This project was completed directly for one of Irelands biggest insurance companies. The dwelling was suffering from foundation movement as a result of escape of water from the drains.
The underpinning scope required a series of micropile supported reinforced concrete cantilever and straddle ground beams. The foundations were over two metres in depth and so the beams were needled into the rising walls. These were dry-packed the following day. Three number piles were tested by an independent firm and the results showed settlement of 2.2, 3.0 and 2.4mm for SWL = 100Kn and 4.1, 5.5 and 4.5 for SWL*1.5 respectively.
Access to the rear for a standard micropiling rig was impossible but our in-house designed and built man-portable rig worked a treat. This rig provides us with the comfort that we can guarantee any client that we can install a micropile in absolutely any location.
One key difference in the drainage works was that the property was not provided with an adequate surface water system. This is a common problem in one off dwellings where the construction of soakaways are not given enough respect. To ensure compliance with current Building Regulations, a new soakaway was constructed of Wavin Aquacell. The final drain test was witnessed by the Consulting Engineer on completion.
As built drawings of our works were provided for inclusion into the safety file.