Geotechnical and Structural Foundation Design
Overview:
This course deals with all aspects of modern good practice in foundation design. These include: the importance of both the geological and geotechnical aspects of the ground conditions, current limit analysis methods for bearing capacity, and definition of factors of safety. The various settlement analyses and their underlying assumptions and reliability are discussed, together with a thorough treatment of the design of piled foundations.
The main objective of this workshop is to enable participants to select the best foundation solution for different types of civil engineering problems. After completing the course participants should be able to design shallow and deep foundations and supervise their construction. The course philosophy is to provide the participants with the information
they need to design foundations at the state of the art. The information is supplied in a simple and systematic way, discussing topics where current knowledge is lacking and more understanding is needed.
Course Details
Date:
14 – 15 May 2026
(2 Day Training)
Venue:
Online
Time:
8:30 – 16:30 Daily
CPD:
3 CPD Points- ECSA
Fees:
R8 999
Course Content
MODULE 1 GEOTECHNICAL PROPERTIES OF SOIL
• Grain-size distribution
• Size limits for soils
• Weight Volume relationships
• Relative density
• Atterberg limits
• Effective stress concept
• Shear strength of soils
MODULE 2 SUBSOIL EXPLORATION
• Purpose of soil exploration
• Subsurface exploration program
• Exploratory borings in the field
• Procedures for sampling soil
• Observation of water tables
• Vane shear test
• Cone penetration test
• Preparation of boring logs
MODULE 3: SHALLOW FOUNDATIONS: ULTIMATE BEARING CAPACITY
• General concept
• General bearing capacity equation
• Shape, depth, and inclination factors
• Effect of soil compressibility
• Eccentrically loaded foundations
MODULE 4: SETTLEMENT ANALYSIS FOR SHALLOW FOUNDATION
• Stress due to different loaded areas
• Elastic settlement based on the theory of elasticity
• Settlement of sandy soil: use of strain influence factor
• Range of material parameters for computing elastic
settlement
• Primary consolidation settlement relationships
• Presumptive bearing capacity
• Tolerable settlement of buildings
MODULE 5: MAT FOUNDATIONS
• Combined footings
• Common types of mat foundations
• Bearing capacity of mat foundations
• Differential settlement of mats
• Field settlement observations for mat foundations
• Compensated foundation
MODULE 6: LATERAL EARTH PRESSURE
• Lateral earth pressure at rest
• Rankine active earth pressure
• Rankine active earth pressure for inclined backfill
• Coulomb's active earth pressure
MODULE 7:RETAINING WALLS
• Stability of retaining walls
• Check for overturning
• Check for sliding along the base
• Check for bearing capacity failure
MODULE 8: FOUNDATIONS ON DIFFICULT SOILS
• Definition and types of collapsible soil
• Physical parameters for identification
• Procedure for calculation collapse settlement
• Foundation design in soils not susceptible to wetting
• Foundation design in soils susceptible to wetting
• Case histories of stabilization of collapsible soil
• Expansive soils
• Laboratory measurement of swell
• Classification of expansive soil based on index tests
• Foundation considerations for expansive soils
MODULE 9: SOIL IMPROVEMENT
• Correction for compaction of soils with oversized particles
• Field compaction
• Compaction control for clay hydraulic barriers
• Vibroflotation
• Precompression
• Cement stabilization
• Fly ash stabilization
• Stone columns
MODULE 10:DEEP FOUNDATION
• Types of deep foundations
• Introduction to pile foundations
• Pile foundation design
• Load on piles
• Bearing Capacity of Single Piles in sand
• Bearing Capacity of Single Piles in clay
• Estimation of pile length
• Stresses on Underlying Strata
• Pile group design
• Installation-test-and factor of safety
MODULE 11:STRUCTURAL DESIGN OF SHALLOW FOUNDATIONS
• Isolated footing
• Combined footings
• Mat foundations
MODULE 12:STRUCTURAL DESIGN OF DEEP FOUNDATIONS
• Types of deep foundations
• Friction pile foundations
• End bearing pile foundations
Each delegate will need the following to attend:
- Steady Internet connection for the duration of the training
- Laptop / PC / Smart Phone and Power supply (Charger)
- Zoom Meeting Software installed onto your laptop /
- PC / Smart Phone
- Quiet Space