THE Plastic Piling CPD presentation Pt 2 Installation of plastic piling

PowerPoint Presentation

Plastic Piling 101

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The Hammerman

Over 20 years of experience with:

Small piling equipmentPlastic pilingInstallation methods for plastic piling and trench sheeting

Not an Engineer

BankMaster

Thank you for listening to ( or if on slideshare reading) this presentation, and before we start just to introduce myself and my Company.

I am David Coley of THE Plastic Piling Company, the focus around The Hammerman is linked to over 20 years of working with and supplying small piling equipment. This equipment naturally led to working with plastic sheet piling, and over the last 20 years I have provided equipment support in the UK and Europe to virtually all manufacturers of plastic sheet piling; and I now represent 5 suppliers.

I am not an engineer and whilst I can discuss engineering product specifications, I will not venture too far in to design

What we offerA new & unique product portfolio of Piles, Pile drivers & Drainage filters

The UKs widest range of Plastic Sheet PilingAdvanced, Z & U Plastic Sheet Piling 100% recycled material Thicknesses from 3.5 11 mmLengths of up to 13m, widths of 200 - 610mmJETFilters Drainage filters stops the build up of water pressure behind a control structure - new, or retrofitted & fully maintainableAvailable in 3 sizes and a variety of materials

EMS Piling Vibrators & Piling MandrelsThe new mini hammers sizes start from 160 kgs with powerpack or excavator mounted. Quieter, no lubricant pollution, can drive and extract sheets

3This slide illustrates that my range consists of

plastic sheet piling, for which we offer the UK most comprehensive range, JETFilters the maintainable weephole filters, used to enable a reduction in hydrostatic pressure, whilst preventing soil erosion. They are available in 3 sizes and three material options. Finally, more closely linked to my back ground is our range of piling equipment including EMS series vibrators and plastic piling mandrels

Part 1 - Products and SystemsPart 2 - Installation Methods and EquipmentPart 3 - Applications

I have divided the presentation into three sections, this way we can skip ahead if time permits. This section will pertain to part 2 the installation of plastic sheet piling, which is one of the key areas we are very experienced with.4

Part 2 Installation Methods and Equipment

@plasticpiling@thehammermanco@jetfiltereurope

So installation methods, in this presentation we are focusing on driven pile systems, not trench and fill methods. The methods varying from hand installation using small post drivers, through to 45 tonne leader rigs. Firstly in part 1 we discussed the different systems available from the myriad of plastic sheet piles, these will clearly impact upon installation.5

Rules of Thumb1/3rd out : 2/3rds in50:50Special cases, including hybrid, KingPile and combi - piles

Now the above illustrate that before you even consider what hammer or piling vibrator to use, different systems will install easier than other, if only in the case that shorter sheets driven more shallowly. So if you are limited in terms of equipment, perhaps due to access, then it is best to consider an anchored design, if not one of the more special cases, such as MultiLock and ProLock Hybrids, where the sheet is toe in as little as 200mm 500mm; as the post or tube is driven deeper.

Post are easier to install than sheets as there is less skin friction, and similarly (open ended) tubes are easier to install as they are displacing less soil, and often are a more rigid material and so driven more efficiently.

Now occasionally we will come across a job which is completely flying in the face of above, for instance 1ft in 5ft out, where these have proved sufficient it is more a case of luck, although many uses of plastic piling are as a hard edge and as such no load is upon them, such as scour or erosion control. So in these case where low load is on the shallow depth of installation has provided enough resistance. However, the product would be working well below its rated capacity, as the load increase to the rated capacity of the pile then those contracts with insufficient tie depth will fail.

Soil type will also influence the above, if a dense clay for instance the pile would likely be more stable than in a sandy or silty soil.

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Equipment for Installation of Plastic PilingHandheld Hammers and MaulsAir hammers & Drop WeightsCompactor PlatesExcavator Mounted Piling VibratorsCrane Suspended VibratorsLeader Rigs

Using handheld equipment, either hydraulic pneumatic or simply a maul or sledge hammer is a very common form of installation. Obviously there are limits to how far this method can drive sheets and also into what type of soil. Iften the narrower sections work better due to reduced skin friction, although care must be taken not to use too flexible a section else energy will be lost.7


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Air powered impact and hydraulic drop hammers were probably the first type of equipment used to install plastic piling, if only because they were available in small sizes. The main hirer of this type of equipment was APE, and unfortunately this closed in May of tis year 2016, with the equipment primarily sold to contractors. We do have some air hammers within our hire fleet, mainly APE no.1 units. Drop hammers are becoming more available particularly from agricultural suppliers, with makes such as Vector Powerdrive available for purchase. Care needs to be taken with air hammers when operating them at refusal since they will generate heat and this in turn will soften the plastic pile and can cause substantial top damage.11





Compactor plates are one of the most popular means of installing short plastic sheet piles, the rigid mount onto the excavator makes these devices much easier to control and maintain verticaility. As will be ssen later ( the exception being the Movax) EMV, or excavator mounted vibrators dangle from the end of the excavator.

