Temporary Soil Pre Load - Temporay Soil Buttresses?

[fensoncont.]

I'm going over this project, viewing the bid tab and plans. There is a Temporary Soil Pre Load near the location of an interchange. This will include 12,500 CY of earthwork, there are details as to when it should be done and when it can be removed. What is a 'Temporary Soil Pre Load' and what is the purpose?

Next question, there is also Temporary Soil Buttresses around a bridge structure that will cross a crick and a railway. The quantity for this one is about 50,000 CY. Again, there is details given as to when it can be executed and when it can be removed. What is a 'Temporary Soil Buttress' and what is the purpose?

These next 2 questions deal with the embankments where I don't know what they are or the purpose of them. There needs to be 'Pnuematic Piezometers' placed beneath the embankment in the sand drainage blanket. What are those and what do they do? In the plans it talks about monitoring them daily during fill placement.

Final question, there are 'Settlement Platforms' that also need to be placed around the embankments. What are these and what is the purpose of them?

I figured I'd ask about these items on here, some of it may just be something ODOT does that others are not familiar with. I appreciate your time!

 

[Tanstaafl]

I'm going over this project, viewing the bid tab and plans. There is a Temporary Soil Pre Load near the location of an interchange. This will include 12,500 CY of earthwork, there are details as to when it should be done and when it can be removed. What is a 'Temporary Soil Pre Load' and what is the purpose?

I've never heard it called that, I've heard it referred to as surcharge fill. Anyways, temporary soil pre-loads are basically another way of compacting large areas of soft or unsuitable soils. Instead of digging it all out and placing it back in and compacting, they are just piling up a lot of soil and letting gravity due all the work for them. They then pull all the soil off the area and can either use that soil elsewhere on the site or do whatever they need to with it.

Next question, there is also Temporary Soil Buttresses around a bridge structure that will cross a crick and a railway. The quantity for this one is about 50,000 CY. Again, there is details given as to when it can be executed and when it can be removed. What is a 'Temporary Soil Buttress' and what is the purpose?

Hmm, not sure on this one. It sounds like it might be a temporary earthen retaining wall? Is the bridge structure you mentioned existing or is part of the construction?

These next 2 questions deal with the embankments where I don't know what they are or the purpose of them. There needs to be 'Pnuematic Piezometers' placed beneath the embankment in the sand drainage blanket. What are those and what do they do? In the plans it talks about monitoring them daily during fill placement.

The Piezometers are placed so that the Geotechnical Engineer can monitor what is going on underneath all that fill. They monitor what the pore water pressure is and all sorts of fun stuff like that. They can then take that data, run it through some equations and come up with all sorts of information.

Final question, there are 'Settlement Platforms' that also need to be placed around the embankments. What are these and what is the purpose of them?

Don't remember the exact details about settlement platforms but they are used to measure how much the soils in the are have settled. I know one job I got sent out to try and salvage the platform and the pipe that went with it but the scraper operator had torn the pipe off when removing the surcharge.


Hopefully that answers your questions. I don't deal with a lot with the geotech stuff, so I've only got a general knowledge.

 

[fensoncont.]

Man, that was an awesome response!! Thank you so much for all of your great information, it makes complete sense!

As far as the Soil Buttresses it will be around a Proposed Bridge Structure. For some reason I remember something about an MSE Wall being Mentioned, which would make sense for an earth retaining wall.

Any idea how that would be construction, why that would be done if that's the case?

Once again, thanks for your help on this.

 

[fensoncont.]

Upon further inspection of the plans there is an estimated quantity for the Buttresses as Crushed Aggregate Slope Protection. This temporary embankment structure will be sloped. I'll see what else I can find on it for now.

 

[dirt digger]

keep us updated on the job if you get it....im am really getting into soils engineering and would like pictures if you can snap a few of the process

 

[rino1494]

Where do you always find these jobs to practice bidding on ??

 

[fensoncont.]

Sure thing. This project is ODOT so I locate it on ODOT's webpage and my parents bought me prints to the job. We are listed as a subcontractor under my dad's repair name, but they know it's for educational purposes.

The other projects come from my uncle, he lets me search the dodge report and lets me know about projects so we can compare thoughts, I get to help him a lot with estimating. Other than that I'll design my own.

