|
Tel:
(250) 756-0355
Fax:
(250) 756-3831
Email
Lewkowich Geotechnical Engineering, Ltd.
Suite A-2569 Kenworth Road
Nanaimo, BC
V9T 4P7
North Island Division:
Lewkowich Geotechnical Engineering Ltd.
2351B Rosewall Cres, Courtenay, BC V9N 8R9
Tel:
(250) 334-0384
Fax:
(250) 334-9601
Payment Forms Accepted:
Cheques, Purchase Orders, VISA, MasterCard
Business Hours:
8:30 am to 5:00pm
Mon - Fri
|
 |
Services
Geotechnical soils investigation
LGE has the capabilities of conducting
geotechnical evaluations for the following:
- Building foundations
- Roads and highways
- Subdivision soils assessments
LGE
utilizes various methods to investigate subsoils for foundation
bearing characteristicsUse of backhoe or excavator
This is our most preferred method of investigating subgrade
soils. It offers the following advantages:
Advantages
- Relatively low cost
- Useful when accessing remote sites or sites with poor access
characteristics
- Ability to closely assess near surface soil characteristics
- Availability of machines is quite high
Disadvantages
- Useful only with upper 5 to 6m
- Incapable of performing soil characteristics testing such
as Standard Penetration Testing, Shelby Tube extraction or
shear vane testing.
- Generally used for small-scale investigations or preliminary
assessments.
Auger drilling rig

Useful in deeper soils investigations in soils above glacial
till or bedrock, particularly normal consolidated clays or silts.
Advantages
- Capable of performing various field tests such as Standard
Penetration Testing, Shelby Tube extraction or shear vane
testing.
- Causes less disruption to the ground surface
- Ability to assess sub-surface soil characteristics
qualitatively
- Used for installation of piezometers, slope indicators and
other monitoring devices
Disadvantages
- Useful only within upper 15m
- Relatively high cost
- Availability of machines is quite low
- Not useful in harder materials such as glacial till or
rock
Air track drilling rig
Advantages
- In combination with piezocone can provide very accurate
assessments of soft clay deposits
- Rigs can be utilized for rock-coring
Disadvantages
- Availability of rigs can be a problem
- More time-consuming and potentially expensive
Becker Hammer Rig
Advantages
- Can penetrate very dense soils for very deep
investigations
- Useful for larger scale projects such as dams, industrial
installations and deep foundations.
- Rig is useful to assess piling characteristics
Disadvantages
- High mobilization and operating costs
Soils are highly disturbed during penetration
Sonic Drilling
Uses high frequency vibration and rotation
Advantages
- Can provide a continuous "core" of soil from surface to
significant depths
- Useful in penetrating very dense till and bedrock deposits
Disadvantages
- High mobilization and operating costs
- Soils are highly disturbed during penetration
Mud Rotary
Uses tri-cone and mud to maintain test hole sidewalls.
Advantages
- Useful in soft or sloughing deposits
- Can be used to effectively drill through very dense deposits
- Rigs can be utilized for rock-coring
Disadvantages
- Site investigations can be messy
- High mobilization costs
Foundation inspection and remediation
Upon completion of our geotechnical investigation and when
construction commences, it is generally deemed necessary to
inspect soils for conformance to our soils report
As can often occur, soils found in drill-holes or test pits
may differ from those found during subsequent investigations.
LGE should assess sub grade soil conditions during construction
to ensure that recommendations provided in the report reflect
the actual site conditions. Generally LGE should assess soil
characteristics when foundations are being prepared. In the case
of strip or pad footings, this should be conducted prior to
pouring of footings. In the case of deep foundations, LGE should
be on-site during pile installation.
Foundation design
Shallow foundation design.
Includes soil-bearing capacity for strip or pad footings.
If grade changes are necessary, LGE
can call upon their extensive site experience to determine the
most cost effective method of raising site grades, whether by
placement of structural fill, raised foundations or piles.
