HARAMAYA UNIVERSITY

HARAMAYA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION (CEeg-3093)

4.1 FOUNDATION
July 2021
 A building has two basic components based on the location of the
structure. These are
i) Sub-structure or foundations, and
ii) Superstructure.
 The building has the following basic components.
 Foundation
 Masonry units: Walls and Columns
 Floor Structures
 Roof Structures
 Doors, Windows and other openings
 Vertical transportation structures, Such as Stairs, Lifts, Ramps,
etc
 Building finishes

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Basic components of a building structure

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 Foundation is one part of the building which has direct contact
with the ground to which the loads are transmitted and it is
normally placed below the ground level (Surface).
 Materials used for constructing the foundation are:
i. Bricks
ii. Stones
iii. Concrete
iv. Steel .....etc are used in different forms

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 Functions of the foundation
Reduction of load intensity
Even distribution of load- transmit the load

evenly with uniform pressure

Provision of level Surface: provide level and

hard surface.
Provisional Stability: it anchors (firmly
attaches) the super-structure to the ground.
Safety against undermining: It provides

structural safety against undermining or

scouring. Eg. From erosion of building

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Requirements for foundation
Shall be constructed to sustain all loads and transmit

them to the sub soil.

Should be rigid so that differential settlements are

minimized.
Should be taken sufficiently deep to guard.

Should be ideally located so that its performance may

not be affected due to any unexpected future influence.

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4.1.2. TYPES OF FOUNDATION

 Foundations can be broadly classified under two heads:

A. Shallow Foundations
B. Deep Foundations
 The selection of foundation type depend on the number of
factors such as:
 Nature of the soil
 Size and weight of the structure
 Climate (seasonal variation) of ground water level.
 Building laws and relationship of the floor to the grade line
(slope).

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 .1.2. TYPES OF FOUNDATION (CONT’D...)
4.1.2.

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 Shallow foundations are those founded near to the finished ground
surface.
 The founding depth (Df) is less than the width of the footing and
less than 3m.
 Used when surface soils are sufficiently strong and stiff
 Unsuitable in weak or highly compressible soils, such as poorly-
compacted fill, peat, alluvial deposits, ....etc
 Most common types of shallow foundation
a) Spread footing
b) Combined footing
c) Strap footing
d) Mat or Raft foundation

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a. Spread Footings
 They spread the super-imposed load of wall or column over large area
 Support either a column or wall.
 They are most widely used foundation types since they do not require
special equipment and skill for construction.
 They are three types:
i. Isolated Footings

 sometimes known as column footings

and are used to support the individual
columns, piers or other concentrated
load.

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a. Spread Footings (cont…)
ii. Wall footings (strip footings): used to support a line of loads, either
due to a load-bearing wall, or if a line of columns need supporting.

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iii. Grillage foundations - They consist of steel beams arranged in layers at
right angles to one another and embedded in concrete.
Provided for heavily loaded steel column
Used in locations where bearing capacity of soil is poor.

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b. Combined Footings
 Used to supports two or more columns which is termed as combined footing.
 Frequently used to support walls and columns, which are close to the property
line.
 Rectangular in shape or trapezoidal shape

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C. Strap Footings (Cantilever Footing)
 If the independent footings of two columns are connected by a beam, it is called a
strap footing.
 They serve the same function as combined footings.
 It is used where a large spacing between two columns create a situation where a
continuous footing is uneconomical due to the usage of large quantity of concrete.

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d. Mat (Raft) foundation
 A raft or mat is a combined footing that
covers the entire area beneath the structure and
supports all the walls and columns.
 It is used where:
 The allowable soil pressure is low
 The building loads are heavy
 The use of spread footings would cover more
than half the area
 The soil mass contains compressible lenses
 It is used to reduce settlement above highly
compressible soils.
 It is not suitable for steeply sloping sites where
excavation would be excessive.
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d. Mat (Raft) foundation (Cont’d......)

 Rafts may be divided into three types, based on their design and
construction.
i. Solid slab system: is a solid reinforced concrete slab
generally uniform thickness.

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d. Mat (Raft) foundation (Cont’d......)
ii. Beam and slab system: consists of up-stand or down-stand
beams that take the loads of the walls or columns and spread
them.

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d. Mat (Raft) foundation (Cont’d......)

iii. Cellular system: consists of top and bottom slab

separated by and reinforced with vertical cross ribs in
both directions.

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 They are founding too deeply below the finished ground surface
for their base bearing capacity to be affected by surface
conditions.
 They are usually at depths greater than 3 m below finished
ground level.
 Used to transfer the loading to deeper, more competent strata at
depth if unsuitable soils are present near the surface.
 Deep foundation can be:
A. Pile foundation
B. Pier foundation
C. Well foundation (Caissons)

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A. Pile foundation
This foundation is placed in the ground either vertically or slightly
inclined to increase the load carrying capacity of the soil.
 Classification of Pile Foundation

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 A. Pile foundation (Cont’d...)

Classification based on basic design function

a) End bearing piles - transfer load through water or soft soil to a suitable
bearing stratum. Such piles are used to carry heavy loads safely to hard
strata. Used for bridge structure, high rise and water tanker
b) Friction piles - are used to transfer loads to a depth of a friction-load-
carrying material by means of skin friction along the length of the pile. Such
piles are generally used in granular soil where the depth of hard stratum is
very great.
c) Combined end bearing and friction piles - transfer the superimposed load
both through side friction as well as end bearing.
d) Compaction piles - are used to compact loose granular soils, thus
increasing bearing capacity.

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 A. Pile foundation (Cont’d...)

(C) Combined end bearing and friction piles (d) Compaction piles

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A. Pile foundation (Cont’d...)
Classification based on method of construction

a. Replacement piles - are often called bored piles since the

removal of the soil to form the hole for the pile is always carried out
by a boring technique.
b. Displacement piles - These are often called driven piles since
they are usually driven into the ground displacing the earth around
the pile shaft. They performed without soil removal, thanks to
drilling tools that displace the soil laterally toward the bore walls.

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Drilling tools

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 A. Pile foundation (Cont’d...)

Classification based on the materials used

a)Timber foundation: - if pile is constructed from wood material.

b)Masonry foundation: - if constructed from stones, bricks and other
pre-selected blocks.
c) Reinforced concrete foundation: - If the foundation is constructed
from concrete in which reinforcement is embedded in it.
d) Steel foundation: - If it is constructed from steel material.

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B. Pier foundation

Consists of cylindrical column of large diameter to support

and transfer large super imposed loads to the firm strata below.
Pier foundations may be classified as either
 Masonry concrete pier or
 Drilled Pier/Caissons
Drilled caissons are generally drilled with the mechanical
means. Drilled Pier/caissons may be of three types:
 Concrete caisson with enlarged bottom
 Caisson of steel pipe with concrete filled in the pipe
 Caisson with concrete and steel core in steel pipe
The difference between pile foundation and pier foundation lies
in the method of construction (See your handout).

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C. Well foundation (Caissons)

They are box like structure- circular or rectangular- which

are sunk from the surface of either land or water to the desired
depth.
They are much large in diameter than the pier foundation or
drilled caissons.

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Shapes of wells

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Thank you

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