Compactors lend themselves to driving hybrid or combipiles as no guide, clamp or mandrel need to be used, although as shown on the last photo mandrels are now becoming incorporated. The biggest advantage of this type of equipment is the available sizes, with compactors fitting some very small machines.15



This shows of of the first examples of a compactor mandrel combination we have come across, but due to the power of the compactor we would envisage this only working in soft soils with short sheets.17


Excavator mounted vibrators pretty much fall into two camps, owner operated equipment (contractors plant) such as the Movax shown, or basic EMV units that are available for traditional non operated hire. The Movax clearly has greater sophistication, but as yet its use with plastic piling has been limited. Recent developments include the mini Movax the ML15 designed for plastic piling and incorporating larger Movaxs with rear mandrels and U Piles has had some success. 18


Please note that side driving budget sections such as a light duty Z pile can result in the sheet being damaged as it cannot handle the stresses of side driving. As shown in the photo above, clamps must be selected that provide as much coverage as possible spreading the side clamping force as wide as possible.19


EMV units are perhaps the mainstay for driving plastic piling every since we designed the first side sleeves, which helped support the weight of the vibrator. As vibrator sizes have become smaller such as the ESF03, and mandrel technology has improved this has become the most common form of plastic piling installation particularly in hard soil conditions or those using longer sheets.20


THE ESF03 shown here falls into two categories we we supply is as a suspended vibro wit separate powerpack however it can just as easily be machine mounted. The only real difference is that in suspended mode one tends to add ballast weights to increase the reaction mass.21


These as stated on the previous slide I similar if not identical models, that have their own power source rather than rely on the excavator, they tend to be heavier as they no longer have the benefit of the excavator pushing to provide the extra reaction. 22


Leader rigs are quite common in the UK supplied as operated hire equipment or simply through a specialist piling contractor. AS in the photo they provide excellent verticality and high force and have driven plastic piling in lengtsh exceeding 11m. That stated in the UK they are rarely used for plastic piling since most locatins require a machine that can reach out and so we tend to focus on crane suspended or excavator mounted equipment. However whe a leader rig can be used it will be highly effective as they have proven to be for steel piling. Not to mention vibrators can be changed with auger attachments to provide preaugering ( if permissible)23

Piling Mandrels supports pile and vibro

Side SleevesSide MandrelsInternal mandrels

This slide shows the most common types of piling mandrel, the side sleeve, the side mandrel and the internal mandrel..

Plastic Piling mandrels facilitate the use of larger vibratory equipment as these strengthen the piles, help support the vibrator and piles during installation, whilst in some case help guide away obstructions. Mandrels are available in a range of designs including sleeves, rear and side mandrels and of course internal mandrels as developed for our Advanced range of plastic sheet piling.

Plastic sheet piling, particularly the thin narrow designs proved more flexible and prone to twisting. The secret to installing plastic piling is maximising and increasing the rigidity, and so making the process as efficient as possible - mandrels help achieve this.

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Slide SleevesBasic steel strengthenerOnly overlaps on interlockUseful on budget light duty pilingLimited to around 2-3mMust always be shorter than pile pluggingEasily suits different sheets

The side sleeve was really designed to help support the first EMV devices such as his EMV70, The inability of light duty plastic sheet piling to support the weight of a piling vibrator, serious limited the ability of these products to be installed efficiently. To facilitate this driving aids were introduced, the first is the side sleeve. This is the lightest of all the driving aids produced, and this enables its use with small piling vibrators, that have low amplitudes - such as the EMV70 shown. The side sleeve, based upon an idea from an Environment Agency site, is a basic light weight steel fabrication, designed to slide over the plastic pile male interlockNOT whole pile, and provides addition strength and rigidity. The piling vibrator now grips and is now supported by the side sleeve and the vibration generated imparted through the sleeve into the pile and surrounding soil. In addition to greater productivity, this method also served to reduce top damage to the plastic pile, something common when working with small air hammers.

The limitation in this concept is the length that can realistically be handled, side sleeves up to 3 metres are feasible, above this handling becomes an issue as the sleeve needs to be slid over the plastic pile. To ensure that the sleeve does not become plugged, it must always be shorter than the plastic pile driven.

When using a Side Sleeve it is advisable to build a base frame, as the centre of gravity will have been moved to the interlock and the Side Sleeve will tend to rotate, so means are need to resists this.With the introduction of strong, more rigid plastic piles, side sleeves are now exclusively used on light gauge plastic piling, such as the standard EcoZ and trench pile profiles. Plus the introduction of our own EMS Series vibrators, including our own ESF03 Mini vibro hammer has reduced the dependency that plastic piling had on small air hammers. These air hammers have long been the industry workhorse, but are extremely noisy, operate a polluting open lubrications system. And in hard driving can cause substantial top damage to the sheet.