Deep foundation design
LGE has extensive experience
in deep pile foundation design. These include timber pile, pre-stressed
concrete, steel pipe, driving shoe, H-pile.
Groundwater/site drainage assessment and remediation
LGE can provide recommendations
and monitor short-term or long-term site drainage considerations.
Vancouver Island has unique wet weather patterns that result
in the need for specific and innovative site drainage considerations.
Capabilities include:
- Footing drainage
- Sub-slab drainage
- Slope drainage
- French drain design and installation
- Temporary construction
drainage
- Deep wick-drain installation and monitoring
Setback determinations
- LGE can provide recommendations
for setbacks for government LGEislation requirements
- LGE can provide recommendations
for determination of "natural grade"
Geotechnical hazard assessments
- LGE can provide recommendations
for slope failure remediation and shoring
- LGE can assess foundation
failures and structure failures. These include failures
as the result of poor construction, soil bearing failures and
settlement.
- LGE can provide recommendations
for earthquake preparedness and foundation upgrading.
Slope stability analysis
- LGE utilizes various methods
for assessing the stability of slopes. These include site survey,
field evaluation, air-photo interpretation, topographical studies
and weather studies.
- LGE can assess rock, soil or
retained earth slopes.
Retaining wall design - providing proven and cost-effective
designs
- LGE has extensive experience
in the design and construction monitoring of reinforced, modular
block structures, which enables us to provide substantial cost
savings in building retaining walls. Our awareness of construction
efficiencies and materials selection has often resulted in
cost savings to the contractor of more than twice the engineering
costs.
Soil classification, grain size
analysis, moisture density (proctor) and other engineering
properties testing
- LGE can conduct various geotechnical
laboratory testing including (but not limited to)
Atterberg
limit testing, gradation testing (mechanical and hydrometer)
soil permeability testing.
- In addition, through various partnering agreements with other
larger geotechnical engineering firms, we can also provide
dynamic shear analysis testing, consolidation testing,
triaxial testing and other specialized testing.
Concrete
testing
- CSA Certified Concrete Testing
- Field and laboratory concrete testing capabilities.
- Certified to Category 0 with the Canadian Standards Association
- Capabilities to conduct mix designs, aggregates analysis,
specialized concrete mixes and admixtures
- Concrete mix design reviews and consulting
- Concrete coring for compressive strength, voids analysis
and corrosion detection
- Reinforcing steel inspection and anchor bolt testing
Soil compaction testing
- Nuclear densometer compaction testing capabilities
- Sand Cone and balloon testing
- Large volumetrics such as sand and water replacement testing
Gradation analysis
- Routine metric and standard sieve series
- Field gradation crusher monitoring and testing to MOTH Standards
Asphalt concrete testing
- Full asphalt Marshall testing using either burn off oven,
centrifuge or reflux extraction methods
- Asphalt plant calibration capabilities
- Asphalt coring for thickness and density determinations
- Asphalt mix design
- Recycled asphalt mix assessment and monitoring
- Pavement management systems setup and maintenance
Benkelman beam testing
- Two Benkelman beams for roadway or road structure deflection
testing.
Class 1
Certified with the BC On-Site Sewage Association (BCOSSA) for
on-site sewage disposal system design.
Class 2 Engineered
With new pending Legislation slated to take effect in April
of 2005, LGE is fully prepared
to assume the requirements of the BC Ministry of Health in the
design of on-site sewage disposal systems with flows up to 5000 Igal per day. (Subject to final certification)
Class 3 Tertiary
This would include non-engineered Class 1 systems to engineered
Class 3 Tertiary systems.
Subdivision assessments and approvals
LGE is fully familiar with the Vancouver Island Subdivision
Assessment Standards of the Ministry of Health. LGE has extensive
experience in the determination of suitable septic covenant sizes
and locations. LGE has an excellent working relationship with the
various regulatory authorities such as Ministry of Transportation
(MoT), Regional Districts and municipalities.
Site feasibility
In addition, LGE has experience in determining the drainage
characteristics of a site using septic field evaluation
techniques.
|