GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING INVESTIGATION

FOR

PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS

AT

48 MURVALE DRIVE
BUCKLANDS BEACH
AUCKLAND

For

48 Murvale Drive Ltd

Reference: D298
Date: 9 October 2018

YANG ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS LTD

Tel: (09) 5201618
Mob: (021) 426078
yangltd@gmail.com
PO Box 29133, Epsom, Auckland
312 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland
 YANG ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS LIMITED
Tel:(09) 520 1618 Mobile: (021) 426078
Email: yangltd@gmail.com
PO Box 29133, Epsom, Auckland
312 Manukau Road, Epsom, Auckland

Our Ref: D298

9 October 2018

48 Murvale Drive Ltd

48 Murvale Drive
Bucklands Beach
Auckland

Attention: Mr Huiqiang Zhang

Dear Sir,
GEOTECHNICAL ENGINEERING INVESTIGATION
FOR PROPOSED RESIDENTIAL DWELLINGS
48 MURVALE DRIVE, BUCKLANDS BEACH
1. INTRODUCTION
Yang Engineering Consultants Limited has been engaged to undertake a geotechnical engineering
investigation for proposed residential dwellings at the above address. The property is legally described
as Lot 69 DP 80800.

The purpose of the investigation is to evaluate ground subsurface soil conditions at the proposed
development area to support building consent application to Auckland Council.

Field investigation has been carried out and involved drilling of hand auger boreholes and undertaking
Scala penetrometer tests. This report presents the results of the field investigation, assessment of design
drawings of the proposed dwellings, comments and recommendations on design and construction of
foundation and ground retention structures of the proposed development.

2. PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT
The proposed development comprises building of four three-storey residential dwellings following removal
of the existing house on the site. We have been supplied with preliminary architectural design drawings
prepared by Ingram Architecture. The drawings supplied include site plan, floor plans and elevations,
dated 11/9/2018. The site plan is attached to this report.

The dwellings are proposed to be built on levelled building platforms by cut and fill operations with depths
up to approximately 3.1m and 0.8m respectively, measured from existing ground surface level based on
site plan supplied. The dwellings are proposed with concrete slab foundation.

It is understood that excavation slopes for forming the building platforms are to be retained by exterior
walls and/or foundation walls of the proposed dwellings.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 1 of 10

 3. SITE GEOLOGY
The geological map of Auckland Urban Area (Sheet R11, Kermode 1992, Geological Map 2, Institute of
Geological & Nuclear Sciences Ltd, 1: 50,000) suggests that the site is underlain by East Coast Bays
Formation (re) of Waitemata Group of Miocene Epoch.

The East Coast Bays Formation comprises greenish grey, alternative muddy sandstone and mudstone
with occasional inter-bedded lenses of grit. This material is characterised by a clay mantle derived from
and grading into rock within approximate 10m below ground surface.

4. SITE DESCRIPTION
The property at 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach, lies to the east of Murvale Drive. It is quadrilateral in
shape with area of approximately 868 square metres. Site access is directly off Murvale Drive. A single
storey dwelling with a double garage is currently located on the site.

The proposed development site is on gentle sloping ground falling from the south-eastern corner to the
northwest with gradients up to approximately 14º (1v: 4h).

The proposed dwelling area is currently covered in grass and trees.

Several timber and Keystone block retaining walls are observed on the site. The retaining walls are up to
0.7m in height. The timber retaining walls are in general working conditions but the Keystone retaining
walls are in marginal working conditions with cracks observed.

A masonry block retaining wall is on the western part of the southern boundary, with retaining height up
to approximately 1.6m. It is in marginal working conditions.

Public stormwater and sewer lines are running near and along the western boundaries of the site.

Soil creep movements are likely occurring on the site. A cut off drain is observed on the northern boundary.

Photo 1 – From site

entrance looking east at
existing dwelling and
garage.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 2 of 10

 Photo 2 – From centre of
northern boundary looking
southeast showing back
yard.

Photo 3 – From existing

driveway looking south
showing masonry block
retaining wall on southern
boundary.

5. SITE INVESTIGATION
Site investigation was carried out between 28 September and 1 October 2018 by geotechnical engineers
of this office. Four hand auger boreholes were drilled near the proposed dwelling area to approximately
5.0m maximum depth below existing ground levels. Scala penetrometer tests were carried out from the
base of some boreholes at the downslope area.

