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A review of pile machines and their selection criteria

Article  in  AGH Drilling Oil Gas · January 2015

DOI: 10.7494/drill.2015.32.3.469

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AGH DRILLING, OIL, GAS • Vol. 32 • No. 3 • 2015
http://dx.doi.org/10.7494/drill.2015.32.3.469

Andrzej Gonet*, Stanisław Stryczek*, Michał Fyda**

A REVIEW OF PILE MACHINES

AND THEIR SELECTION CRITERIA***

1. INTRODUCTION

The quick development of road infrastructure and dynamic development of city centers
made the deep foundation systems commonly applicable [4, 11]. The piles are frequently
used for transmitting external loads onto deeper layers or for improving mechanical proper-
ties of the ground, especially [1–3, 6, 10, 13]:
a) loads exerted by buildings are transmitted on to stronger ground through aquifers or
weak layers,
b) foundation of an object below the ground level which may be washed out or removed or
disturbed while performing construction works in the future,
c) ground anchors against the buoyancy force,
d) protections on bridges and water objects against floating objects and units,
e) stabilization of landslides – piles are driven to the layer below the slide surface,
f) limitation of earthworks and avoidance of drainage works. The use of piles may reduce
the trenches and so the disturbance of natural landscape areas,
g) simplification of foundation or surface object, e.g. introduction of piles to the level of
bridge bearing may simplify the design and performance of a pillar,
h) acceleration of works.

Among other specialist foundations, it is the deep foundation based on piles which can
be the most efficiently mechanized and quickly performed.

* AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas, Krakow, Poland
** “PRO GEO” Grzegorz Stąporek
*** Paper performed within BS no. 11.11.190.555 at Faculty of Drilling, Oil and Gas AGH University of Science
and Technology

469
2. DIVISION OF PILES

Piles can be classified on the basis of [2, 6–9, 13]:

– the way in which loads are transmitted onto the ground; the piles may transmit loads
through the column footing, side surfaces or partly through the column footing and
partly through the side surfaces,
– the kinds of pile load; they may undergo side loads, i.e. horizontal forces and torques,
or their combination,
– performance, i.e. hammered piles, SDP piles, suction piles, vibrated piles, screwed piles
and CFA (drilled) piles,
– material, i.e. timber, steel and concrete (concrete, reinforced concrete and prestressed
concrete),
– performance, i.e. ready piles tripped into the ground and formed piles (e.g. CFA piles),
– length:
1* short (to 6 m),
2* medium or normal (to 25 m),
3* long (over 25 m).
Piles classified according to the character of work in ground are divided into:
– piles driven in a bearing layer,
– supported piles (poles),
– suspended piles.
In practice the above enumerated ‘pure’ forms of piles operation can be only rarely en-
countered. Intermediate forms are usually observed, where the weaker top layers cooperate
and overtake the loads with the stronger, deeper strata. Piles can be formed in the ground
with (or without) soil displacement. In the second case the soil gets thicker around the pile
(Tab. 1) [6].

Table 1
Classification of piles

SDP and VDP PILES

PREFABRICATED MONOPILE FOUNDATION

(ready to drive) In permanent casing In temporary casing

– reinforced steel – steel pipe driven from the – steel cage driven from the
– reinforced steel–rebar segments bottom through the plug or top
– prestressed from the top through the oak – steel cage driven from the
– steel–pipe core bottom through the plug
– steel–profiled – thin pipe introduced on the – as above – with a larger
core pile base
– prefabricated thin pipe intro-
duced on the core
– prefabricated thin pipe (ofter
underreamed)

470
 Table 1 cont.

DRILLED PILES

(with augers or pickers, concrete applied to all of them in situ)

Without casing With temporary casing With drilling mud Drilled-injected

– simple shape (percus- – rebar casing introdu- – rotary – through the auger
sion or rotary drilling) ced while drilling the – with back flow sealing slurry
– with increased pile base hollow shaft – with right flow displaces the soil
(percussion or rotary – rebar (oscillating) – concreting through – mixed by the auger
drilling) casing while drilling a pipe sealing slurry with
– mostly concreted (only the hollow shaft chemical additives
in coherent and compact – vibrated or soil and soil
ground) displacement protec-
tion introduced prior
to drilling
– hollow shaft
concreted (pipe if
underwater)

