Shoring piIe DesIgn

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 Definitions
 Excavation – a man-made cut, cavity, trench, or depression formed by earth
removal.
 Trench – a narrow excavation. The depth is greater than the width, but not
wider than 15 feet.
 Shield - a structure able to withstand a cave-in and protect employees (also
called box).
 Shoring - a structure that supports the sides of an excavation and protects
against cave-ins.
 Sloping - a technique that employs a specific angle of incline on the sides of the
excavation. The angle varies based on assessment of impacting site factors.

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Competent Person

Must have had specific training in and be

knowledgeable about:
→ Soils classification
→ The use of protective
systems
→ The requirements of
the standard
Must be capable of identifying hazards
and authorized to immediately eliminate
them.

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 Excavation Hazards

Cave-ins are the greatest risk

Other hazards include:

 Asphyxiation due to a lack of oxygen

 Inhalation of toxic materials

 Moving machinery near the edge of the

excavation can cause a collapse

 Accidental severing of underground utility lines

 Fire
 Injury and Death

 Excavating is one of the most hazardous

construction operations.
 Most accidents occur in trenches 5-15 feet
deep.
 There is usually no warning before a cave-in.

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Protection of Employees
Employees should be protected from cave-ins
by using an adequately designed protective
system
Protective systems must be able to resist all
expected loads to the system

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Protective Systems Requirements

A well-designed protective system Correct design of:

- sloping and benching systems
- support systems
- shield systems
- other protective systems
+
Appropriate handling of materials and equipment
+
Attention to correct installation and removal
=
Protection of employees at excavations

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 Design of Protective Systems
The employer shall select and construct :
→ Slopes and configurations of sloping and
benching systems
→ Support systems, shield systems, and other
protective systems
 Shield - can be permanent or portable. Also known as trench box or trench
shield.
 Shoring - such as metal hydraulic, mechanical or timber shoring system that
supports the sides
 Sloping - form sides of an excavation that are inclined away from the excavation
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 Employee Protection

Protect Employees Exposed to Potential

Cave-ins.
 Slope or bench the sides of the
excavation,

 Support the sides of the excavation, or

 Place a shield between the side of the

excavation and the work area.

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Cave-in Hazard

This excavation has inadequate

support posts and egress access.
Inadequate Protective System
This worker is in a trench with no
protective system that is neither sloped
nor benched and has no means of
egress.

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 Protective System Design

Factors Involved:

 Soil classification
 Depth of cut
 Water content of soil
 Changes due to weather and climate
 Other operations in the vicinity

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Shoring
General
▪ Provides a framework to work in
▪ Uses wales, cross braces and uprights
▪ Supports excavation walls
OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) tables provide shoring
data
▪ Must know soil type
▪ Must know depth and width of excavation
▪ Must be familiar with the OSHA Tables
Trench Shield
A trench shield (also called a trench
box) was built around this work area.
Hydraulic Trench Support
 Using hydraulic jacks the operator
can easily drop the system into the
hole
 Once in place, hydraulic pressure is
increased to keep the forms in place
 Trench pins are installed in case of
hydraulic failure
 Materials and Equipment
 Equipment used for protective
systems must not have damage
or defects that impair function.
 If equipment is damaged, the
competent person must
examine it to see if it is suitable
for continued use.
 If not suitable, remove it from
service until a professional
engineer approves it for use.
 Protection from Vehicles
 Install barricades

 Hand/mechanical signals

 Stop logs

 Grade soil away from excavation

 Fence or barricade trenches left

overnight
Hazardous Conditions
 The weight and vibrations of the crane
make this a very hazardous condition.
 They should not be working under this
crane.
 Spoil Piles
 Don’t place spoils within 2 feet from edge
of excavation
 Measure from nearest part of the spoil to
the excavation edge
 Place spoils so rainwater runs away from
the excavation
 Place spoil well away from the excavation
Other Excavation Hazards

 Water accumulation

 Oxygen deficiency

 Mobile Equipment

 Access/Egress

 Toxic Fumes

 Falls
Water is Hazardous
When water is present in an
excavation it is extremely
hazardous to enter.

