AGS Magazine May 2022

May 2022

SUSTAINABLE SHALLOW FOUNDATION DESIGN

A look at how Servicability Limit State and Shallow Foundation Design can help the geotechnical and geoenvironmental sector to meet Net Zero targets

Image Credit: Raul Perulero Serrano (Coffey Geotechnics UK Ltd.) & Bowmer + Kirkland AGS ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2022

DRIVING AT WORK: THE GUIDELINES

CONFIRMATION OF RELEASE OF AGS 4.1.1

The first speakers for this year's conference are revealed

An examination of the current guidelines for driving at work

All the latest information on the AGS data transfer format including latest changes

ABOUT THE AGS

Chair’s Foreword Welcome to the May issue of the AGS Magazine and thanks to all for their contributions. I have been impressed with the quality of the photographs submitted for our latest competition, and congratulations go to the winner and runners-up featured in this edition. The winning image will adorn our much anticipated 2022 update to the valuable AGS Loss Prevention Guidance.

Our working groups and committees have been hard at work producing articles and publications, and also putting together a programme of informative events for the rest of 2022. We aim to maintain a mixture of faceto-face and on-line formats so that as many members and guests as possible can benefit. The emphasis of our next series later this month is environmental sustainability in brownfield regeneration.

Read on for interesting articles, including a very useful overview of the new BS 8661 geotextile specification guidance and, to continue the focus on sustainability, we feature an article about carbon footprint in shallow foundation design. We also present an update on the activities of our Geotechnical Working Group and a Q&A session with Honorary AGS Member Roger Clark on his career.

2

Magazine

Keep a look out for exciting updates from AGS, such as the launch of data transfer format 4.1.1, and from our colleagues in Ground Forum, particularly on the undergraduate mentoring programme.

We recognise that, as we start to travel more for work and leisure, we are not always available at our computers to catch the AGS on-line seminars, which is why we make many of them available as recordings via the AGS website for retrospective viewing at your convenience.

On the travel theme, this edition highlights the safety aspects of driving for work in a thought-provoking piece. Take care out there, all!

We are always on the lookout for additional, informative content for the magazine, so if you have a case study or technical article that you think the wider geotechnical and geoenvironmental public would find beneficial, please do get in touch.

We would be interested in your feedback on the magazine and our future plans. Please contact ags@ags.org.uk if you have any comments.

The Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists (AGS) is a not-for-profit trade association established to improve the profile and quality of geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering.

The membership comprises UK organisations and individuals having a common interest in the business of ground investigation, geotechnics, geoenvironmental engineering, engineering geology, geochemistry, hydrogeology, and other related disciplines.

EDITORIAL BOARD Sally Hudson, AGS Chair Caroline Kratz, Forum Court Associates (FCA) Katie Kennedy, FCA Julian Lovell, Equipe Group Calum Spires, Equipe Group David Entwisle, BGS Chris Vincett, Hydrock Lauren Hunt, Arcadis Adam Latimer, Ian Farmer Associates Dimitris Xirouchakis, Structural Soils Emma Anderson, HaskoningDHV UK Jonathan Gammon, Geotechnical Observations EDITORIAL STORY If you have a news story or event which you’d like to tell our editorial team about, please contact the AGS on 020 8658 8212 or ags@ags.org.uk. Please note that articles should act as opinion pieces and not directly advertise a company. The AGS is under no obligation to feature articles or events received.

CONTACT US AGS Forum Court, Office 2FF, Saphir House, 5 Jubilee Way, Faversham, Kent, ME13 8GD  ags@ags.org.uk  020 8658 8212  Association of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental Specialists

Sally Hudson AGS Chair

 @agsgeotech www.ags.org.uk

Inside this month’s issue

FEATURE PAGE 30



Driving at work: The guidelines

In 2020, a government task force estimated that a third of all road traffic accidents involve someone at work.

COVER STORY Yet the rules on drivers’ hours, vehicle weights and PAGE 24  licence requirements can be difficult to apply to Challenging conservative specifics within your fleet. This article discusses approaches to design how the ground investigation industry fits into the work to tackle the Net national legislation and how to ensure you and Zero target issue. your colleagues are adhering to the law.

RELEASE OF AGS 4.1.1 PAGE 34  An update on all of the latest changes in the most recent AGS data transfer format release.

BS8661 GEOTEXTILES: GUIDANCE FOR SPECIFICATION PAGE 36  Opinion on BSI's recent publication of guidance.

Q&A: ROGER CLARK PAGE 40  The AGS Magazine conducts a Q & A with Roger Clark of Marlowclark Consulting.

MORE INSIDE PAGE 5



News in Short: Incl. upcoming AGS Events

PAGE 16



Webinar Update: Brownfield Regeneration

PAGE 46



Standards Update April 2022

May 2022

3

H O STE D

E XCLU SI V E LY

AT

The UK geotechnical industry’s premier event.

Whether you are a Client looking for assistance with your latest project, a Consultant looking to establish new working relationships, a Contractor in need of a platform to discuss your specialist services, or a Supplier with a new product to promote, Geotechnica is the place to achieve your goals.

Build business relationships, introduce new products, stay up-to-date with all of the latest industry developments.

Communicate. Promote. Network. Learn.

FREE TO ATTEND 6TH & 7TH JULY 2022 HOSTED BY

4

Magazine

For more information, get in touch via info@geotechnica.co.uk or visit www.geotechnica.co.uk ORGANISED BY

SUPPORTED BY

News in Short AGS Annual Conference 2022 The AGS is pleased to announce that their Annual Conference 2022 will be taking place on Wednesday 6th July 2022 at the Warwickshire Event Centre, just outside of Leamington Spa. The AGS Conference will be held on the first day of Geotechnica and is free to attend for all AGS members and non-members. This full day networking event will see guest speakers present on a wide variety of key industry topics, and short presentations from each of the AGS Working Group Leaders.

