Abstract:
The Philadelphia Navy Yard is located in Pennsylvania, south of Philadelphia’s Center City, on an island enlarged by fill placement, at the confluence of the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers. It is the site of the Country’s first Naval Yard. The presentation will provide a brief history of the Philadelphia Navy Yard, summarizes the geotechnical conditions under a portion of the facility and presents our geotechnical analysis and recommendations for foundation construction at 11 sites within three (3) buildings where new turning and forge equipment is being placed as part of upgrade and enhancement at the Naval Facilities Engineering Command – Mid-Atlantic. The new equipment being installed includes a forge, wire rope saw, and heavy duty turning machines for nuclear submarine propeller manufacturing by the Navy Foundry Propeller Center. The foundations are typically 40-ft to 60-ft wide by similar length long, by 3 to 9-foot thick concrete mats on helical piles installed through a river silt and organic layer, into an underlying medium dense to dense sand and gravel. Helical piles were installed within existing buildings, in a general area that has allegedly experienced settlement issues alleged to be the result of pile driving. Differential settlement criteria is at the micron level. The presentation further provides a summary of recommended helical pile loading with record load test results, and discussion on issues encountered during construction, with resolution.