Soil-Stabilization / Shoring

Soil Nailing is a method of earth reinforcement used for temporary and permanent excavation support or shoring. The soil nailing process involves placing closely spaced steel nails (rods) into the excavated or sloped soils and installing wire mesh reinforcement and/or applying shotcrete on the face.

Application and Benefits

• Temporary or permanent stabilization of excavations
• Low cost
• Fast installation
• Ability to install in confined areas
• Stabilization and renovation of steep slopes
• Highway and road construction support
• Adaptable to variable geometry and soil conditions
• Works well with architectural precast or sculptured shotcrete
• Installation into cobbles and boulders
• Renovation at existing retaining walls
• Tunnel and mine renovation

Tie-back Anchors consist of a tendon (cable strands or bar) that is in tension for support. The tendon is bonded to the soil by cement grout, helical plates, concrete blocks (dead-man), steel plates or polyurethane grouts. The anchor tendon is then loaded or tensioned to a pre-determined load and then secured against piles, whalers (steel or concrete), steel plates, concrete or timbers. Most soil anchors have working loads of 80 to 400 kips (80,000 – 400,000 lbs.) and can be hundreds of feet deep.

Application and Benefits

• Permanent or temporary retaining walls
• Highway and road construction
• Cost effective alternative to conventional retaining walls
• Retaining walls for construction
• Used to resist uplift of foundations
• Mitigation of existing retaining walls
• Increases work space without using deadman, struts or buttresses
• Testing to above design loads
• Multiple corrosion protection
• Secure landslides and protect property
• Adaptable with many different veneers and wall system

Rock anchors, much like soil anchors, are comprised of a tendon (cable strands or bars). These anchors are usually steel bars and are embedded and bonded by mechanical connection, resin or cement and can have un-bonded lengths, or be pre-stressed and bonded after tensioning.

Rock anchors also have many methods of corrosion protection and have achieved loads over 2,000 kips (2,000,000 pounds).

Micropiles are a small diameter (less than 300mm) replacement, drilled pile, composed of placed or injected grout, and some form of steel reinforcement to resist a high proportion (or all) of the design load. Typically, high capacity steel elements installed with high grout/ground bond values transfer the loads by friction, and do not need to rely just upon end-bearing loads.

Micro-Piles are also used when there are restricted utility or property easement conflicts that do not allow other shoring systems to be utilized. MCSI has installed micropiles for these types of applications in confined areas with great success.