Working Platform Guidance

To ensure the stability of construction plant a

working surface needs to be provided that will not
settle excessively under the weight and working
pressures of all equipment. This is of particular
importance to Piling equipment due to their
high centre of gravity and the potential for fatal
consequences if an accident occurs.
The working platforms generally take the form
of a compacted crushed granular material with,
in some instances, geotextiles used to provide
additional support.
This document seeks to provide useful guidance
for preliminary design specification purposes and
practical advice to keep costs down.

Guidance for platform thickness

The charts below may be used as a guide for
estimating the thicknesses of working platforms.
They assume a platform material with an angle of
friction of 45 degrees and a density of 20 kN/m2. In
laymans terms this would be a clean, well graded
crushed concrete material compacted using 6
passes of a 5T vibrating roller in layers no greater
than 150mm thick.

Central Park, Colchester Road,

Halstead, Essex, CO9 2EU
T: 01787 474000 F: 01787 472113
E: info@centralpiling.com

For details of more Central Piling projects and

services goto: www.centralpiling.com

To establish your required platform thickness

work through steps 1 to 3, if you have any
queries please contact one of Central Pilings
technical team who will be pleased to help.
Step 1, choose a rig type:
Piling rig pressures vary not only with rig type,
manufacturer and model but also from contractor
to contractor as the machine may be set up in a
different manner. However to provide indicative
sizes of piling mat we have utilised the bearing
pressures of 3 typical machines used throughout
the industry. These are a 5T Hutte 203 mini rig,
a 40T Soilmec SF50 CFA rig and a 65T Soilmec
SR70 rotary rig.
Step 2, choose soil type and strength:
This refers to the subgrade material, or the soil
that will be present at the underside of the piling
mat. It can be grouped into two categories,
cohesive (clay) and cohesionless (sands, gravels
and most chalks). The choice of soil strength
should be moderately conservative.
Step 3, determine working platform thickness:
Using the soil descriptions and strength test
results from the site investigation report you can
ascertain the mat thickness from the Y axis for
the relevant machine.

It may be possible to save on the thickness of

piling mat by implementing one or more of the
following measures:
Improve the subgrade material properties.
This can be done in the case of cohesionless
subgrade by consolidating the ground first to
increase its angle of friction. Where the subgrade material is cohesive lime or cement may
be added to increase its shear strength.
Adopt most probable design parameters to
produce a preliminary thickness for the mat
design then prove using a combination of well
distributed plate bearing tests and comprehensive testing using a high axle loaded vehicle with
a low centre of gravity to identify any soft spots.
Geogrid reinforcement may be used to increase
strength of platform material. This should only
be considered for platforms greater than 400mm
in depth as thinner mats may not provide sufficient dead weight to stop the grid being pulled
in by the auger during piling and potentially
disrupting setting out locations.
It wont reduce platform thickness, but by providing geosynthetic membranes at the base of
working platforms in fine grained soils, filtration
into the platform material and subsequent maintenance will be minimised.

Notes for maintenance and installation

Piling platforms should be clearly defined and
extend at least 2m beyond the building area and
in access routes between plots. Where they are
installed as a ramp a suitable incline should be
agreed with the Piling Contractor.
When obstructions are encountered and need to
be removed care should be taken to ensure that
the hole is suitably backfilled and compacted to
avoid the possibility of soft spots.
The ICE Specification for Piling and Embedded
Retaining Walls suggests that a certificate is
used as part of a quality assurance procedure. A
copy of this can be found on our website.
Further guidance on these issues can be found
in BRE Report BR470 however, if required, we
can carry out the design of the working platform
together with the provision of a method statement
and a supervisory visit. If required we can also
install and maintain the working platform for the
duration of our works.

References
Institution of Civil Engineers. Specification
for Piling and Embedded Retaining Walls.
Thomas Telford, London, 2007.
British Research Establishment. Working
Platforms for Tracked Plant, Report 470. BRE,
2004.
Highways Agency. Volume 1, Specification for
Highway Works, Series 600 Earthworks. HA,
2008.
Disclaimer: This guidance is not intended for construction
design purposes, Platforms should be designed by
a competent professional based on site specific rig
loadings and ground conditions. Method statements, risk
and COSHH assessments will also need to be prepared
prior to commencing installation. Central Piling accepts
no responsibility for loss or damage arising from the use
of this information.

For details of Central Piling projects and

services goto www.centralpiling.com