3.

3 PLANNING THE
EXPLORATION PROGRAM
The purpose of the exploration program is to
determine the stratification and engineering
properties of the soils underlying the site. The
principal properties of interest will be the
strength, deformation, and hydraulic
characteristics. The program should be planned
so that the maximum amount of information can
be obtained at minimum cost.
 It may be more economical to provide a conservative
foundation design than to expend large sums on an
elaborate exploration and testing program. On the other
hand, sufficient exploration should be undertaken so that
the geotechnical consultant is not in the position of
making an expensive recommendation to protect
against uncertainties that could have been detected by
a reasonable program.
In planning the program the foundation consultant
must have a good knowledge of current and
accepted methods of both field exploration and
laboratory testing and their limitations. A competent
consultant will also have sufficient understanding of
equipment function and soil behavior to make
adjustments so that nonstandard equipment or test
methods can be used (if necessary) to obtain the
desired information.
in various government and utility offices, the owner's
files, or the files of the engineer/architect who has
retained the geotechnical consultant. In any case the
borings should be used for a correlation and extension
of the existing database if at all possible. In an
undeveloped area where no database currently exists
the program is in fact exploratory.
 The actual planning of a subsurface exploration program
includes some or all of the following steps:
 Fact finding
 Reconnaissance
 Preliminary Exploration
 Detailed exploration
 Fact finding
 Assembly of all available information on dimensions, column
spacing, type and use of the structure, basement requirements, any
special architectural considerations of the proposed building, and
tentative location on the proposed site. 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 and their tentative location. This
information will indicate any settlement limitations and can be used
to estimate foundation loads
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
structures such as cracks, noticeable sags, and possibly
sticking doors and windows. The type of local existing
structures may influence to a considerable extent the
exploration program and the best type of foundation for
the proposed adjacent structure. Since nearby existing
structures must be maintained in their "as is" condition,
excavations or construction vibrations will have to be
carefully controlled, and this can have considerable
influence on the "type" of foundation that can be used.
 The reconnaissance may also be in the form of a study of the various
sources of information available, some of which include the following:
-Geological maps. Either U.S. government or state geological survey maps.
- Agronomy maps. Published by the Department of Agriculture (U.S., state,
or other governmental agency).
- Aerial photographs. Investigator may require special training to interpret
soil data, but the nonspecialist can easily recognize terrain features.
- Water and/or oil well logs.
- Hydrological data. Data collected by the U.S. Corps of Engineers on
streamflow data, tide elevations, and flood levels.
- Soil manuals by state departments of transportation.
- State (or local) university publications. These are usually engineering
experiment station publications. Information can be obtained from the state
university if it is not known whether a state study has been undertaken and
published.
Preliminary Exploration
 Approximate values of soil’s compressive strength.
 Position of the ground water table
 Depth and extent of soil strata
 Soil composition
 Depth of hard stratum from ground level
 Engineering properties of soil
 Detailed Exploration
 Detailed exploration is preferred for complex projects, major
engineering works, heavy structures like dams, bridges and high
rise buildings.
 Note that if the soil is relatively uniformly stratified, a rather
orderly spacing of borings at locations close to critical
superstructure elements should be made (requires client furnish
the necessary location data). On occasion additional borings
will be required to delineate zones of poor soil, rock outcrops,
fills, and other areas that can influence the design and
construction of the foundation.
 Sufficient additional soil samples should be recovered to refine
the design and for any unusual construction procedure required
by the contractor to install the foundation.