Hand auger borehole and Scala penetrometer logs are attached to this report. Test locations are plotted
on attached the site plan D298-1.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 3 of 10

 5.1 Ground Subsurface Soil Conditions
Soils encountered in the hand auger boreholes were topsoil, fill and Waitemata Group deposits. The soils
encountered may be summarised as follows:

Topsoil – Topsoil was encountered in the boreholes with depth between 0.2m and 0.3m below existing
ground level. The topsoil contains organic silt.

Fill – Fill was encountered in boreholes HA1 and HA3 with depth extending to the depth between
approximately 0.4m and 0.7m below existing ground level. The fill consisted of silts and organics, reddish
brown / dark brown, very dense, moist to wet, slightly plastic.

Measured peak and residual shear strengths were 154kPa and 57kPa respectively.

Waitemata Group Soils – residual East Coast Bays Formation of Waitemata Group deposits were
encountered in all boreholes with depth to the end of the boreholes. The soils consisted of silts, clays and
sands, reddish brown / light grey / dark grey, very dense, moist, slightly plastic.

Measured peak shear strengths were between 113kPa and 221+kPa, and residual shear strengths
between 48kPa and 127kPa.

5.2 Groundwater Level

The groundwater levels measured during borehole drilling are summarised in the following table:
Table 1: Measured Groundwater Level (below existing ground surface, m)
Borehole Encountered during drilling Measured after 3 days
HA1 Not encountered 1.25
HA2 3.0 1.97
HA3 Not encountered 2.4
HA4 Not encountered 1.72

It should be noted that groundwater levels and flows are transient. It can be anticipated that the ground
water level may change due to prolonged or heavy rainfall.

6. SLOPE STABILITY
Our site inspection identified no apparent sign of major deep-seated slope instability at the proposed
development area. Minor soil creep movement may occur on the site.

It is understood that the proposed development involves cutting into and filling over the existing sloping
ground to form building platforms. Proposed cut and fill for the development will be retained by engineer
designed retaining walls. Subsoil drains should be placed behind the proposed retaining walls.

Slope stability of the site with the proposed development were assessed and considered satisfactory due
to the gentle slopes on proposed development areas, cut slopes are to be retained by engineer designed
retaining walls and soil strengths measured.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 4 of 10

 7. GEOTECHNICAL ASSESSMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on site investigation results and geotechnical engineering review of the proposed development
plans, we recommend that the following measures be adopted in foundation and ground retention design
and construction -
(1) Piles – considering sloping ground with minor creep movement on the site, existing public
drainage pipes on site and closely spaced foundations, it is recommended that concrete filled
piles be employed under down slope leading edge of the foundations. Locations of the piles are
suggested as showing on the site plan D298-1.
The piles shall be embedded to no less than 2.5m depth below cleared ground level, and
underneath the foundations, whichever is deeper. The piles shall also be embedded at least
1m in depth below underside of nearby footing of the adjacent dwelling.
The piles shall be placed at a spacing of no larger than 5 times of drill hole diameter.
The piles shall be designed in shear and bending to resist at-rest (k0 no less than 0.5) lateral
soil loads at a spacing of equivalent to 3 times of pile drill hole diameters and applied to a depth
of 1.2m. Undrained shear strength of 60kPa may be adopted for checking pile lateral capacity
in natural soil or engineered fill.
For axial load design purposes, the ultimate end bearing capacity of piles should be taken as
500kPa (250kPa dependable and 160kPa allowable) and ultimate pile sidewall friction of 36kPa
(18kPa dependable and 12kPa allowable) for pile sections below 1.0m from pile top and within
natural soils or engineer certified fill.
The pile size, spacing, load capacity and structural details shall be designed to ensure that
allowance has been made for potential differential settlement for piled and unpiled portion of
the dwelling.
(2) Foundation – concrete slab on-grade foundation, waffle slab foundation or short timber pole
footings are considered suitable for the rest of the proposed dwellings, provided they are
embedded into natural stiff soils or engineer certified fill.
For isolated pad and strip footings, waffle slab foundation or short timber pole footings
embedded into natural stiff organic free soils or engineer certified fill, we are of the opinion that
foundation soils can afford a geotechnical ultimate bearing capacity of 300kPa for foundation
design. This corresponds to a factored (ULS) and allowable (SLS) bearing capacity of 150kPa
and 100kPa respectively.
For foundation constructed as suggested above, we are of the opinion that the settlement and
differential settlement under the proposed foundations would be within normal design tolerance.
(3) Soil expansiveness – based on our experience with the soils encountered, we are of the
opinion that the expansiveness class of the soil covering site falls into the category of Class M
(Moderately) in terms of AS2870:2011, Residential Slab and Footings – Construction.
Foundation and ground retention structures for the proposed dwelling shall be specifically
designed by a Chartered Professional Engineer familiar with the contents of this report and
recommendations in the AS2870:2011.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 5 of 10

