LIEW TZE KIAW

JKR, SARAWAK
BUILDING & STRUCTURAL
ENGINEERING BRANCH

Pad Footing

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 SESSION PLAN

Pad Footing
1) General requirements for pad foundation
2) Mackintosh Probe / JKR Probe Test
3) Plate Bearing Test

At the end of this Module, the participants will be given

assessment consists of 30 multiple choice questions based on
the slide presented.

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 LEARNING OUTCOME

Upon completion of this program you will be able to

1. Inspect / supervise pad foundation works effectively.
2. Determine the soil bearing pressure on site by using
Mackintosh Probe and plate bearing test results.
3. Determine the depth of excavation by using
Mackintosh Probe and plate bearing test results.

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PAD FOOTING
- GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
1. PAD FOOTING / RAFT FOUNDATION
 Shall be founded on cut ground
 Has suitable soil bearing capacity at shallow depth
 Low rise building and light structures
2. The exact depth of the spread foundation shall be determined
on site after conducting
 Mackintosh probe
 Plate bearing test
3. Prior to excavation for Pad Footing, the Contractor shall
engage a geotechnical specialist firm, approved by S.O., to
conduct the soil test on the positions to be specified by the
S.O..Upon completion of the soil test, the contractor shall 4
submit a full result report to the S. O..
PAD FOOTING
- GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
1. All excavations over 4 ft. (1,220 mm.) in depth of materials shall be
protected by sheeting adequately braced and strutted or other lining.
2. Excavated material that is required for backfill is approved by the S.O.
and shall not be stockpiled adjacent to the excavation.
3. The whole of each excavation shall be kept free of water to the
satisfaction of the S.O. or his representative by pumping and bailing as
necessary.
4. A layer of lean concrete shall be placed at the bottom of the pit
immediately after the depth of excavation had been achieved.
5. All formwork for concrete and all loose timber and rubbish of every
description shall be removed from excavations in advance of backfilling.

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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
1) Objectives
 As preliminary site investigation to assess the soil
layer and the bearing capacity of the soils.
 To identify soft or weak layer materials or slip
plane failure.
 Reduce the numbers of boreholes required.

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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE

2) Testing equipment

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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
3) Test procedures
 Equipment for the test is assembled. The cone diameter is
measured in SI unit.
 Distance of 0.3m is measured and marked on the rod start from
the tip of the cone.
 The equipment is set up on the ground.
 The hammer is pull until it reached the maximum and dropped
freely to driven the cone into the soil.
 The sum of the numbers of blow for penetration of 0.3m is
record in the data sheet.
 The hammer is taken off on the last 0.3 of each rod and joined
to the existing rod with another rod and lastly the hammer.
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 PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
3) Test procedures
 The test stopped when
a) The blow is more than 400 for 0.3m penetration.
b) The overall tested depth has reached 15m.
4) Difference between JKR probe and mackintosh probe
Item Description JKR Probe Mackintosh Probe
1. Cone angle 60º 30º
2. Diameter of rod (mm) 12 13
3. Diameter of coupling (mm) 22 24
4. Weight of hammer (kg) 5 4.5
5. Hammer drop height (mm) 280 300
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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
(A) Relationship between SPT, JKR Probe/MP and unconfined
compressive strength of Clay (Cohesive soil)

SPT , N Consistency Unconfined JKR probe / MP

(blow/ft) compressive (blow/ft)
strength (kN/m2)

0–2 Very soft 0 – 25 0 – 10

2–4 Soft 25 – 50 10 – 20
4–8 Medium 50 – 100 20 – 40
8 – 15 Stiff 100 – 200 40 – 70
15 – 30 Very stiff 200 – 400 70 – 100 10

> 30 Hard 400 100

PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
(A) Relationship between JKR Probe/MP and allowable bearing
capacity of Clay (Cohesive soil)

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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
(A) Relationship between SPT, JKR Probe/MP and unconfined
compressive strength of Sand (Cohessionless soil)

