Education Service Center – Region XIII
| Owner | Education Service Center |
|---|---|
| Client | Education Service Center – Region XIII |
| Project Location | Austin, Texas |
Key Features:
- Structural Investigation
- Foundation Retrofit
- Miscellaneous Structures for Site Remediation
P.E. Structural was asked to investigate reported distress related to differential foundation movement and its effect on existing structural systems at this 40,000sf facility. We measured floor elevations indicating relative vertical movements of over 5 inches within the structure. More troubling was the evidence that the facility, built on a natural slope of highly expansive clay, had been pushed about 7 inches laterally by expansion of clays against the uphill face of the building.
The building had been designed to be fully isolated from the expansive clays, and the original engineer had even included a corrugated pipe sleeve with compressible fill in the design in an attempt to isolate the piers from lateral creep of the clays. This attempt failed because the same expansive clays were backfilled against the uphill foundation beams, and poor drainage allowed water to pond below and on the uphill side of the building. We built a team that included geotechnical and civil engineers. We designed structural repairs and oversaw construction to correct these deficiencies. The repair plan excavated uphill clays, provided natural ventilation below the building to stabilize soil moisture contents, added major retaining walls and drainage flumes, and provided bridges at building access points.
Subsequent measurements indicate that the remedial work has been highly effective. Vertical elevations have stabilized, lateral movement has stopped, and damage resulting from differential movements has ceased.