Speakers confirmed to date include, Î Keynote: Professor Dave Petley (Vice-President (Innovation) at University of Sheffield) Î Basil Ogunmakin (Coffey Geotechnics) Î Steve Wilson (Technical Director at The Environmental Protection Group) Î Vicky Gutteridge (The Ollie Foundation) Î Dr Nick Koor (Reader in Geological Engineering, University of Portsmouth (School of the Environment, Geography and Geoscience)).

Full details will be announced in due course. Please click here to register your attendance for the conference.

May 2022

5

News in Short AGS Live and Virtual Events 2022 Sustainability in the delivery of Brownfield Regeneration (webinar series) Î

•

Î Time: 11am (approx. 2 hour duration) Î Presentations: Î The Environment Act – Targets, Consultations and Guidance, presented

by Claire Petricca-Riding, (Partner and National Head of Planning and Environmental Law at Irwin Mitchell LLP)

Sustainability in the Delivery of Brownfield Regeneration: Sustainable Remediation Solutions

Î BNG and ENG for Remediation Sites, presented by Jon Davies, (Director at RSK Biocensus / RSK Wilding)

Î Date: Tuesday 17th May

Î What Tools are Now Available When Considering Sustainability? presented

6

Magazine

by Nicola Harries, (Technical Director at CL:AIRE) Î

Sustainability in the Delivery of Brownfield Regeneration: Sustainable Management of Soils

Î

Fee: FOC to attend

Î

Sponsorship: Headline and Associate packages available

AGS Annual Conference (live event)

Î Date: Thursday 26th May

Î

Date: Wednesday 6th July

Î Time: 11am (approx. 2 hour duration)

Î

Time: 9am – 4pm

Î Presentations:

Î

Location: Geotechnica, Warwickshire Event Centre, Leamington Spa

Î

Confirmed speakers: Professor Dave Petley, (Vice-President (Innovation) at University of Sheffield), Basil Ogunmakin (Coffey Geotechnics), Steve Wilson, (Technical Director at The Environmental Protection Group) and Dr Nick Koor (Reader in Geological Engineering, University of Portsmouth (School of the Environment, Geography and Geoscience)).

Î Sustainable Soils Management & the future of Soils Reuse, presented

by Nicholas Willenbrock (Manager – Definition of Waste: Development Industry Code of Practice at CL:AIRE) and Graeme Duggan (Soil Health Policy Advisor at DEFRA)

Î Legal Responsibilities and the Cost of Getting it Wrong, presented by Anna Willets (Partner at Gunnercooke LLP) and Samantha Riggs (Specialist Environmental Î and Regulatory Defence Barrister at 25 Bedford Row) Î Sustainability, Standards and Best Practice presented by Will Fardon (Technical Director at Chemtech Environmental) and Chris Swainston (Principal Environmental Consultant at Soils) Î

Î

Fee: £25 for AGS members or £30 for non-AGS members for one webinar.

Alternatively, AGS members can attend both webinars for £45 and non-AGS members can attend both webinars for £55. Prices exclude VAT. Sponsorship: Headline and Associate packages available

The New Yellow Book – UK Specification for Ground Investigation (free webinar) Î

Date: 23rd June 2022

Î

Time: 11am (approx. 1.5 hour duration)

Î

Fee: FOC to attend for both AGS members and non-AGS members. Click here to register.

Full details to be released in due course

Pressuremeter Testing (webinar) Î

Date: October TBC

Î

Fee: FOC

Î

Sponsorship: Headline and Associate packages available

Î

Full details to be released in due course

The Geotechnical Data Conference (live event) Î

Date: Thursday 1st December

Î

Location: The Burlington Hotel, Birmingham

Î

Sponsorship: Packages can be viewed HERE.

Î

Full details to be released in due course

May 2022

7

The top three AGS publications in the last month 1. AGS Guidance on Waste Classification for Soils - A Practitioners Guide 2. AGS Guidance: Description of Anthropogenic Materials – A Practitioners’ Guide 3. Comment on the approach for classifying sites into green, yellow or red To download the publications for free; click here.

Loss Prevention Alert 71 – Duty to Warn on a Construction Project – Managing the Risk In the January 2022 issue of the AGS Magazine, there was an article featured by Julian Lovell and Jon Rayner on the topic of ‘Managing Risk within Ground Investigation (machinery)’.

In relation to this article, the AGS Loss Prevention Working Group would like to bring

to readers’ attention the AGS publication ‘Loss Prevention Alert 71: Duty to Warn on a Construction Project – Managing the Risk’.

This LPA discusses various situations on site in which a duty to warn has or has not been held to arise where construction operations may cause serious harm to people or significant damage to property. This duty may arise either as a result of an express term in the contract, or the implied duty to exercise reasonable care and skill and the concurrent duty of care in tort.

LPA 71 can be downloaded from the AGS website here, and the January 2022 AGS magazine here.

Breaking Ground Podcasts: New Episodes Now Live Breaking Ground, a podcast collaboration between Ground Engineering magazine and the Ground Forum, have released three new episodes available for free listening: Steve Thorpe and Conrad Stewart on the Big Borehole Dig Vicky Gutteridge and Jim Gelder Talk Mental Health Geophysics Takes to the Skies

Î Î Î

Hosted by Steve Hadley, Breaking Ground covers a wide range of ground engineering related topics. Key themes include sustainability, design, commerce, diversity, health and safety, welfare, construction techniques, education, and industry challenges. Episodes also profile industry members careers within the context of discussing industry issues, construction techniques and case studies.