Just for everyones own interest the project has 1,500,000 CY of embankment, 200,000 CY of granular material, 200,000 LF of utilities. I believe 6 bridges total. The concrete paving will total about 100,000 CY. The prints are 850 pages long, 465 bid tabulation items. The estimated cost for construction is $57,685,000.

 

[rino1494]

How much do the prints cost to buy ??

 

[fensoncont.]

This particular project cost us $140.00

 

[Construct'O]

I like the way you are getting into the porcess of learning how to bid work at your age.

So do you just work up yourself a bid then when they let the bids and you get the results you compare your bid to the actual bid that a contractor wins the job with.

If so how are you doing on the jobs so far that you have worked on?Have you actual win any bids.

Again i'm impressed,at what you are doing,keep up the work.It will be a great job for you someday, hopefully.:usa

 

[fensoncont.]

Every ODOT project bids at 10 AM electronically, the results are posted online by 10:05. At that time I am in study hall, so I instantly go to the computer to check the bid results. After the contract has been awarded 8 days later the bid tabulation sheets of all bidders is put online so I then compare my bid tab to the other contractors.

I've been the low bidder on several smaller projects, mainly below $1,000,00, which are small general utility projects. As far as ODOT projects go there has been 2 that I have put effort into. The first was the USR 33 Bypass in Nelsonville, Ohio. It was about 3 miles of new 4 lane divided highway, with 3,500,000 CY of earthwork and one overpass. I came in 2nd on that project, I was so happy, my parents took me out to eat that evening to celebrate Including me there was 8 bidders I believe. The winning bidder was Kokosing Construction at $21,400,000, my bid was $21,900,000. Last place was $26,500,000 I think.

The most recent was on Feb. 1st, there was a slide on SR 124 in Athens County, towards West Virginia. Repairing the slide consisted of relocating the highway, there was 700,000 CY of earthwork on that project. Yet again I came in 2nd place. First place was Shelly and Sands at $11,200,000. My bid was $12,400,000. Last place was around $17,000,000.

I've also bid 2 other expensive projects that weren't ODOT projects. The first was a Waterline that consisted of 55,000 LF of 16" PVC Watermain. My bid was $6,800,000, first was $6,200,000, I came in 5th. Last place was $7,800,000, total of 10 bidders.

The other one was a new upground reservoir, included 1,700,000 CY of earthwork, 10,000 LF of utilities, 80,000 Ton of sand, 50,000 Ton of rip rap. My bid was $7,313,000, I came in 5th place there as well. First was $6,745,000, 2nd was $6,850,000, 3rd was $7,097,000, 4th was $7,296,000. There was 12 bidders, last place was $13,400,000.

Up to date this will be the largest project I've ever dealt with, currently I have 36 hours in the bid preperation. It bids March 26th, I've got plenty of time yet to finish up, long ways to go yet, currently working on the Conduits.

In January of 2009 the City of Columbus will be letting a new upground reservoir that is estimated at $85,000,000, with 8,850,000 CY of earthwork. I will be buying prints to that project as well when the time comes.

Everyone says "why do you spend this much time on this stuff? I always tell them to wait 25 years and see where it's gotten me in life. It's an entirely new branch of education which I hope will one day make me a sucessful contractor.

 

[Construct'O]

Again i'm impressed and thanks for the report of some of your job bids.

I also think that you are on the right track of a career that will take you up the ladder.It could also be a stressful job looks to be ,but no more then the contractor performing the work that you will be responable for getting with your low bid.

No pressure !!!!! Right
Good luck with your future job and bids :usa

 

[fensoncont.]

Thanks!

 

[fensoncont.]

I got into the specs and prints a little more, on the case of the Temporary Soil Pre-Load, around the structure where it needs to be located there is a county road near the overpass. It included pavement removal, along with soft soils. The soft soils range from 1-3' thick. All the soft soil needs to be excavated. In the specs it shows like 11,000 CY of excavation and 12,000 CY of embankment for the pre load. I'm thinking the soft soil is the excavated material, then the embankment is the pre load material for temporary purposes. Any other thoughts now?

Also, on the buttress. There is 40,000 CY of excavation and 50,000 CY of embankment, along with 136 CY of crushed aggregate slope protection. Still nothing in the cross sections about this. I reposted this information because the first time I forgot to include the quantity for the excavation material, which could change some thoughts.