ICE UK Specification For Ground Investigation - Intro
ICE UK Specification For Ground Investigation - Intro
ICE UK Specification For Ground Investigation - Intro
The second edition of the series, published by ICE Publishing, updates the documents
published by Thomas Telford Limited in 1993 and includes:
To read more about these books as well as the importance of the ground in
construction and the consequences of inadequate site investigation go to:
www.icevirtuallibrary.com/siteinvestigation
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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-0-7277-3506-5
This book is published on the understanding that the author is solely responsible for
the statements made and opinions expressed in it and that its publication does not
necessarily imply that such statements and/or opinions are or reflect the views or
opinions of the publishers. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the
statements made and the opinions expressed in this publication provide a safe and
accurate guide, no liability or responsibility can be accepted in this respect by the
author or publishers.
ANNEXES
Annex 1 Bill of Quantities for Ground Investigation
(not part of the Contract unless specified in the Contract documentation) 135
Preamble 135
Preamble amendments and additions (for completion) 142
Bills of Quantities: Works items (for completion) 142
A General items, provisional services and additional items 144
B Percussion boring 146
C Rotary drilling 148
D Pitting and trenching 152
E Sampling and monitoring during intrusive investigation 154
F Probing and cone penetration testing 156
G Geophysical testing 157
H In situ testing 158
I Instrumentation 162
J Installation monitoring and sampling 164
K Geotechnical laboratory testing 166
L Geoenvironmental laboratory testing 170
Summary of Bill of Quantities 171
Appendix A. Rates for ground practitioners and other personnel 172
Appendix B. Long-term sample storage 173
Notes for guidance
Notes on the Bill of Quantities are presented immediately prior to relevant bill
(Notes on the preamble are presented alongside preamble items)
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EXAMPLE USES OF THE SCHEDULES AND BILLS OF QUANTITIES
General comments 175
Example A (greenfield site to be developed with a lightweight single-storey building) 176
Example B (contaminated site to be developed for two-storey housing) 209
Example C (contaminated site to be developed for industry with heavy machinery) 259
FEEDBACK
Feedback (user recommendations) 307
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Acknowledgements This document is part of the Site Investigation in Construction series. The
documents have been prepared under the guidance of the Site Investigation
Steering Group, a body with a wide membership, sponsored by the Ground Forum
and the Institution of Civil Engineers, with the aim of providing guidance for the
effective investigation of UK construction sites.
The first edition of the Site Investigation in Construction series was published in
1993 by Thomas Telford Limited. Since then the documents have become the
industry standard, but there have been many advances and regulatory changes
affecting ground investigation, particularly in respect of contaminated ground,
dealing with waste materials and different investigatory techniques.
The second edition is based on the first edition but represents a major revision and
extension of the series with the aim of bringing together the whole site investigation
industry and is intended for general application to all ground investigation work.
Input has been provided by key client organisations such as the Highways Agency,
Network Rail, British Waterways and National House-Building Council.
Thanks are extended to the individuals who comprised the Site Investigation
Steering Group for giving their time, experience and expertise in helping to
progress the revision of the series. Particular thanks are given to employers who
have supported individual’s membership of the steering group.
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Mr Peter Hobbs British Geological Survey
Mr Hugh Mallett Buro Happold
Mr Keith Montague CIRIA
Mr Paul Nowak Atkins Ltd
Mr Neil Parry Geotechnical Engineering Ltd
Mr David Shohet National House Building Council
Mr Ian Stanley Carillion Trenchless Solutions
Mr Brian Stringer British Drilling Association
Mr Mike Summersgill CIWEM
Mr Steve Wade Skanska Ltd
Mr John Wilson CECA
Mr Graham Woodrow Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining
The AGS, ESG and the Highways Agency are thanked for their technical and
financial contribution to the writing of this Specification which was carried out
under the guidance of the AGS Steering Group, comprising:
Input has been obtained from key client organisations and the UK Specification
for Ground Investigation has been endorsed by both the Highways Agency and
Network Rail.
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Foreword and Site Investigation Steering Group: This Specification, the UK Specification for
Ground Investigation, is one of the suite of three documents that comprise the Site
essential reading Investigation in Construction documentation. This Specification should be read in
conjunction with Effective Site Investigation and Guidance for Safe Investigation of
Potentially Contaminated Land.
