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Introduction
(/?. Katzenbach,
A. Schmitt & J. Turek)

n
The objective of Co-operation in Science and Technology (COST) Action C7 and in particular of
Working Croup B ( W C - B ) is to have a closer look at the co-operation b e t w e e n structural and ^
geotechnical engineers. As Europe becomes a closer community and more companies get
involved in international projects, their experiences of the co-operation b e t w e e n geotechnical
and structural engineers are of great interest. By gathering information, impressions and
experiences and making t h e m accessible to all participants, communication b e t w e e n the t w o
engineering professions can be improved.

Because buildings usually are in contact w i t h the subsoil, the soil-structure interaction a l w a y s
affects their design and construction. Therefore strong co-operation b e t w e e n structural and
geotechnical engineers is necessary to guarantee the success of a construction project. As a n
introduction to the subject of this report, namely t h e interaction b e t w e e n structural and
geotechnical engineers, some experiences gained on a foundation project in Frankfurt a m M a i n
will be briefly described.

Like several European metropolitan areas Frankfurt is growing not only in size, w i t h n e w
housing areas in the surrounding localities, but also in height (Figure 1.1). Also because t h e
European Central Bank is located in Frankfurt, there are presently more t h a n 20 additional
building areas for potential office towers that will be b e t w e e n 90 and 400 m high. So together
w i t h the existing 73 high-rise buildings there will be nearly 100 towers w i t h i n the city borders.
In most cases existing structures will be demolished and replaced by n e w constructions, a
demanding task for all areas of civil engineering and especially for geotechnical engineering as
nearly all the office towers will have to be founded on piled foundations or on combined p i l e -
raft foundations (CPRFs).

F i g u r e 1.1 S k y l i n e o f F r a n k f u r t

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 Compared w i t h traditional piled foundations, w h e r e building loads are assumed to be
transferred to the soil only by piles, the CPRF is a n e w approach. A CPRF consists of three
bearing elements: piles, raft and subsoil. The load distribution b e t w e e n piles and raft is taken
into consideration and t h e piles can be used for a load level equal t o or greater t h a n the
bearing capacity of a comparable single pile. This design concept can lead to a considerable cost
reduction for foundations of more t h a n 50% compared w i t h piled foundations.
o
z
As s h o w n in Figure 1.2 the structural elements of a CPRF—piles, raft and subsoil—are
interacting in several w a y s . To take into account this complicated soil-structure interaction and
to assess the load-settlement behaviour of CPRFs, three-dimensional (3D) finite element
analyses are often used, w h i c h will be described later.

1 pile-pile interaction
2 pile-raft interaction
3 raft-raft interaction
4 pile-soil interaction
5 pile base-pile shaft
interaction

1 i.x Soil-structure
i n t e r a c t i o n of c o m b i n e d p i l e - r a f t
foundation

In Figure 1.3 a flowchart for t h e design of a CPRF is depicted. It shows the dependences between
the structural and geotechnical engineers and the dependence of the outcome of calculations
on the information exchanged b e t w e e n the t w o professions throughout the project. Because it
is essential to obtain reliable field and laboratory data about the soil properties and the
groundwater conditions, field investigations should start as early as possible, accompanied by a
multidisciplinary interaction b e t w e e n the geotechnical and structural engineers. For projects
such as high-rise buildings t h e dialogue b e t w e e n structural and geotechnical engineers should
begin long before the first field investigation is carried out.

The depth of sounding and boring and the frequency of sampling are influenced by the building's
foundation structure w h i c h in turn is strongly influenced by t h e loads to be transferred by the
structure. A first idea of t h e dimensions can only be provided by an engineer capable of
foundation design. Having the foundation design engineers deal w i t h these basic data and
keeping t h e m updated w i t h all important changes in the structural design allows alteration of
t h e site investigation programme, even w h i l e it is in progress. This applies to changes in the
number and depth of probe and borehole locations as well as to other testing tools.