Breaking Ground is available for free download on channels including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. To listen to the podcast, click HERE. For further information on the podcast or for podcast sponsorship opportunities please email gforum@ground-forum.org.uk.

8

Magazine

suggested improvements for the future with discussion from a panel of experts.

There will also be unique insight from major infrastructure asset owners on their vision of the importance and use of data in large organisations both now and in the future.

Further information on speakers and presentations will be released in due course.

The AGS is pleased to announce The Geotechnical Data Conference 2022 will be taking place on Thursday 1st December 2022 at The Burlington Hotel in Birmingham.

To register your place, contact ags@ags.org.uk.

SPONSORSHIP

The AGS has a range of sponsorship packages available for this event, each offering a varying This year’s conference presents current level of exposure. Sponsorship packages start developments and investigates the future of from just £500 and provide an affordable way ‘AGS Electronic Transfer of Geotechnical and to reach a worldwide audience across the AGS Geoenvironmental Data (AGS 4.1.1)’, a new open- Magazine, our database of over 4500 delegates, source Validator and formally releases AGSi our social media channels and of course, during the AGS’ ground modelling transfer format. the event itself.

Also included is a review of the AGS Data Management Working Group’s input into the Packages can be viewed in full HERE. new ‘UK Specification for Ground Investigation, If you’d like to confirm your support please Edition 3’ (Yellow Book) and the updated contact Caroline Kratz on ags@ags.org.uk requirements for data transfer/sharing. before Friday 14th October. Please note that We will be welcoming questions from attendees packages are limited and are offered on a first (submitted in advance) on the overall AGS Data come, first served basis.

Format ‘experience’, lessons learned, irritations, May 2022

9

Ground Forum Undergraduate Mentoring Programme 2022/23 The Ground Forum Undergraduate Mentoring Programme is currently in its second year and is in the process of reaching out to students for the 2022/23 intake.

The aim of the programme is to support the goal of increasing the number of currently underrepresented groups within the industry, as well as retain those already within it. The programme is financially funded and supported by members of the Ground Forum including AGS, FPS, BDA, PJA, British Geotechnical Association, EGGS, IGS UK, IOM3, GSHPA, British Geomembrane Association, British Geophysical Association and NSGG. Universities involved in the current intake include University of Portsmouth, University of Hertfordshire, University of Bradford, Coventry University, Loughborough University, Imperial College London, Trinity College, Dublin and University of Plymouth.

10

Magazine

The Ground Forum is looking to reach out to further universities by promoting the Undergarduate Mentoring Programme to universities through guest lectures.

The current intake of students are studying qualifications including Civil Engineering, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Civil & Structural Engineering, Architectural Engineering, Engineering Geology & Geotechnics, Geology, Palaeontology and Physical Geography & Geology from 1st year to postgraduate.

The programme involves a student being matched with a mentor for the duration of the programme, two workshops on interview and CV skills, a LinkedIn group to communicate with other mentors and mentees and a two week work experience placement.

If you are a student and would be interested in joining the programme for the 2022/23 intake, please click here or scan the QR code on the flyer for the application form below.

If you provide guest lectures in universities and would like to promote the programme to students, please email gforum@ground-forum. org.uk for further details and a copy of the flyer.

Lab in operation 24/7

i2 Analytical comprehensive testing services: +44 (0)1923 225404 reception@i2analytical.com

Dedicated logistics fleet

Customer service focused

Fastest growing & Most Innovative Lab

• Chemical Analysis of Water & Soil • Site Services & In-Situ Analysis • Geotechnical & Construction materials testing • Air, Vapour & Particulates Analysis

www.i2analytical.com

Croxley Green Business Park, 7 Woodshots Mdw, Watford WD18 8YS

May 2022

11

News in Short AGS Loss Prevention Guidance Photography Competition – The Results In January 2022, the AGS launched their third photography competition, this time to source a suitable cover for the 2022 edition of the AGS Loss Prevention Guidance.

49 entries were submitted, each covering a range of topics across the geotechnical and geoenvironmental sector including site work, landscape imagery and machinery shots.

AGS Loss Prevention Working Group Leader, Hugh Mallett, along with five members of the Loss Prevention WG, Jo Strange, Peter Plumpton,

WINNING IMAGE Kaya Dearnley, SOCOTEC Image description: A Comacchio 205 positioned on a beach groyne in Bournemouth. It was taken as the sun was beginning to set over the sea after a long day of drilling.

12

Magazine

Sam Bevins, Syd Pycroft and Chris Hoskins took on the challenging task to judge the images by scoring across five criteria; Î

Originality

Î

Composition

Î

Colour, Lighting, Exposure and Focus

Î

Overall Impression, Impact and Visual Appeal

Î

Suitability for Loss Prevention Guidance

Four images were shortlisted, and we’re pleased to announce that Kaya Dearnley of SOCOTEC was the overall winner of the competition and won a luxury Fortnum and Mason Hamper.

Our three runners up, who each won a bottle of Champagne are Hope Murray-Golas (Concept Engineering Consultants), Simon Ruddlesden (Ruddlesden Geotechnical) and Kevin Privett.

FIRST RUNNER UP Hope Murray-Golas, Concept Engineering Consultants Image description: Offshore wireline rotary drilling for a new airport scheme.

