Building a Strong Foundation for Factory Gate 1 Beta

The Factory Gate 1 Beta project was located on very soft ground with an undrained shear strength of approximately 15 kPa. Conventional piling was not considered suitable because of existing underground facilities beneath the proposed structure. An alternative foundation solution was therefore required to provide the necessary bearing capacity while avoiding interference with existing services.

To overcome the site constraints, a Tensar Mechanically Stabilised Layer (MSL) incorporating Tensar H-Series geogrids was designed and constructed. The stabilised aggregate platform distributed loads over the soft foundation soils, providing a practical alternative to deep foundations while accommodating the presence of existing underground infrastructure.