Schedules: All the relevant Schedules must be completed for each investigation in
order to fully detail both the information provided to the contractor and work
which is to be undertaken. If necessary, the Schedules (and the Bill of Quantities)
can be extended to provide for increased levels of technical complexity to meet the
needs of an individual project, e.g. where a site contains or may contain
archaeological remains, scheduled monument(s) or is of an environmentally
sensitive nature (SSSI, AONB, etc.). Where a Schedule is not relevant then the
words ‘Not required’ should be inserted alongside the Schedule title; where none of
the sub-items are required they can then be omitted for brevity. Those Schedules
which are not required for the particular investigation should also be listed in
Schedule S1.5.
Notes for Guidance: Notes for Guidance, which do not form part of the contract,
are provided for the Specification, Schedules and Bill of Quantities.
Desk Study: A properly designed and executed desk study is essential for all
ground investigations. The results of the study need to be provided to the
contractor undertaking the investigation.
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Introduction Use of the UK Specification for Ground Investigation
The UK Specification for Ground Investigation is intended for general use in ground
investigation, for contracts of any size. The emphasis is on encouraging carefully
designed and safely executed good-quality work.
Depending upon the complexity of the investigation, other specialists may need to
be involved in the work in order that the full range of disciplines (e.g. geotechnics,
contamination, waste assessment, geophysics, archaeology, ecology and safety)
relevant to the specific investigation are adequately covered. Appropriately
qualified and experienced ground practitioners may be from the staff of the
Engineer, may be independent specialist consultants or may be employees of the
Contractor. This involvement of ground practitioners is considered to be essential
to the success of any ground investigation.
The Specification relies heavily on compliance with good practice as set out in
BS 5930, Code of Practice for site investigations (partly superseded by BS EN 1997).
BS 5930 is continuing to undergo amendment at the time of publication of this
document. The reproduction of parts of BS 5930 in the Specification, although in
some ways preferable to cross-references, has been rejected in favour of keeping
the Specification as brief as possible. Particular reference should also be made to
the CIRIA Site investigation manual, SP25 and to BS 1377, Methods of test for soils
for civil engineering purposes (also partly superseded by BS EN 1997). Attention is
drawn to the increasing use of previously developed and contaminated land which
will require specific and detailed investigation, particularly with respect to
previous history. There are several important publications in connection with
investigating contaminated land which are extensively referenced in the
Specification, e.g. the CLR reports and BS 10175, Investigation of potentially
contaminated sites – Code of Practice. Special consideration must also be given to
the hazards and risks to which all staff on site and the public may be exposed
(see the companion publication Guidance for Safe Investigation of Potentially
Contaminated Land and CIRIA C681, Unexploded ordnance, A guide for the
construction industry).
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required. A similar approach of providing full details needs to be taken by the
investigation procurer to many other items e.g. traffic management, additional
Personal Protective Equipment over and above statutory minimum requirements,
access limitations, etc. This Specification is general in nature and may require to be
modified for a specific investigation. In recognition of this need for flexibility, the
Schedules provide for additions and/or modifications to the published
Specification.
Successful ground investigation work will only be accomplished when the quality
and appropriateness of the work, rather than the lowest cost, are recognised as the
first priority. Attention must therefore be given to initial desk studies, careful
planning, the employment of properly equipped contractors utilising trained and
qualified operatives and the supervision of the field and laboratory work by
experienced personnel. The following Notes for Guidance are intended to assist
with the Contract documentation, but experienced ground practitioners should be
involved for an appreciation of the technical aspects of the work.
Contract documentation
Information and requirements specific to the particular contract are to be inserted
in the Schedules which are cross-referenced to the clause numbers in the
Specification and accompanying Notes for Guidance. Any amendments or additions
to the Specification should be identified within the appropriate Schedule. It is
intended that the UK Specification for Ground Investigation be simply referenced in
any contract documentation, with the Schedules included as necessary.
Schedules
Schedule 1: Information
Schedule 2: Exploratory holes
Schedule 3: Investigation Supervisor’s facilities
Schedule 4: Specification amendments
Schedule 5: Specification additions
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If required, the Contract may also include the Bill of Quantities for ground
investigation contained in Annex 1, comprising:
It should be noted that a formal Method of Measurement and Item Coverage are
not required for use with the Annex 1 Bill, as the Specification, together with the
Preamble to the Bill of Quantities, adequately defines the Bill items for payment.
Additional items may be included in the Specification and Bill with the minimum
of documentation. Alternatively, a formal Method of Measurement and Item
Coverage (together with an appropriate Bill of Quantities) may be included with
the Contract documentation. This is likely to result in duplication of statements
and increase the complexity of the documentation, however, particularly when
additional items are included.
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