SECOND RUNNER UP Simon Ruddlesden, Ruddlesden Geotechnical

THIRD RUNNER UP Kevin Privett Image description: On the former A625 road crossing Mam Tor landslip in Derbyshire.

The AGS would like to thank all those who took the time to enter the competition. The overall standard of entries was extremely high, and the judging panel found the task challenging in shortlisting the top four entries.

May 2022

13

SiLC Affiliate Scheme Video We’ve made it; a 15 minute video to promote the SiLC Affiliate Scheme, which you can watch at https://www.silc.org.uk/affiliate-scheme.

We had a very small budget to make this, but individual SiLCs have done a grand job in sending in video clips recorded during the covid pandemic lockdown using their mobile phones and telling us why they get excited about contaminated land, why they came into the profession and why they became a SiLC and NQMS SQP. Watch it and see what they have to say. None of the responses were scripted. Each contributer was sent a short list of questions and whatever they say is in their own words.

The contributers also provided the interesting photographs that you will see in the video.

The video is mainly directed at young people, particularly undergraduates or graduates, with the primary purpose of encouraging them to look at the geoenvironmental industry as a career path but also, of course, to join the Affiliate Scheme, become chartered and in due course become a SiLC. However, others who are more advanced in their careers can also join and many have so far done so.

All the contributers to this video show that they are confident in the profession they have chosen and talk with such contagious enthusiasm that ‘who would not want to join them’ in such a rewarding career. They talk with passion about the variety of work that they get involved in, ‘never a dull moment’ as they say, and the variety of disciplines with which they interact. As Ian says, this is an industry with a wide range of specialist skill sets with no one degree or expertise area defining the contaminated land and brownfield sector. Lucy also mentions all the countries around the World that she has worked in as a geoenvironmental specialist as well as across 14

Magazine

the UK, saying, I travel and get paid for it, so who wouldn’t enjoy that?

Sarah, who is the only one in the video who is not yet a SiLC, but aspires to be one, is really enthusiast about playing her part in the clean up and return to productive use of derelict, contaminated and unsightly sites. Ian, Eleanor and James also talk about maximising the reuse of brownfield sites, making the best use of our overall limited land supply and turning contaminated and derelict sites into beneficial use for communities and at the same time helping to protect our countryside and green spaces against increasing pressure for development.

Danny comments that being a SiLC is a mark of esteem, is part of career development and builds confidence in his own ability. James says that it reflects that you have been assessed by your peers in a thorough and competent manner and you really do deserve to be considered a competent professional.

Sarah believes that it helps when dealing with clients as it is a means of demonstrating your credentials and builds confidence that sound advice will be given. Lucy notes that being a SiLC and SQP helps to increase professionalism in our industry by amongst other things being tansparent in identifying the uncertainties

in our work and the implications of our conclusions. Improving quality has to be the objective of everyone in our industry and these schemes are part of this process to the benefit of clients, regulators and anyone else with an interest in brownfield regeneration. As indicated

by Simon, it is win-win all round.

The SiLC Affiliate Scheme was launched in 2018 and since then both graduates and those more advanced in their careers have joined. They benefit from access to an ‘adviser’ provided by their chosen professional body as they work towards chartership. Once they attain their chartership they have access to a ‘mentor’ provided by SiLC as they work towards SiLC Registration. Some who are already chartered have also joined.

This diagram shows the relationship between the Affiliate Scheme, the National Brownfield Skills Framework (NBSF, which can be found on the SiLC website and is referred to in the NQMS) and the stages at which the adviser and mentor provide support. An applicant can join the scheme at any stage.

professional body, the do’s and don’ts and the level of experience required to apply for chartership. They will be familiar with the requirements of their professional body and how this fits into the SiLC programme, but will not necessarily be a SiLC. The Mentor is a SiLC who is familiar with the level of expertise and experience needed to take the SiLC exam and give advice on how best to fill any gaps. This is an ongoing process with reference to the NBSF, until the candidate is ready to take the SiLC/SQP exam. They can also advise on some of the key aspects that the assessors will be looking for at interview.

This scheme is for those who have a genuine interest in the brownfield land sector, are graduate members (or the equivalent) of one of the qualifying professional bodies, are aiming to become chartered and to join the SiLC Register and have a commitment to the code of conduct of their chosen professional body and that of SiLC. If this is for you or someone in your team, then visit https://www.silc.org.uk and find out more.

The Advisor provides guidance on gaining chartership with the candidates chosen May 2022

15

AG S W E BI NAR Sustainability in the Delivery of Brownfield Regeneration is a webinar series developed by the AGS Contaminated Land and Laboratories Working Groups.

Taking place over two dates (17th May and 26th May), this two-part CPD virtual series will examine some of the more recent policy changes that will increasingly influence how sustainable brownfield development is delivered in the UK. This will include the provision of policy updates, their associated opportunities

Î Î Î Î

NEWS & UPCOMING EVENTS and legal perspectives on responsibilities and risk. The series will also present awareness of the tools available to assist decision making to sustainable remediation options and waste classification.

Each of the two webinars will be two hours long and will feature three influential and leading UK speakers. These presentations will be followed by an opportunity for audience questions to the expert group.

Date: Tuesday 17th May Time: 11am – 1pm Cost: £25 for AGS members or £30 for non-members. Prices exclude VAT. Register for both webinars for a reduced rate of £40 for AGS members or £45 for nonmembers. Prices exclude VAT

Sustainability in the Delivery of Brownfield Regeneration: Sustainable Remediation Solutions, is the first webinar in this series. In this session we will introduce the Environment Act 2021 and the now mandatory 10% biodiversity net gain (BNG) target for developments in England. We will discuss how it may profoundly alter the economics of site remediation, how developers may leverage opportunities to achieve BNG through development and how to maximise natural capital benefits in remediation. We will then take a tour of some of the tools currently available in the UK to support the decision-making journey and the identification of sustainable remediation solutions.

