Case Studies
Fairfield County Municipal Courthouse Supported by Ram Jack Helical Piles
LANCASTER, OH
INTRODUCTION
In the city of Lancaster, Ohio, the Fairfield County Municipal Courthouse
has been standing since the 1800s. With planned renovations as well as
new additions to the structure, the experts at B-Level, LTD. were called
in to assist on the underpinning of the foundation.
PROBLEM
The three-story structure had a foundation sitting on sandstone with a
basement only offering a height of 8 ft. to work within. Further complicating
the construction, there was no exterior access to the basement. Due to
the age of the structure, the poor foundation supporting the structure,
and the addition being added, it was determined that a new foundation
would be necessary to accommodate the future plans.
PROPOSED SOLUTION
Darin Willis, P.E., President of Fortifi ed Engineering Solutions, teamed
up with Christopher Sekol, P.E., S.E., of Select Structural Solutions
to design a plan which would utilize Ram Jack helical piles to support
the new concrete foundation with steel girders extending to the third
fl oor. B-Level, LTD., a franchise within the Ram Jack network, would
be the team to install the Ram Jack helical piles based on the plans designed
by the partnering engineering teams. Two elevator pits would need to be
excavated in the basement, requiring Ram Jack helical piles to be installed
in order to support the foundation of the structure.
OUTCOME
During preparation for installation, concerns arose on how equipment would
fi t in the basement to properly torque the piles into place. The solution
was to use a Toro Dingo which has the capability of moving downstairs
into the basement. While this solved one issue, it brought about another.
With increased carbon dioxide levels presented by the equipment, air exchangers
were required to complete the project. In the end, a customized attachment
had to be built to hold the driver and to install the piles at the proper
angle as specifi ed by engineering. This was a long project as work was
required to be installed in segments to allow other contractors involved
in the project to complete their phases of work. The successful installation
was completed once the last piles were installed to support the new addition
to the structure.
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