3. REVIEW OF PILE MACHINES

Piles have been used for geoengineering purposes for years [12], as this is one of the
most popular deep foundation methods. The piles [11] are performed with various machines
and in various technologies. These are mostly universal devices, which can be adjusted to
various piles. For instance, if a multifunction basic pile machine is equipped with rotary
heads and pressing down systems, the Continuous Flight Auger (CFA) or screwed piles can
be drilled. The basic differences in particular types of piles mainly refer to the design of
augers and technological details. What is more, the large-diameter piles can be drilled with
an additional tool and head; if an oscillator is added, then a cased pile can be drilled. A dou-
ble-rotation machine is needed for making cased auger piles. The head is usually dismounted;
it allows for relatively vertical tripping of both parts. One of them rotates the cage and the
other rotates the auger (in opposite direction). While drilling the well is being cased, which
provides stability to the borehole during drilling operations. Importantly for CFA technolo-
gy, the auger should be powered by the base rotary table, which improves the accuracy of
performance of the pile and adds life to the head. Depending on needs, the pile machines
can cooperate with hydraulic hammers or vibrators. Depending on the piling technology, the
tools used for multifunction pile machines are presented in Figure 1.
Extraction force and pressing down force are very important for pile making operations.
The limiting element in the latter case is the weight of the machine; the extraction force
can be bigger than the weight of the machine thanks to an appropriate hydraulic system.
Modern machines are equipped with electronic systems monitoring their operation and in-
forming about potential hazards. Pile machines are frequently equipped with expandable
tracks, which increases their stability and mobility. They may move on soft ground, on steel

471
or timber plates. If necessary they may be installed on vessels or dinghies. The piles may be
frequently performed at a greater depth than the height of the mast thanks to the use of tele-
scopic extensions. In most machines the mast can be inclined in any plane, which is useful
when the pile has to be performed at an angle, the maximum value of which is determined
by the type of machine used. A typical pile machine with its basic elements is presented in
Figure 2 [7–9, 14, 15].

Fig. 1. Tools for making piles in various technologies mounted on Bauer pile machine
1 – kelly, 2 – cased string with BTM, 3 – cased string with oscillator, 4 – plate pole for CFA piles,
5 – string for cased CFA piles, 6 – tool for FDP, 7 – setup for downhole soil mixing with a single
blade, 8 – setup for downhole soil mixing with a triple blade, 9 – hydraulic hammer head [7]

472
 Fig. 2. Pile machine
1 – tracks, 2 – carrier, 3 – main hoist, 4 – auxiliary hoists, 5 – motor, 6 – kinematic system, 7 – mast,
8 – top mast, 9 – upper string, 10 – kelly, 11 – rotary table KDK, 12 – auger [7]

A number of companies produce specialist pile machines, e.g. Soilmec offering SR se-
ries, where the successive numerical denotations stand for the weight of the machine in mega-
grams. These machines are applicable to: large diameter piles (LDP), full displacement piles
(FDP), CFA piles and cased auger piles (CAP, CSP). Presently, the biggest pile machine of
this type is SR-100 for CSP with a double head. Soilmec offers pile machines of SF series
which are designed for making only CFA piles (see Tab. 2), and multifunction pile machines
presented in Table 3 [9].

473
 Table 2
Soilmec CFA pile machines [9]

SF-50 SF-65 SF-120

Power [kW] 164 205 350

Weight [Mg] 39 52 100

Torque [kN·m] 100 165 300

Main winch [kN] 102 140 290

Extraction force [kN] 510 572 1160

Depth of pile CFA [m] 25 27 31

Diameter of CFA pile [mm] 900 1000 1200

474
 Table 3
Multifunction Soilmec pile machine [9]

SR-20 SR-45 SR-80 SR-100

Installed power [kW] 119 201 328 480

Weight [Mg] 27 42 83 148

Torque [kN·m] 114 185 292 452

Main winch [kN] 103 165 260 370

CCS pull up/down [kN] 124/68 207/240 300/220 417/330

Depth of LDP [m] 40 63 77 92

Diameter of LDP [mm] 1200 2000 2000 3500

Depth of CFA pile [m] 15 21.5 24 31

Diameter of pile CFA [mm] 750 900 1200 1400

AVAILABLE TECHNOLOGIES

Large-diameter piles trip-

+ + + +
ped with a rotary head

Large-diameter piles trip-

+ + + +
ped with an oscillator

CFA piles + + + +

CSP piles + + + +

Full Displacement Piles

+ + + +
(FDP)