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Side Mandrels

Provides top and side supportPrevents sheet buckling Safer than rear mandrels Works ahead of the pile Requires quite large equipmentHeavyExpensive to produceSuit narrow range of sheets

Side Mandrels As the name suggests, this mandrel is positioned to the side of the plastic pile, rather than behind it. The concept is to increase rigidity of the plastic piling, support the weight of the piling vibrator, whilst minimising the surface contact between the mandrel and pile. In summary, more support with minimal contact - the pile is driven efficient and stays in the ground.Side support is essential, else the pile will drift, buckle or flex away from the mandrel. This in turn will reduce driving efficiency, and increase the chance of de-clutching or damaging the sheet pile. The recent addition of passive and now active side gripping in rear mandrels simply confirms this.3The side mandrel is first driven on its own, this clears away major obstructions, and in some soil conditions it will leave behind a pile shaped hole. The plastic pile is then inserted into the mandrel, and the combined assembly driven into the ground. The pile is driven more efficiently as there is reduced toe resistance, whilst benefiting from top and side support.

The mandrel is then extracted, and since there is minimal contact between it and the pile, the pile stays in the ground. So unlike rear mandrels there is no need for a re-drive method.

There are limitations based upon the type of vibrator, excavator mounted vibrators will typically drive shorter lengths, even with a swan neck, compared to a leader mounted vibrator. The verticality of the drive and the control over this becomes more important the longer the mandrel.

In the UK the longest we have worked with is 5-6 metres, in other countries lengths of up to 14 metres have been driven.

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Internal Mandrels

Only for advanced range of pilesLight weight minimises equipment sizeInternal backbone allow greater downcrowdExtends beyond pile and reduced toe friction and plugging

Internal Mandrels

Only for advanced range of pilesLight weight minimises equipment sizeInternal backbone allow greater downcrowdExtends beyond pile and reduced toe friction and plugging

So minimal contact, maximum support.

Internal mandrels, are basic steel fabrications that are inserted into the inside area of a plastic pile - only available with advanced plastic piles. The mandrels are much lighter; this in turn enables smaller piling vibrators to be used, or for a given size of vibrator makes that pile driver more efficient.

The introduction of the advanced range of plastic piling, by THE Plastic Piling Company, has revolutionised the installation of plastic piling. These tubular designs, have taken the design of sheet piling beyond that possible with steel piling. These designs offer better rigidity and are less inclined to buckle. However in terms of this publication, Piling Mandrels, their introduction enabled a substantial improvement in mandrel design.

Whilst side mandrels do offer substantial performance and safety advantages over rear mandrels, they are very heavy and this in turn influences what piling vibrators can be used. All piling vibrators are designed with a maximum pile mass in mind, above this performance and mechanical stability of the vibrator becomes affected. The heavier the pile, the higher the amplitude of the piling vibrator needs to be, as the weight dampens or rather balances the vibration out.

Amplitude is best described as the measure of vertical movement of a given vibrator, the higher the amplitude the more aggressive the piling vibrator appears. Therefore when using side or rear mandrels, these are in essence very heavy piles and so require vibrators with high amplitudes. The consequence of this is the scale as everything get bigger, and larger equipment means greater environmental disturbance. In terms of vibratory equipment side mandrels ideally require a piling vibrator which operates with at least 8 mm of amplitude.

In contrast, internal mandrels extend the use of mandrels to much smaller vibrators, with amplitudes as low as 3mm. This enables the use of mandrels in access restricted sites.The internal mandrels provide additional rigidity to the pile during installation. The process of installation is made more efficient as the mandrel extends beyond the pile and guide soil and obstructions out of the way, reducing toe resistance28

New equipmentBSP BH120

A few years ago now we attended the BSP facilities to see how well plastic piling faired when used with the brand new BH120 hammers, needless to state BSP were impressed by the robustness of the plastic piles and this new impact method shows some promise. The real issue remaining is there are only 2 such units in the UK.29

Remaining IssuesThe main issues that relate today are:Selecting the right pile for the job

Getting in equipment that is powerful enough for the task

Vibrator biased

So in summary when installing plastic piling look at the most appropriate system and consider how you can install. Where possible avoid had installation and look for something machine mounted or suspended, maximise the power. Until more impact hammers such as the BH120 come out we will be vibro based and as such limited to those soils where a vibrator is suitable.

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Thank you Any questions?

@plasticpiling@thehammermanco@jetfiltereurope

Thank you for your time, please follow us on twitter!31

THE Plastic Piling CPD presentation Pt 2 Installation of plastic piling

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