 It is recommended that no less than 0.1m thickness of well compacted granular fill such as
GAP40 be placed under concrete slab foundation.
Waffle slab foundation shall subject to engineer specific design for soil expansiveness. Shallow
strip footings and shallow timber pole footings should be embedded minimum 600mm below
cleared ground level.
Sufficient saw cuts on concrete slab surfaces shall be provided in accordance with NZS
3604:2011. Sufficient movement control joints in horizontal and vertical panels with spacing of
no more than 3m and coincide with corner of opens shall be provided for brittle exterior cladding.
The contractor shall take appropriate measures to prevent drying out of excavated building
platforms during construction.
(4) Retaining walls – retaining walls proposed for the development, apart from small garden walls,
shall be engineer specifically designed with overall slope stability satisfied. Excavation and fill
over 0.6m in depth shall be retained by engineer specifically designed retaining walls.
Sloping ground in front and behind the retaining walls and appropriate surcharge loads,
including loading from the existing retaining walls and foundation of the existing dwellings
behind, shall be taken into account in retaining wall design. For retaining walls within a distance
of 1m or its retaining height, whichever is further, from site boundaries, boundary surcharge
loads of no less than 12kPa shall be considered in retaining wall design.
The existing masonry block retaining wall on the western part of the southern boundary shall
be considered when designing the proposed retaining walls nearby.
Soil parameters to be adopted for designing retaining walls supporting natural soils or
engineered fill on the site may be as follows -
• Soil bulk density (γ’): 18kN/m3
• Effective internal cohesion (c’): 0kPa
• Effective angle of internal friction (φ’): 30º
• Undrained shear strength (Su): 60kPa
Free standing retaining walls with level back slope may be designed to active earth pressure
coefficient Ka of no less than 0.33. Retaining walls integrated into the dwelling structure shall
be designed for at-rest soil pressures with a coefficient k0 of no less than 0.5.
Sufficient subsoil drainage such as 100mm minimum diameter subsoil coil drain (‘Novaflo’ or
similar) wrapped with filter socks shall be provided behind all retaining walls.
Retaining walls supporting drainage fill
Soil parameters to be adopted for designing retaining walls supporting non-engineered fill such
as back fill in drainage pipe trenches may be as follows -
• Soil bulk density (γ’): 17.5kN/m3
• Effective internal cohesion (c’): 0kPa
• Effective angle of internal friction (φ’): 26º
• Undrained shear strength (Su): 50kPa
Free standing retaining walls with level back slope may be designed to active earth pressure
coefficient Ka of no less than 0.4. Retaining walls integrated into the dwelling structure shall be
designed for at-rest soil pressures with a coefficient k0 of no less than 0.6.
D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 6 of 10
 (5) Construction Methodology – Temporary excavation slopes shall be carefully managed with
minimum exposure time, especially excavation near the existing retaining walls. Cut slopes
shall be positioned with sufficient distance away from property boundaries, other retaining walls,
structures or steep slopes. Working close to excavation slopes shall be carried out in
accordance with the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
For the retaining wall in front of existing retaining walls and/or near the boundary, temporary
excavation may be carried out in short sections. Soils between opened sections may be left as
support to the excavation slopes and be excavated following retaining walls on the adjacent
sections being constructed.
Temporary slope stability piles (Palisade piles) may be adopted behind the proposed
excavation slopes, especially for building masonry block retaining walls supporting excavation
slopes. The temporary piles shall be engineer specific designed and constructed before
excavation commence.
Considering depth of exaction near side boundary; public drainage pipe passing the area; and
existing masonry block retaining wall nearby, palisade piles are recommended to be erected
between the proposed excavation slope and southern boundary before excavation commence.
The palisade piles shall be engineer designed.
Top-down construction method may be adopted for building cantilever retaining walls near site
boundaries and/or existing retaining walls. Top-down construction method is drilling boreholes
at the proposed wall location to designed depths with limited depth of excavation; placing timber
/ steel poles into the drill holes; pouring concrete into drill holes up to designed final ground
level; excavation to the designed final ground level in short sections along the wall; construct
planks and back-filling the opened sections; and building adjacent sections in the same way.
Temporary excavation slope batters shall be determined by the contractor on site. Temporary
excavation slopes shall be inspected daily by the contractor for sign of instability. Slope surface
protection using impermeable material such as heavy PVC sheets may be required to cover
temporary slope surface during construction. Any groundwater seepage encountered during
excavation shall be intercepted using vertical strip drains, collected and lead outside to safe
stormwater outlet, and report to the geotechnical engineer for advice.
(6) Dewatering – it is noted that the maximum excavation height based on the site plan supplied
is 3.1m below existing ground level. Potential dewatering effect on adjacent building due to
excavations near boundary had been assessed and considered negligible.
The borehole HA2 was undertaken near the potential deepest excavation areas. Groundwater
level was encountered at 3.0m in HA3, and measured at 1.97m after 3 days.
Based on the Auckland Council GIS map, the neighbouring house at the upper slope side is
located at approximately 6.5m distance from the southern boundary. This is considered of
sufficient distance for dewatering effect on the adjacent building due to excavation up to
approximate 3.1m in depth to be minimal.
By referring to the Auckland Unitary Plan Operative in part, we are of the opinion that the
potential dewatering effect would be negligible.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 7 of 10