475
 The Italian company Casagrande offers machines of B series, multifunction devices
used for performing cased piles, compatible with an oscillator and able to perform CFA piles.
This series has a torque of 125 to 420 kN·m on the mast, and is designed for large-diameter
cased piles max. 50 to 110 m deep. After minor modifications they may be used for works
employing CFA, DSM or CSM technologies. Pile machines are also equipped with strong
and quick hoists. Selected Casagrande pile machines for CFA piles are presented in Table 4
[8, 14].

Table 4
Casagrande pile machines [8]

B125 XP B300 XP B400 B450 XP

Power [kW] 164 403 480 563

Weight [Mg] 37 90 110 146

Torque [kN·m] 125 300 358 420

Main winch [kN] 160 270 320 420

Extraction force [kN] 148 400 400 600

Depth of pile CFA [m] 23 29 30 39

Diameter of pile CFA [mm] 800 1200 1200 3000

Max. depth [m] 50 90 87 110

Max. diameter [mm] 1500 2500 3000 3000

Among the leading producers of specialist pile machines in Poland is Bauer company.
It offers pile machines of BG Premium Line and BG Value Line. These are multifunction
devices operating in various technologies. Their configurations are shown in Figure 3 [7].
Among the most popular pile machines are: BG20H and BG28H. The pile machine
BG20H, torque of 200 kN·m, is mainly used for performing CFA and FDP piles, gravel
columns, traditional piles and for soil mixing (CSM). The second model BG28H has a much
higher torque (280 kN·m) and is usually applied for large diameter CFA and FDP piles. The
BG machines can be also equipped with a double pile system, rotary table and BTM. When
the medium- and large-diameter piles have to be performed quickly, the BG46 or BG50
machines with BTM400 are recommended. The selected types of Bauer pile machines are
presented in Table 5 [7, 15].

476
 1 2 3

4 5 6

Fig. 3. Basic configurations of pile machines

1 – for cased auger drilling, 2 – classic kelly drilling, 3 – for large-diameter piles, 4 – for cased CFA
piles, 5 – for CFA piles, 6 – for displacement piles [7]

477
 Table 5
Bauer pile machines [7]

BG 12 H BG 20 H BG 28 BG 46 BG 50
Power [kW] 153 205 354 570 570
Weight [Mg] 41 59 96 170 250
Torque [kN·m] 100 200 270 460 468
Main winch [kN] 125 170 250 420 500
CCS pull up/down [kN] 140 260 330 460 600
Max. depth [m] 40 51 71 111 82
Max. diameter [mm] 1200 1500 2100 6500 3000

From among the machines presented above, the Bauer pile machines have the highest
power and torque parameters, which allows for performing long piles of considerable diame-
ter. This equipment is heavier and bigger than its counterparts produced by other companies.

SELECTION CRITERIA
While performing geoengineering works it is important to select an appropriate ma-
chine. The optimally selected pile machine guarantees fast and efficient performance of as-
sumed tasks at a lower cost. The optimization can be realized on the basis of technical param-
eters of the machines and their rank [5].
The machines for making piles or other geoengineering works can be selected on the
basis of the multi-criteria optimization method with synthetic measure of the device. Using
this method one can practically compare various criteria in view of their measures and sig-
nificance. The number of criteria (k) can be arbitrary; they are reduced to nominal values,
making them comparable. Any number of items of each type (j) can be analyzed and divided
into groups (l) of similar characteristic properties. The evaluation is based on the significance
of the assumed criteria (W) and the objective function of maximum or minimum [5].
The synthetic evaluation can be performed for a matrix of criteria, following the algo-
rithm:

478
 1. Establish significance of particular criteria [ x ljk ] of a machine; its sum should equal to
unity.
2. Establish minimum and maximum values for particular criteria:
xkmin  min x ljk xkmax  max x ljk (1)

3. Calculate the range of values for particular criteria:

rk  xkmax  xkmin (2)

4. Transform the matrix [ x ljk ] of particular criteria into a matrix of normalized values
following the equation:

 x ljk  xkmin
 dla k  min
 rk
y jk   max
l
(3)
 xk  x jk
l

 dla k  max
 rk

5. Calculate synthetic values of measures d lj being relative distances of particular criteria

from the respective optimum values for successive machines:
h
d lj   y ljk (4)
k 1

6. Calculate synthetic values of measures Dl being relative distances of respective values

in groups of machines:
u
Dl   d j (5)
j 1

7. Calculated synthetic measures y ljk should be multiplied by established values (W) for
the respective criteria:
where:
l – number of analyzed machines, for l = 1, 2, ..., z,
j – number of machines in analyzed population, for j = 1, 2, ..., u,
k – number of assumed criteria, for k = 1, 2, ..., h.
The obtained synthetic measures can be used for the evaluation and comparison of ma-
chines among themselves [5].
For better illustrating this methodics, the pile machines were pre-analyzed in view of
their technical characteristics, without taking into account the economic aspects. The signif-
icance (W) was established for the assumed parameters (Tab. 6) and the objective function
was defined as a maximum.
When selecting a pile machine attention was mainly paid to its multi-applicability. This
is conditioned by the CCS pull up/down force and torque, which decide about the maximum
depth and diameter of the pile. Thirteen pile machines underwent a 6-criteria analysis. The
parameters of pile machines produced by the three leader companies were ranked in Table 6.
The highest grade was awarded to Casagrande B450 XP and Bauer BG 50.

479
 Table 6
Evaluation of pile machines for specific criteria [3]

Criterion no. 1 2 3 4 5 6
Significance criterion
3.0 3.0 1.5 1 0.5 0.5
W:
CCS
Max. Max. Main Evalu-
pull up/ Torque Power
Pile machines depth diameter winch ation
down [kN·m] [kW]
[m] [mm] [kN] mark
[kN]
1 Soilmec SR-20 124 114 40 1200 119 103 0.00
2 Bauer BG 12 H 140 125 40 1200 153 125 0.25
3 Casagrande B125 XP 148 125 50 1500 164 160 0.72
4 Bauer BG 20 H 260 200 51 1500 205 218 2.18
5 Soilmec SR-45 240 185 63 2000 201 165 2.39
6 Soilmec SR-80 300 292 77 2000 328 260 4.20
7 Bauer BG 28 330 270 71 2100 354 317 4.21
8 Casagrande B300 XP 400 300 90 2500 403 270 5.53
9 Casagrande B400 400 358 87 3000 480 320 6.35
10 Soilmec SR-100 417 452 92 3500 480 370 7.67
11 Bauer BG 46 460 460 111 3100 570 530 8.45
12 Casagrande B450 XP 600 420 110 3000 563 420 8.81
13 Bauer BG 50 600 468 82 3000 570 640 8.83

4. CONCLUSIONS

Owing to numerous advantages, piles are more and more widely applied for road infra-
structure and construction purposes. Their principal aim lies in transmitting outer loads onto
layers deposited at greater depths or improving the mechanical properties of soil.
A number of companies produce specialist geoengineering equipment all over the world.
Among them are very experienced companies which have existed on the market for years and
who have systematically improved their products. Bauer, Casagrande and Soilmec dominate
in the production of pile machines.
The most suitable pile machine fit for performing large-diameter piles at great depth
should be selected on the basis of the multi-criteria optimization with synthetic evaluation of
measures. Knowing the scope of work, one can establish the weight of particular parameters
of pile machines on the basis of particular parameters of the machines, assess them and select
the right one.

480
 In the presented example of a pile machine for large-diameter and long piles, the selec-
tion was based on the multi-criteria optimization with the synthetic measure of evaluation.
The analysis of the results revealed that the best pile machine BG 50 was produced by Bauer.
It had the highest CCS pull up/down force and highest torque. Another machine is B450 XP
by Casagrande and has slightly lower parameters than BG 50.

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