Presentations The Environment Act – Targets, Consultations and Guidance Claire Petricca-Riding, Partner and National Head of Planning and Environmental Law Irwin Mitchell LLP This seminar will provide you with a guide of the Environment Act 2021 and how it will affect the development sector. We will discuss the targets to be released, the recent consultations and the setup of the Office of Environmental Protection and how all of this fits in with the levelling up strategy.

16

Magazine

Image credit: Alan Beattie

Biodiversity Net Gain and Environmental Net Gain for Remediation Sites Jon Davies, Director at RSK Biocensus / RSK Wilding The remediation of contaminated sites, and the productive reuse of marginal, derelict and vacant land, is often focused solely on built development or a return to agriculture. This is the result of the traditional approaches to valuing land, which prioritises built / manufactured capital over natural or social capital. The Global Post-2020 Biodiversity Framework, to be signed by political leaders around the world at COP15 in Kunming, China this year, heralds a new approach to dealing with natural resources and sets out a vision for a world living in harmony with nature. As governments around the world seek to make the targets emerging from COP15, and COP26, into a strong, measured and prioritised set of actions. It is clear that we all need to change the way we act, think and measure success. Part of this is the recognition of land as a limited resource and ensuring that our demands on land and the natural environment are sustainable. In this context, we need to be able to understand the best end use of remediated sites, which may not always be built development. In this presentation, Jon will explore Biodiversity Net Gain and Environmental Net Gain and specifically the tools and techniques available for identifying, mapping, quantifying and monetising biodiversity and other natural capital, which can help to shape the right outcomes for remediation projects. Green end uses of land, which deliver ecosystem service benefits, can be a financially viable alternative, particularly in the light of developing markets for carbon and biodiversity offsets.

What tools are now available when considering sustainability?

Nicola Harries, Technical Director at CL:AIRE The presentation will introduce the concept of Sustainable Management Practices, showing how companies can start to improve sustainable thinking, decision-making and action across all land contamination activities.You will be provided with a whistle stop tour of some of the different tools that are now available to carry out a sustainability assessment.

May 2022

17

Î Î Î Î

Date: Thursday 26th May Time: 11am – 1pm Cost: £25 for AGS members or £30 for non-members. Prices exclude VAT. Register for both webinars for a reduced rate of £40 for AGS members or £45 for nonmembers. Prices exclude VAT

Presentations Sustainable Soils Management & the future of Soils Reuse Nicholas Willenbrock, Manager - Definition of Waste: Development Industry Code of Practice at CL:AIRE and Graeme Duggan, Soil Health Policy Advisor at DEFRA What is the current state of play and what does industry need to achieve a circular economy of soils? What are the current sustainability goals within current waste regulation and policy frameworks. What changes can we make to waste management to incentivise the sustainable re-use of soil and waste materials?

Legal Responsibilities and the Cost of Getting it Wrong Anna Willets (Partner at gunnercooke LLP) and Samantha Riggs (Specialist Environmental and Regulatory Defence Barrister at 25 Bedford Row) This presentation will outline legal responsibilities/liabilities and regulatory guidance relating to: Î

Waste definition and classification (including applying Waste Acceptance Criteria – WAC) and the consequences of getting it wrong

Î

Resources Framework, Definition of Waste Service & self-assessment

Î

Duty of care and how you can mitigate your risks

Î

HMRC, Landfill Tax Regimes and associated risks of non-compliance

Î

Legal barriers to the circular economy and how they can be overcome

Sustainability, Standards and Best Practice Will Fardon (Quality and Projects Director at Eurofins) and Chris Swainston (Principal Environmental Consultant at Soils) This presentation will discuss the role of guidance and formal standards in driving not only best practice and fit for purpose data, but also sustainable solutions in contaminated land investigation.

Sponsorship opportunities for this webinar series can be viewed HERE. For further information on the Sustainability in the Delivery of Brownfield Regeneration webinar series please email ags@ags.org.uk

18

Magazine

Since our first webinar in July 2020, our virtual event programme has been a huge success with 5,000+ delegates registering to attend from countries across the globe. We frequently have attendees from USA, Canada, Hong Kong, Australia, Italy and UAE to name but a few, and sponsorship provides a fantastic opportunity to put your company and its initiatives in front of a worldwide audience.

The AGS have both Headline and Associate sponsorship packages available for all webinars in 2022. Packages are limited, however, bespoke packages can be developed with companies (subject to space) to suit all budgets.

Please see package details below:

HEADLINE SPONSOR

ASSOCIATE SPONSOR

*one package available per webinar

*10 packages available per webinar

Price: £800 (members) or £1,100 (nonmembers) Î Company website link or pop-up promotion to feature during the live webinar Î Large logo on sponsor slide during the webinar Î Company mention during webinar opening and closing address Î Logo and overview in the event program Î Company Q&A feature in AGS Magazine (5,440 subscribers) Î Full page advert in AGS Magazine (worth £400) Î Two complementary event registrations (worth up to £180) Î Company logo and overview featured on the webinar registration page Î Logo featured on promotional marketing emails Î Company logo and overview on the AGS’ Twitter page (3,208 followers) Î Company logo and overview on the AGS’ LinkedIn page (5,730 followers) Î Company logo featured on replay email campaigns Î Company inclusion in a follow up article in AGS Magazine (5,440 subscribers)

Price: £350 (members) or £650 (nonmembers) Î Î Î Î Î Î Î Î Î Î Î

Logo on sponsor slide during the webinar Logo and overview in the event program Company mention during webinar opening & closing address Logo featured in promotional marketing emails Company directory insert in AGS Magazine, worth £50 (5,440 subscribers) One complementary webinar registration (worth up to £90) Company logo and overview on the AGS’ Twitter page (3,208 followers) Company logo and overview on the AGS’ LinkedIn page (5,730 followers) Company mention in a follow up article in AGS Magazine (5,440 subscribers) Company overview on the AGS website Company logo featured on replay email campaigns

All prices exclude VAT. If your company would like to support any AGS webinars or if you’d like any further information on the events, please contact Caroline Kratz on ags@ags.org.uk.