SPT , N Consistency Unconfined JKR probe / MP

(blow/ft) compressive (blow/ft)
strength (kN/m )
2

0–4 Very loose Not suitable 0 – 10

4 – 10 Loose 0 – 80 10 – 30
10 – 30 Medium dense 80 – 280 30 – 80
30 – 50 Dense 280 – 470 80 – 110
> 50 Very dense 470 110
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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE
(A) Relationship between JKR Probe/MP and allowable bearing
capacity of Sand (Cohessionless soil)

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PAD FOOTING
- MACKINTOSH PROBE RESULTS

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Case 1 Case 2
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST EQUIPMENT

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
1. General
When conducting plate bearing test, it is
important to note the followings:
 Frequency of test
 Plate size
 Preparation of test pit
 Range of test load
 Allowable settlement
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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
1. General
 Objective: To verify the allowable bearing capacity.
 Recommended size of the test plate shall not less than
500Ømm.
 The test plate is placed at foundation level and load is
applied in increments. The settlement of the plate
corresponding to each load increment is recorded for
calculating bearing capacity of soil.
 Test plate shall not warp or deform under the applied load.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
1. General
 Theoritically, the ‘stress influence zone’ is twice the diameter
of the plate. Therefore, bigger plate is desirable when
available.
 The bigger the plate, the better it imitates the actual condition.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
1. General
 The plate bearing test may be done at one or several spots at a
site at the discretion of the design engineer.
 Sometimes, an experienced contractor may propose additional
test location which shall subject to the S.O.. approval.
 Based on BS 1377, the width of the test pit has to be limited
between 4 to 5 times the plate diameter.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
2. Preparation at Test Level
 The Contractor shall give at least 48 hours prior notice of
commencement of excavation of the specified location to be tested.
 The test shall be conducted soonest possible after the depth of excavation
had been achieved in order to minimize the stress relief.
 Where test been carried out below groundwater level, the equipment for
lowering the water level shall be installed.
 All loose material and any embedded fragments shall be removed so that
the based area for the plate is level and as undisturbed as possible.
 For uneven surface, place a layer of sand (Max. 100mm) / lean concrete
in order to obtain a level soil surface.
 No load shall be applied to the test area before the confirmation of the
specified test procedure.
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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST

3. Protection of testing equipment

 All equipments shall be protect from adverse
effects of sun, wind and precipitation.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST

4.Method of loading
i. By means of a jack which obtains its reaction from concrete blocks,
water tanks, or others
 The center of gravity of kentledge is on the axis of the column
loading. The longitudinal axis of the loading column and the centre
of the bearing plate shall coincide.
 Total weight of kentledge /reation force shall be at least 1.2 times the
maximum test load.
 The hydraulic jack, pump, hoses, pipes, coupling and other apparatus
to be operate under hydraulic pressure shall be capable to withstand a
pressure of 1.5 times the maximum pressure used in the test without
leaking.
ii. By means of a jack which obtains its reaction from tension pile or other
suitable anchors
 All anchor pile shall be at a distance of at least 3 times the bearing
plate diameter from the centre of the plate. 22
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST

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Method of loading i Method of loading ii
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
5.Deformation measurement system
 At least 4 nos. of dial gauges or other measuring devices are used
to measure the displacement.
 All settlement devices shall be readable to 0.01mm.
 The leveling equipment shall be readable to 0.1mm and placed at
stable datum.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST

Method of loading i

Method of loading ii

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST

 The contractor shall submit method statement and equipments used to

perform the test for S.O. approval prior to the commencement of the
load test work.
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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
6.Testing procedure
 The full test load on a tested ground shall be 3 times of the
allowable bearing capacity (soil bearing capacity) specified
in the drawing.
 The test shall be carried out in 3 cycles with first cycle test
up to working load, 2nd cycle test up to twice the allowable
bearing capacity and 3rd cycle test up to full test load.
 The load shall be applied in increment of 20% of the
working load, until a maximum test load is reached.
 Settlement reading and time observations shall be taken
before and after each new load increment
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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
 Load increments and minimum holding time.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
6.Testing procedure
 Settlement reading shall be taken for every 3 minutes.
 Increment of load shall only be applied when
i. The rate of settlement of 0.05mm per minute is reached; or
ii. A minimum time of 15 minutes has elapsed, whichever is
later
 The maximum load at each cycle shall then be maintained for a
minimum of 2 hours.
 The test load shall then be decreased in 4 equal stages.
 During testing, if the result from each dial gauge or other
measuring devices differ by more than 20% , the Contractor
shall recheck and redo the test. 29
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
7.Submission of results
 Stage of loading.
 The depth of the test level
 The plate size
 Period for which the load was held
 Final load and load increment
 Maximum settlement
 Time-settlement graph, load-time graph and load-settlement
graph
8.Interpretation of test results
 Total settlement at any stage of loading exceeds 25mm 
30
Unacceptable
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
8. Interpretation of test results
i. Step 1: Plotting a load-settlement curve
 After performing the test, plot a load settlement curve on
arithmetic scale. Depending on the type of soil, the load
settlement curve can be 4 different types as shown below.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
i. Step 1: Plotting a load-settlement curve
 Curve A: This type of curve is obtained in case of loose to
medium cohesionless soil (i.e. 15<N<30). This type of curve
shows no clear point of failure.
 Curve B: This type of curve is obtained in case of cohesive
soil. As the load increases the curve leans toward settlement
curve.
 Curve C: This type of curve is obtained in case of partially
cohesive soil (i.e. C-phi soil). This type of curve also does not
show clear point of failure.
 Curve D: This type of curve is obtained in case of dense
cohesionless soil (i.e. N>30). This type of curve is common in
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case of dense sand or gravel deposits.
PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
i. Step 2: Finding ultimate bearing capacity
 In case of Curve B & D,
 the point of failure can be easily identified by the sudden
drop down of the curve.
 Draw two tangent lines from the beginning straight
portion of the curve and end straight portion of the curve.
 The point where these two tangents cross each other is
called the point of failure.
 The pressure corresponding to this point is called
ultimate bearing capacity of the soil.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
 In case of Curve A & C,
 A log-log chart is plotted as shown in below.
 The intersection of the two straight line is considered as failure point.

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PAD FOOTING
- PLATE BEARING TEST
iii. Step 3: Calculating allowable bearing capacity
 Allowable bearing capacity of soil = ultimate bearing capacity
divide by a suitable factor of safety.
 Value of factor of safety normally are 2, 2.5 or 3 depend on the
contract requirements.
iv. Step 4: Calculating settlement of proposed footing
 For granular soil (cohesionless soil)
 Sf = Sp{[B*(Bp+0.3)]/[Bp*(B+0.3)]}2
 For clayey soil (cohesive soil)
 Sf = Sp*(B/Bp) where
Sp = settlement of plate (mm)
Sf = settlement of footing (mm)
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Bp = Width / diameter of plate (m)
B = width of footing (m)
PAD FOOTING
- Contract Drawings

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PAD FOOTING
- Contract Drawings

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PAD FOOTING
- Sample For Plate Bearing Test Report (Pass)

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PAD FOOTING
- Sample For Plate Bearing Test Report (Pass)

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PAD FOOTING
- Sample For Plate Bearing Test Report (Fail)

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PAD FOOTING
- Sample For Plate Bearing Test Report (Fail)

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PAD FOOTING
- Recommendations
1. In the event that the desired soil bearing capacity could not be achieved
after carry out Mackintosh probe and plate bearing test, the followings are
the recommended solutions on site
a) Increase the excavation depth
b) Increase the size of the pad footing
c) Replace the soft soil layer with well compacted hard core
d) Combination of methods (a) & (c)
e) Combination of methods (b) & (c) to the justification and the
satisfaction of the S.O..
2. Method (b) can be determined by using the following formula
Soil bearing capacity (kN/m2)
 Soil bearing capacity obtained from the Mackintosh probe and plate
bearing test which carried out on site
 Column design axial load = unfactored load
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 The end
Thank You
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