Geotechnical Challenges on Western Highway Anthony’s Cutting Realignment Chris Boyd Chris will discuss the geotechnical challenges and issues faced for the design and construction of a new highway between Melton and Bacchus Marsh. The new highway is about 5km long and the topography varies by more than 40m along the alignment. The regional geology is …more

The rapid development of computing power and numerical modelling software over the past forty years has made sophisticated analysis of geotechnical problems accessible to most practising engineers. Typically computer packages now offer a wide range of constitutive models, which the design engineer needs to choose between, and then obtain parameters for. For those structures designed …more

The northern batter of the Yallourn mine collapsed suddenly on the 14th November 2007. The collapse had dramatic consequences with loss of 20% of Victoria’s power generation capacity and a cost to the mine measured in hundreds of millions of dollars. Because this was a surprise to government and because of the consequences, the government …more

The integration of site geology with engineering requirements is the basis of Engineering Geology, and there continues to be a need to describe site geology in terms appropriate for the analyses of deformation and stability of ground in situ. Two developments hold the potential to improve such description: the characterization of soil and rock, and …more

Safety is the main concern of all of us involved in construction, where one fatality, or even one incident, is one too many. In recent years, incidents involving overturning of piling rigs and cranes on construction sites have led to an increased awareness of the importance of providing a stable working platform for construction plant. …more

The course aims to educate geotechnical engineers, geologists, geotechnicians and other relevant professionals such as civil and structural engineers, who find themselves logging and/or interpreting soil and rock logs in accordance with AS1726 – Geotechnical Site Investigations. The content assumed that the participants already have a basic understanding of soil and rock logging. The course …more

The International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE) Technical Committee on Ground Improvement has proposed a classification system of ground improvement techniques according to the general nature of the soil, (frictional or cohesive) and the inclusion or not of added material (http://www.bbri.be/go/tc17). This classification system has been detailed in the state of the …more

Much of the world’s essential infrastructure is built along congested costal belts composed of highly compressible and weak soils up to significant depths. Alluvial and marine soft clay deposits have very low bearing capacity and excessive settlement characteristics, with direct design and maintenance implications on tall structures, large commercial buildings, as well as port and …more

Changes of Thornthwaite’s Total Moisture Indices in Victoria from 1948-2007 and the effect on seasonal foundation movements Dominic Lopez (USL Group Pty Ltd., Emerald, Victoria) C.W. Thornthwaite first presented the Total Moisture Index (later known as the Thornthwaite’s Moisture Index, TMI) in 1948. This paper presents the TMI values calculated for Victoria, and shows that …more

Do you know the implications of the new piling code? The new piling code ‘AS 2159-2009 : Piling – Design and installation’ was released in November 2009. The revised Code will incorporate some major rethinking in respect of pile design and testing, which is expected to require significant changes from consultants and piling contractors. We …more