May 2022

19

AG S W E BI NAR

NEWS & UPCOMING EVENTS

Webinar Replays: Available on Demand The AGS currently has 14 webinar replays, available for on-demand viewing on www. ags.org.uk. Webinar topics include our highly successful Sample Disturbance: What is it?, Improving Company Performance through Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, AGS 4.1, AGSi, the Standard Penetration Test, Critical Links in Ground Engineering and many more.

might build to be a disturbance classification.

To view our entire back catalogue, click HERE, visit the Webinar Archive section on the AGS website or take a look at some of our more recent topics below:

AGS (HK) Technical Seminar – Instrumentation and Monitoring: A Critical Link in Ground Engineering

The Development of a Degree Apprenticeship in Geoscience

Cost: FOC

Cost: FOC Webinar Overview: This webinar replay aims to inform about the decline in students enrolling in geoscience courses at university and update on the progress with the Degree Apprenticeship in Geoscience Speakers: Speakers include Sally Hudson (AGS Chair and Regional Director at Coffey Geotechnics Limited), Dr Nick Koor (Reader in Geological Engineering, University of Portsmouth (School of the Environment, Geography and Geoscience)) and Paul Roberts (Regional Director at AECOM).

Speakers: Speakers include Sally Hudson (AGS Chair and Regional Manager & Associate at Coffey Geotechnics Limited), David Norbury (Director at David Norbury Ltd), John J M Powell (Technical Adviser at Geolabs Limited) and Tom Lunne (Expert Adviser at Norwegian Geotechnical Institute).

Webinar Overview: This webinar recording (completed for AGS Hong Kong) is a free summary of the presentations given in the AGS’ popular November 2020 webinar, Critical Links in Ground Engineering.

Speaker: Jonathan Gammon (Non-Executive Director and Advisor at Geotechnical Observations Limited and AGS I&M Working Group Leader)

Geotechnical Engineering in a Net Zero Carbon World Cost: FOC

Cost: FOC

Webinar Overview: This free webinar has been designed to inform and inspire ground engineering practitioners across the industry to meet the net zero carbon challenge that has been set by the UK government.

Webinar Overview: This webinar replay aims to stimulate a discussion and start a process whereby we can begin to decide on factors that

Speakers: Speakers include Dr John Henry Looney (Director, Visiting Fellow, and Hon Professor at Sustainable Direction Ltd,

Sample Disturbance: What is it?

20

Magazine

University of Bristol and the University of Nottingham), Stephen Lawrence West (Director, ground engineering at Ramboll), Natalia Fernandez (Associate Director at Ramboll) and Tony Suckling (Director at A-squared Studio Engineers Ltd and A2 Site Investigation Ltd).

Laboratory Assessment and Sampling Practice Cost: £25 for AGS members or £30 for non-AGS members Webinar Overview: This webinar discusses various aspects of sample submission, discussing best practice and guidance for how

The AGS webinar on The Development of a Degree Apprenticeship took place on 23rd March 2022. 248 people registered to attend the webinar and 90% of attendees would recommend the webinar.

This webinar saw Dr Nick Koor (Reader in Geological Engineering, University of Portsmouth (School of the Environment, Geography and Geoscience)) and Paul Roberts (Regional Director at AECOM) discuss the worrying trend of how the number of students enrolling on Geoscience courses at university has declined over the past six years. The webinar was chaired by AGS Chair, Sally Hudson.

to get the most from the laboratory, the testing and some pitfalls to avoid.

Speakers: This webinar is hosted by AGS Chair, Sally Hudson (Regional Manager at Coffey Geotechnics Limited). Speakers include Will Fardon (Technical Sales and Training Manager at i2 Analytical), Geraint Williams (Associate at ALS) and Dr John J M Powell (Technical Advisor at Geolabs Limited).

Please note: Speaker information correct at the time of the webinars.

The event also covered the development of a Degree Apprenticeship in Geoscience. This was spearheaded by UGUK at a kick-off meeting in November 2021. A Trailblazer Group for the Degree Apprenticeship in Geoscience has now been formed and is being chaired by Paul Roberts. The group are currently in the occupation proposal stage, with the course likely to start in 2024.

If you missed this webinar, the replay is now live and available for view on the AGS website for free. Click HERE to view the replay and download the speaker presentations and file handouts.

May 2022

21

Advertorial from Platinum Sponsors:

Exploring Sample Disturbance SOCOTEC, platinum sponsors for the AGS webinar DO UNDISTURBED SAMPLES EXIST? Many specifications now ask for Class 1 samples. While it is easy to write this into a specification, in many cases, it is asking for something that is poorly defined, and may even be impossible to obtain in certain ground conditions.