S o m e aspects will be illustrated by experiences gained o n a recent project of a n e w office tower

in t h e outskirts of Frankfurt. The tower is about 121 m high and is founded on large diameter
bored piles (length b e t w e e n 25 and 35 m; diameter 1.50 m) in Frankfurt clay (Figure 1.4). The
numerical analysis based on a 3D finite element analysis w a s performed at t h e Institute and
Laboratory of Geotechnics in Darmstadt.

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 Structural engineer Geotechnical engineer

Load history
Subsoil investigation and
Load distribution
subsoil assessment

Expected output of the

Choosing a geotechnical
and structural model

Feasibility/serviceability
criteria:
— Displacement
— Pile resistance Selecting approximate
dimensions and layout of
foundation structure
0
o
Analysing the structure c
— Displacement
— Pile resistance o
z
Assessing effects of the
Reviewing model data
results for structural
and results
design

Data for structural no

design of foundation F i g u r e 1.3 F l o w c h a r t for t h e
d e s i g n of a c o m b i n e d p i l e - r a f t
foundation

The material behaviour of the piles and raft w a s simulated as linear-elastic in t h e finite
element analysis, w h e r e a s for t h e simulation of t h e material behaviour of the soil an elasto-
plastic model w a s used. Because of the load distribution obtained
from the structural engineer and the twofold symmetry of t h e 140 m

geometry the finite element mesh could be reduced to a half of the

area to be considered (Figure 1.5).

It is particularly important to start the design process from a good

geotechnical model which makes it necessary for t h e geotechnical
engineer to form an understanding of how loads will be spread
over the structure d o w n to the foundation. Moreover it is also of
great importance in dense urban areas to evaluate the stress
history of the building ground as n e w developments often replace
existing structures.

After the formation of a reliable pool of data at an early stage t h e

next step is the selection of an appropriate pile type. The pile
design is part of the structural design but good communications
are still necessary b e t w e e n t h e various members of the project
t e a m . The selection of the pile type and dimensions is not a purely
geotechnical problem; one must allow for t h e requirements of t h e
structural design and environmental limitations, including
restrictions such as access, and factors such as noise and
vibrations. The geotechnical, structural and environmental factors
that govern t h e selection of pile type and dimensions are
interdependent, and should be considered in relation to each other;
engineering judgment is needed to determine the best method of
balancing the various factors. For the final foundation design, t h e
diameter, length and location of the piles w e r e chosen based on
the experiences of the geotechnical and structural engineers. The
optimisation considering the settlement criteria w a s performed by
F i g u r e 1.4 C r o s s - s e c t i o n of city
the geotechnical engineer. tower Offenbach

Interaction b e t w e e n structural a n d geotechnical engineers

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 Tunnels

1*4 m Surrounding soil

Raft

14

o Piles
o 100 m
c
o

o
Figure i . { Finite e l e m e n t model
of f o u n d a t i o n of city t o w e r
Offenbach

The amount of results from finite element analysis is huge but only a f e w data are of interest
to the structural engineer. So for large 3D elasto-plastic finite element simulations a system is
required that meets the available analysis tools of t h e structural engineer. As s h o w n in Figure
1.6 t h e 3D model used by the geotechnical engineer w a s reduced to a model consisting of shell
elements for the simulation of the raft and spring elements for the piles. The support of the
raft by the soil is simulated w i t h a modulus of subgrade reaction beneath the shell elements.
The calculated spring stiffnesses are based on the results of t h e 3D model and t h e modulus of
the subgrade reaction is set according to the settlement prediction of the 3D model.

As illustrated by this example of a foundation design a strong interaction b e t w e e n the

structural and geotechnical engineers is indispensable for ensuring a safe and economic design.
For other projects, for example tunnels, the dependences b e t w e e n t h e structural and
geotechnical engineers may be different but the importance of their interaction stays the same.

In the following chapters several aspects concerning the interaction b e t w e e n structural and
geotechnical engineers, such as education or regulations, will be addressed. Also examples of
interaction in practice b e t w e e n the t w o professions in several European countries are given.

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