Geotechnics

Expert witness services

Geotechnical issues underlie many contractual claims, and are often of key importance in the resolution of arbitration and litigation proceedings. A number of our senior geotechnical specialists have as acted as Expert Witnesses and given evidence at arbitration and litigation hearings, at Planning Inquiries and at Parliamentary Committees. CVs of staff with expertise appropriate to particular geotechnical issues can be supplied on request.

Issues that Halcrow’s geotechnical specialists have advised on include:

highways

	construction costs arising from geotechnical factors
	damage to properties adjacent to construction and ground investigation sites
	classification of excavated materials for payment purposes

slopes and landslides

	construction procedures and risks
	influence of coal mining on landslide stability
	coastal cliff stability
	stability of spoil heaps, quarry and opencast mine slopes
	embankment failures
	causes and corrective measures
	effect of highway construction on pre-existing landslide

contamination remediation

prospective remediation costs

groundwater

	effects of rising groundwater on buildings, utilities’ installations and other facilities
	hydrogeological effects of developing a large opencast coal site

foundations

	power station foundation failure
	piling
	ground settlement and undermining
	adequacy of site investigation

tunnels

	ground conditions affecting a thrust bored bridge under a railway line
	support failures in rock tunnels
	classification of excavated materials for payment purposes
	Failure of landfill lining system during construction
	Damage to residential property by tree roots and ground desiccation
	Hard rock quantities in open cast mine