The recent AGS webinar provided an excellent overview of the effects and nature of sample disturbance. With presentations from David Norbury, John Powell and Tom Lunne, it considered both the causes of disturbance and its effects. All three speakers offered evidence of how test results can be affected by disturbance, using comparisons of test results implementing different sampling techniques and in-situ testing methods. The webinar highlighted the importance of the sampling method and technical expertise required to obtain the highest possible quality of sample in any particular soil type.

This webinar, together with new guidance given in the recently published BS EN ISO 225475 -1:2021, has gone some way to clarifying the meaning of the sample category and the relationship with quality class. Key to this relationship is the statement that: “The best practices that may be followed by drilling for each of the five sample categories can never guarantee that a certain quality class is obtained, as many factors can cause soil disturbance that are beyond the influence of drilling.” (BS EN ISO 224751:2021 Annex H).

DRILLING AND SAMPLING TECHNIQUES

One of the key points that influences the sample quality is the drilling and sampling technique. While this does not guarantee the sample quality class, the best results can only be obtained by using the correct method of drilling, with skilled operatives and good equipment. It is incumbent on the designer to ensure that the methods used to provide parameters for the design are appropriate. This includes ensuring that the contractors engaged in the delivery of this information employ qualified drilling staff to plan boreholes, with rigs that are fully serviced, well equipped and with appropriate compliance certification. By ensuring this level of quality, the designer will ensure the best chance of obtaining the highest quality samples and test results.

However, as the speakers demonstrated, while this is the main source of disturbance, much can go wrong once the samples are out of the ground. Firstly, the sample must be preserved free from drill fluid and sealed as quickly as possible to prevent the loss of water content. Storage and transportation should be carried out in a controlled manner, ensuring the sample is handled with care. They should also avoid shocks, vibration, temperature fluctuations and excessive highs or lows of temperature.

Miles Martin, principal engineer, said: “At SOCOTEC, we pride ourselves in providing high quality samples to the laboratory, and we train all of our site engineers in the correct handling of samples, as well as logging them to BS 5930.

This requires a three-day course run by our expert technical team, which ensures that the descriptions they provide are accurate and consistent. We believe a detailed description is absolutely essential to enable the specifier to understand the nature of the samples obtained, and assess their quality.”

It is clear from the three presentations delivered within the webinar that it takes more than great drilling technique and skilled operators to provide good quality samples. While in some soils and ground conditions, it is just not possible to obtain a Class 1 sample, employing a good team and excellent technical expertise will ensure that the best possible outcome can be achieved.

INTERPRETING BS EN 22475 – 1: 2021 The latest version of BS EN 22475 -1: 2021 now includes Annex H, sample quality assessment, and within this guidance Tables H3 and H4 provide a qualitative assessment of both rotary core samples and driven tube samples. The tables are primarily intended for use in soils, although Table H3 may be applied to weak rocks.

The described process enables the logger to identify features that can be used as indicators of the quality class of a particular sample. The annex also points out that a sample class cannot improve following sampling.

The assessment of tube sample quality points out that the samples obtained using dynamic sampling methods (often termed ‘windowless samples’) are of quality Class 2 at best (even though these may be obtained in liners, therefore giving the impression of an ‘undisturbed’ sample). It is perhaps also useful to note that sonic drilling is defined as a sampling category D (possibly C in some fine soils) and that the highest sample quality such methods will allow is between Class 3 and 5.

The site investigation process of sampling and testing is complex, and each investigation should be treated as a piece of research for a particular location and a specific purpose. There are many different methods which can be adopted to deliver parameters for design.

The decisions on the methods required for a particular project are often clouded by price and speed.

ENSURING HIGH QUALITY SITE INVESTIGATIONS However, the end product – the structure – is expected to last for many decades with no ill effect. Thus, perhaps the most important factors should not be price or speed, but how much confidence can be put on the methods used and, ultimately, the parameters that will inform the design.

To provide a service of quality and employ well-trained people comes at a price, but this is a small sacrifice to make. When it provides quality information and a greater understanding of the ground we are working with, it is common sense.

This is not a new concept, so perhaps we should take heed of what has gone before: “…You will pay for a ground investigation whether you have one or not. You are likely to pay considerably more if you do not, or if it is inadequately designed executed or interpreted.”

Littlejohn et al 1994.

Even this relatively recent quote (in geological terms) was a century after the following observation: “The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot – it cannot be done.

If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run, and if you do that, you would have had enough to pay for something better.”

John Ruskin, 19th Century Therefore, rather than ask whether undisturbed samples exist, perhaps we should be asking ourselves what we need to do to ensure that the parameters we are using are the best at our disposal? Doing so will enable us to feel confident that the design being conducted is suitably informed.

“Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skilful execution.”

– William A. Foster

SOCOTEC is the UK’s leading partner for testing, inspection and certification services, with tailored services in Infrastructure, Environment & Safety, Environmental Science, Building and Real Estate. As the UK’s market-leading provider of site investigations, SOCOTEC draws on over 80 years’ experience to accurately investigate, test and advise on ground, geological and structural conditions.

To find out more about how SOCOTEC can support you,contact us on 0845 603 2112 email salesuk@socotec.com or visit www.socotec.co.uk

Image Credit: Raul Perulero Serrano (Coffey Geotechnics UK Ltd.) & Bowmer + Kirkland

Serviceability Limit State and Sustainable Shallow Foundations Design Article contributed by Ronak Amirhosseiny, Senior Geotechnical Engineer at Coffey Geotechnics Ltd

W

ith the Net Zero target initiatives set, shaping the future of the construction industry around a greener approach must be one of the main focuses of the sector. Although these fixed dates appear to be long ahead, data shows that significant changes must be made immediately and in great scales, to be able to cut the carbon emissions to the required levels. The

24

Magazine

consequences of failing to do so will have a significant impact on the future of our lives.

