Threeway steel carry a wide variety of types of piling for foundations where structural elements are to be installed, but the ground soil is not strong enough to support the structure. Piling is a column of wood or steel that is driven deep into the ground to provide stronger support for a structure. This is commonly seen on piers or docks on a beach, where the poles are driven into the ground and then the structure is built on these piles. Piling has also been used for many years to strengthen foundations for large buildings.
More Information on Piling for Deep Foundations
Piling pipe is used for foundations of buildings or other structures where the top soil is not strong enough to support the structure. Piling pipes and H piles are ‘pile-driven’ deep into the ground vertically to where the ground is harder and more stable. Depending on the ground composition, sometimes the ground is drilled into and the pipe is then driven into these holes. When piling is driven into the ground, it can be driven either open-ended or closed-ended, with points or plates. Driving piles into the ground has its advantages over drilling because the compressed soil around the driven piles increases the piles load-bearing capacity. Driven piles are also considered to have been tested when installed this way because of the ‘pile-driving’ installation.
Steel Piling & Pipe Piles
Pipe piles range in size from several inches to several feet in diameter and they can be spliced to create piles several hundreds of feet in length. Pipe piles are designed or fabricated depending on their use or required specifications, and these can be reinforced with rebar or concrete if needed.
In some types of pile foundation systems a group of piles is connected by a pile cap, which is a large concrete block that is fitted over the heads of the piles. This helps to distribute the load among the piles. A monopile foundation uses a single large diameter structural foundation element to support all the loads of an above surface structure. A good example is a freeway pier which is a very large pile reinforced with rebar and concrete.