Note: Workers not wearing

hardhats to protect them
from materials falling
into the trench!
Water = Cave-in Hazard

These workers must be protected from cave-in. Note the water in the bottom
of the trench. Very hazardous condition!
Hazardous Atmospheres
Test excavations more than 4 feet
before an employee enters the
excavation for:
▫ Oxygen deficiency
▫ High combustible gas
concentration
▫ High levels of other hazardous
substances
Means of Egress

A stairway, ladder, or ramp must be

present in excavations that are 4 or
more feet deep, and within 25 feet
of employees

The ladder should extend 3 feet above the

excavation
Access and Egress
These two ladders which are
lashed together are not an
adequate means of egress.
The ladder should extend 3 feet
above the top of the excavation.
Special Protection

From Falls, Falling Loads and Mobile Equipment:

 Install barricades
 Use hand/mechanical signals
 Grade soil away from excavation
 Fence or barricade trenches left overnight
 Use a flagger when signs, signals and barricades are not enough
protection
 Inspection of Excavations
A competent person must make daily
inspections of excavations, areas
around them and protective systems:
 Before work starts and as
needed,
 After rainstorms, high winds
or other occurrence which
may increase hazards, and
 When you can reasonably
anticipate an employee will
be exposed to hazards.
Inspection of Excavations, cont’d…
If competent person finds evidence of a
possible cave-in, indications of failure
of protective systems, hazardous
atmospheres, or other hazardous
conditions:
 Exposed employees must be
removed from hazardous area
 Employees may not return until the
necessary precautions have been
taken.
Site Evaluation Planning
Before beginning excavation:
 Evaluate soil conditions
 Construct protective systems
 Test for low oxygen, hazardous fumes and
toxic gases
 Provide safe in and out access
 Contact utilities
 Determine the safety equipment needed
 Summary
 The greatest risk in an excavation
is a cave-in.

 Employees can be protected through sloping,

shielding, and shoring the excavation.

 A competent person is responsible to inspect

the excavation.

 Other excavation hazards include water

accumulation, oxygen deficiency, toxic fumes,
falls, and mobile equipment.
Most Common Types of Shoring Methods

The most common types are the following:

 Soldier pile and lagging
 Sheet Pile Shoring
 Secant Pile Shoring
 Diaphragm Wall
 Pressure/Chemical grouting
 Soldier pile and lagging
 Soldier Piles are steel H piles that are vertically driven or drilled
into the earth at regular intervals prior to excavation. As
excavation progresses in stages, horizontal lagging in the form of
timber or precast concrete is added behind the flanges to create
the Soldier Pile and Lagging Wall.
 The lagging transfers the pressures of the retained strata to the
soldier piles. Also, tiebacks can be drilled and grouted into the
retained material to increase wall stability. Furthermore, the wall
can be additionally reinforced by adding walers, or steel supports,
between the soldier piles.
Cont’d

 Soldier pile and lagging wall systems are very diverse and can
be designed to achieve the specific project objectives.
flexibility in size, depth, construction materials and installation
techniques, such as driven and drilled soldier piles, allow the
wall to be tailored to the geological conditions of the site.
 Sheet Pile Shoring

 Sheet pile shoring systems are walls that are formed in progressive
manner within the ground by constructing a sequence of piles along
the outline of the site and used to laterally retain ground including
soil, rock and groundwater
 The design of the shoring varies with depth of excavation and
prevailing nature of the ground and potential surcharge loads
imposed outside the shoring, the allowable deflections and whether
the shoring system is permanent or temporary in purpose.
Bored Contiguous Concrete Sheet pile Walls

 A contiguous bored sheet pile shoring wall is an earth retaining

system formed by installing closely spaced (nearly touching), bored
concrete piles and thus not suitable when a water-tight wall
structure is needed. To improve water tightness of contiguous sheet
pile shoring walls, a combination of temporary dewatering, shot-
creting, surface mortar seal applications and at times; local grouting
may be needed. Sheet piles are constructed alternately to avoid
disturbance to freshly casted neighboring piles.
 Cont’d

