width
ii. With clear spacing between rows Three times the width
greater than twice the width One and half times
iii. With clear spacing between rows the width
greater than four times the width
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 DEPTH OF EXPLORATION (IS: 1892-1979)

Sl Type of foundation Depth of exploration

no.
4 Pile and well foundations One and half times the
width of structure from
bearing level (toe of
pile or bottom of well)
5 Road cuts Equal to the bottom
width of
the cut
6 Fill Two meters below the
ground level or equal
to the height of the fill,
whichever is greater

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 GUIDELINES FOR CHOOSING SPACING OF
BORINGS
Spacing of borings/test pits depends on the type and size of
foundations and extent of variation in soil conditions. IS 1892
makes the following recommendations:
I. For a compact building site covering an area of about 0.4
hectare, one bore hole or trial pit in each corner and one in the
centre should be adequate
II. For smaller and less important buildings even one bore hole or
trail pit in the centre will sufficient
III. For very large areas covering industrial and residential colonies,
the geotechnical nature of the terrain will help in deciding the
number of bore holes or trail pits.
IV. Cone penetration tests may be performed at every 50 m by
dividing the area in a grid pattern and number of bore holes or
trail pits decided by examining the variation in penetration
curves. The cone penetration tests may not be possible at sites
having gravelly or boulderous strata. In such cases geophysical
methods may be suitable.
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