 (7) Proposed fill – based on the soils encountered in the boreholes, it is recommended that the
depth of proposed fill underneath the foundation of the proposed dwelling be no more than 1m
in depth above existing ground level.
Proposed fill under concrete foundation slab should be granular material such as GAP40 or
similar compacted in layers of no more than 150mm thickness in accordance with
NZS3604:2011. The fill shall be retained by engineer specific designed retaining walls or
extended beyond the building platform for at least 1m distance before sloping away.
Proposed fill shall be placed following removal of topsoil and existing fill.
For additional filling over 1m in depth above existing ground level, we recommend that light
weight fill such as expendable polystyrene (Polyrock) or suspended timber or concrete
foundation (such as Hibond floor system) be adopted for the additional part of the fill. Light
weight fill or suspended timber / concrete sub-floor foundation system should be adopted and
be constructed in accordance with manufacture’s specifications and recommendations. The
expendable polystyrene (Polyrock) shall have density of no less than 28kg/m3. It shall be
embedded under the proposed granular fill and shall not be used to directly support load bearing
walls and point loads.
Clayey soil fill shall not be used under the foundation of the proposed dwelling unless the fill is
endorsed by a chartered engineer experienced in Geo-mechanics and familiar with the contents
of this report; and/or the proposed dwelling is to be founded on piles penetrating through the
fill.
Based on the soil strengths obtained, we anticipate the ground settlement under the proposed
fill would be within normal design tolerance.
(8) Existing public drainage – existing public sewer and stormwater drainage pipes passing or
adjacent to the site shall not be impaired by the development. Locations of the public drains
shall be surveyed before construction commence.
Proposed dwelling foundation shall be placed away from public drainage pipes for at least 1.0m
clear distance. Should the proposed dwelling foundation located within the influence zone
defined as 45-degree projection lines up from 0.5m depth below the invert levels of existing
public drainage pipes, it shall be founded on piles to bring structural loads down to minimum
1.0m below the projection lines, and in accordance with specific requirements from Auckland
Council.
The bridging piles shall be designed to support lateral soil loads due to potential settlement of
the clayey soil fill in the drainage trenches.
(9) Stormwater – stormwater falling onto impermeable surfaces on-site shall be captured and
piped to on-site safe stormwater drainage system via. silt trap.
Groundwater concentration and flowing onto existing slope surface shall be avoided to prevent
erosion and scour of slope surfaces, and adversely affect overall slope stability.
Under no circumstance shall ground surface water be allowed to flow directly under foundation
area. Earth works shall be carried out in accordance with Auckland Council requirements to
prevent contaminating water course.