 Either all piles are reinforced or else alternately reinforced

depending on strength and stiffness requirements of the system.
Contiguous sheet pile walls are either designed as a cantilever or
else supported by one or more level of supports (braces, props
and/or tie-backs). The wall at its top is normally fully
encapsulated with a continuous RC capping beam and the piles
bay be joined at several levels with steel or RC waler beams
(continuously or intermittently as needed).
 Secant Pile Shoring
 A secant pile wall is very similar to its contiguous pile wall
counterpart except that adjacent piles are constructed overlapping in
plan along the full depth of adjacent piles. And depending on the
extent of overlap in plan, the wall is rendered water-tight to different
extents.

 Due to the overlap, normally female (primary) piles are not

reinforced and are constructed using modest, strength and well
retarded concrete (to be easily over-cut during constructing the male
piles), Male (secondary) piles are on the other hand are usually
heavily reinforced and constructed using high strength concrete.
 Cont’d
 Nonetheless, with changing the outline geometry of reinforcement
in alternating piles, all piles could be reinforced if strength and
stiffness requirements deem so. Water-tightness could also be
improved by a combination of mortar repairs, local grouting and
shot-creting. Normally secant pile walls are needed for
exceptionally deep excavations and high groundwater levels.
Diaphragm Wall

 Diaphragm walls, also known as D-Walls or slurry walls, are a

robust retention system consisting of reinforced concrete walls that
can be used for temporary or permanent shoring walls to depth of
more than 300 feet.
 Diaphragm walls are formed by constructing a series of overlapping
panels to build a continuous wall. Single panels can be aligned
straight, in circles or even combined with T-shaped panels to form
various layouts accommodating linear or curved structures, such as
circular access shafts for tunnel projects or buttress walls for
retaining structures.
Cont’d
 At first this structure acts as a shoring wall during the
construction, then it becomes a part of the basement walls.
Diaphragm walls are made by excavating a trench using
appropriate machinery and filling the trench with a suitable
material (usually concrete).
 Diaphragm retaining walls are often used as sealing structures
– then the filling material used is self-hardening suspension.
 This suspension is quite strong and primarily fills a waterproof
function. Its waterproofness can in certain cases be improved
using plastic foil.
Pressure/Chemical grouting

 Pressure grouting is defined as “an injection under pressure of

fluid material into fractures and cavities in rock, soils or artificial
structures.” Foundation problems, such as vibration, leakage,
water cut-off, deficient bearing and others encountered in new
construction or existing structures, can often be solved by
pressure grouting using cement or chemical grout.
Pictures of shoring systems

Soldier Pile/Lagging
Cont’d

Sheet pile
Cont’d

Secant pile
Cont’d

Diaphragm wall
Cont’d

Contiguous wall
 Shoring using sheet piles

 Shoring is done using the sheet piles. Sheet piles are driven up to
the hard layer or to a depth required by the design. Depth of the
sheet piles shoring system is increased by 30% – 40% from design
length as a safety margin.
 Usually, when the depth of the sheet pile shoring increases, it is
required to support laterally as it cannot withstand itself. However,
when the depth is smaller, we may not be required to have
supported.

 For deep excavations, there may be more than one support for the
sheet pile wall to retain the stable.
 Propped Sheet Pile Shoring
 We cannot have a free-standing sheet pile wall without any support for
any depth.

 Lateral supports as indicated above figure need to be introduced at

different levels. The number of support will be depending on the depth of
the shoring.

 Further, there may be struts supporting the wales runs along the sheet
pile wall.

 There are two design methods or anchoring method for sheet pile shoring
systems: free earth support method & fixed earth support method.
 Cont’d

 Free earth support method

In this method, the bending moment of the sheet pile becomes zero
at the end of the sheet pile.
 Cont’d
 Fixed earth support method
In this method, there will be a hogging moment in the sheet pile
wall. This cause due to the depth of the sheet pile within the soil.
 Thank You
 Familiarize yourself with software in
shoring design !!!

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