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 8 of 10

 (10) Site work – all topsoil, soft soils and other unsuitable materials shall be removed under footings
and the foundation subgrade should be inspected and approved by the engineer prior to
placement of concrete or fill.
Permanent excavation slopes and engineered fill slopes less than 1m in height shall be formed
with gradients of no steeper that 1v:3h (18 degrees from horizontal), unless retained by
engineer designed retaining wall or endorsed by a chartered professional engineer experienced
in Geomechanics.
It is possible that old sewer treatment and / or stormwater facilities, as well as old tree stumps
may exist on the site. Should drainage facilities / tree stumps be encountered under
foundations, they shall be excavated down to natural stiff soils. Over excavation shall be back
filed with well compacted granular fill. Excavation to nature stiff soil and back fill compaction
shall be inspected and approved by the geotechnical engineer.
Ground surface stormwater discharge and overland flow on the site shall be appropriately
controlled to prevent its adverse effect on slope stability. A good vegetation cover shall be
maintained on the adjoining slopes.
(11) Existing House - the existing house and garage on the site will be removed for construction of
the new dwellings.
We recommend that the ground exposed following removal of the existing house and garage
be inspected and approved by a chartered engineer experienced in Geo-mechanics and
familiar with the contents of this report during construction to confirm that the findings of this
report are valid.
(12)Design Review - It should be noted that the design drawings supplied of the proposed
dwellings are preliminary. Should the final design drawings differ from the drawings supplied, it
is recommended that design drawings be reviewed by this office or other chartered professional
engineer experienced in Geomechanics and familiar with the contents of this report at building
consent stage to ensure the above design recommendations are considered in the structural
design. Further geotechnical investigation or assessment may be required at building consent
stage.
(13)Site inspection – site inspections by a chartered professional engineer experienced in
Geomechanics and familiar with the contents of this report shall be carried out during
construction to verify that foundation soil conditions on building platforms are consistent with
the findings of this report.
Soft or otherwise unsuitable materials shall not present in the foundation subgrade. Compaction
of hardfill under foundations, stability of excavation slopes near site boundary, soil conditions
on foundation subgrade and in pile drill holes shall be inspected and approved by the engineer.

8. CONCLUSIONS
Based on our geotechnical engineering investigation including field tests and assessment of the available
design drawings, we are of the professional opinion that the geotechnical engineering aspects of the
proposed dwellings on the site are appropriate provided that the recommendations presented in section
7 above are considered in foundation and retaining wall design and construction.
D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 9 of 10
 9. LIMITATIONS
This report has been prepared solely for the benefit of our client, 48 Murvale Drive Ltd, and its professional
advisers to be submitted to the Auckland Council to support building consent application for the proposed
dwelling development on the subject site. It is based on field investigation data at discrete locations.
Should conditions encountered differ to those outlined in this report, the conditions shall be reviewed for
the continued applicability of our conclusions and recommendations.

This report has been prepared based on the specific project and client brief and it should not be relied on
by other parties for purposes other than for which it was originally intended. In particular, the findings of
this report should not be extrapolated beyond the boundaries of the specifically described areas. Yang
Engineering Consultants Limited accepts no liability to any matters arising from the use of the information
given in this report by any other person / organisation for any other purposes without referring to us.

It is up to the contractor / owner to adopt the above construction methodology to ensure temporary
excavation slope stability during construction. Any liability of temporary slope stability failure during
construction shall lie with the contractor / owner if the construction methodology presented in the report
are not implemented during construction.

Should you have any query regarding this please feel free to contact the undersigned.

Yours Faithfully
Yang Engineering Consultants Limited

Lawrence Yang
BE, ME, MIPENZ, IntPE(NZ)
Chartered Professional Engineer

Encl: Appendix A: Hand Auger Borehole and Scala Penetrometer Logs

Drawing D298-1: Site Plan with Test Locations and Cross Section A – A’ (1)

D298 - 48 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach Page 10 of 10

 APPENDIX A
Hand Auger Borehole and
Scala Penetrometer Logs

Ref: D298 - Title

YANG Engineering Consultants Ltd
Phone: 09-5201618, 021-426078
yangltd@gmail.com

Scala Penetrometer Test

49 Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach
Reference: D298
Test Date: 1 October 2018
Tested by: CS

Scala S1 S2
Within Borehole HA1 HA2
Depth start below existing
3.9 4.8
ground level (m)

Penetration Depth (mm) Number of Blow Counts / 50mm Penetration

50 1 1
100 1 2
150 1 3
200 1 3
250 2 3
300 3 4
350 2 4
400 3 5
450 3 6
500 4 6
550 4 6
600 4 6
650 4 6
700 5 6
750 5 6
800 5 7
850 6 6
900 7 7
950 12 9
1000 10 11
1050 10 in 40mm 8
1100 End @ 4.95m 9
1150 End @ 5.9m
1200
1250
1300
1350
1400
1450
1500
1550
1600
1650
1700
1750
1800
1850
1900

D298 - Scala
 Drawing D298 - 1: Site Plan with Test Locations
Drawing P809 - 02: and Cross Section A – A’– B’
: Drawing P806 - 03: Buttress Drain Details B

Ref: D298 - Title