The concern is that even with the recognized importance of this matter, the regulations for UK construction industry yet fail to formally incorporate and enforce the requirements for build to a net-zero emission performance at the current time.

Nevertheless, the industry is going through some changes to improve. This is predominantly within the larger firms that have the resources and the funds available to invest in greener solutions, although this is

considered to be nowhere near sufficient.

“

combination with operational carbon footprint reduction is vital (1). This approach would target the As engineers we whole life carbon emission have a significant footprint of a project.

Studies show that these efforts are vastly shifted towards targeting reduction impact on projects’ of emissions by focusing on the operational carbon As engineers we have embodied carbon emissions and less by means emissions, through our a significant impact on of targeting embodied design of every aspect projects’ embodied carbon carbon emissions or reducing emissions, through our and step. the net carbon emissions design of every aspect by offsetting practices. and step. In the absence of However, research indicates that, to achieve enforced guidelines, it is our responsibility to the Net Zero targets by 2050, a fabric first target embodied carbon emission reduction approach, focusing on the embodied carbon in by adopting a more efficient design and/or

 May 2022

25

selecting the right materials.

anticipated settlement of the ground due to the applied load against a total settlement limiting This article aims to challenge our approach value; and assessment of the differential towards serviceability limit state verification of settlements across structure foundations shallow foundations, in order to achieve a more against a differential settlement limiting sustainable design. This topic is considered to value, such that the serviceability limit state be of significant importance, because often criteria described above is utilised. On this the shallow foundation design is governed basis, we consider that a greener approach by the serviceability limit states, particularly can be achieved through two possible ways: where fine-grained deposits are present first challenging the industry accepted within the foundation's zone of influence. An serviceability limit state limiting overly conservative design values, and second, exploring Nonetheless can lead to requirement for available methodologies to larger and, therefore, less it must not be estimate the settlement. environmentally friendly forgotten that a Typically, these are to foundations. be considered by the foundation is the structural engineers and the Design of foundations point of interaction geotechnical engineers in generally involves both the between the ground conjunction with each other. geotechnical and structural

“

and structure and

engineers; and given the set It must not be forgotten therefore a lack of industry Net Zero targets, that a foundation forms communication they must fully appreciate the areas of interaction that whilst some initiatives between the two between the ground and (such as Whole Life Carbon disciplines can often structure and, therefore, Approved Document Z (2), UK a lack of communication result in an overly Architects Declare Climate conservative design. between the two disciplines and Biodiversity Emergency can result in a design that is (3) or the RIBA’s climate either over-conservative or change plan (4)) are merging to allow a more at risk of under-design. structured and regulatory approach, they must take immediate actions through design to The serviceability limit state limiting values, implement the Net Zero Performance criteria. must be chosen based on a series of factors, as described within the Eurocodes (6), such We recognize that the design of a foundation as: the rate of ground movements, the type must satisfy the ultimate limit state and the of structure, foundations and construction serviceability limit states. material, ground conditions, the mode of deformation, the structure function and the The serviceability limit states of the need to ensure that there are no problems foundations, assessed in form of settlement, with the services entering the structure. as described within the current Eurocodes (6) Therefore, with reliance on the Eurocode are considered to be those concerning comfort guidance, it is evident that the limiting values of the users during use and the aesthetic of must be decided upon by consideration of the the structure, and it depends on both the total factors mentioned and based on the design and differential settlements. Our approach requirement throughout the lifetime of the to validating the serviceability limit state structure. generally comprises of: Assessment of the

26

Magazine

Image Credit: Raul Perulero Serrano (Coffey Geotechnics UK Ltd.) & Bowmer + Kirkland

However, whilst the codes provide us with more clear guidance needs to be given on the clear indication of what must be considered, limiting values. This should also be given on the the guidance provided on the actual limiting basis of a project risk/sensitivity assessment, values are generic and limited. This should which is what should, in reality, be undertaken be considered as an by the engineers continuously. opportunity for critical Though, even with the However, thinking to evaluate design new guidance from the whilst the codes and, therefore, to provide Eurocode Next Generation, provide us with clear values reasonable for a thorough evaluation of the requirement, of each indication of what must the requirements of design, specific project. In addition, must still be considered. be considered, their other guidance, such as the guidance provided The question raised, for Structural Engineer’s Pocket the time being, is that why on the actual limiting Book Eurocodes (7), permits values are generic and guidance as such is not used determination of a value often enough to give limiting based on deflection criteria of limited. values specific to the a structure in accordance with design of every structure, the Eurocodes. However, this must be done as opposed to using the set of generic values, through consideration of specific criteria, as considering that the effects of this value on listed by Eurocode. This can then be utilised to the sustainable design of the foundation can assist with the limiting value determination. be significant, particularly on larger scale On review of the Eurocodes Next Generation, projects with numerous foundations involved it is clear that guidance, as such, needs to be and different ground conditions. Therefore, it provided more clearly. In addition, better and is important that prior to choosing a limiting

“



May 2022

27

value, that consideration is given to factors such as: importance of aesthetics, lifetime of the structure or use frequency. Of course, this requires a thorough understanding of ground movement and its effects on structure. In terms of challenging the design of serviceability limit states, from a structural engineer’s side, it can be challenged that by a better understanding of differential and total settlement concept, more thoughtful and possibly less overly conservative values can be used. This applies to even where the typical values are used for the purposes of design.

In addition to challenging the limiting values, the methods of estimation of settlement must be considered by the geotechnical engineers. A thorough understanding of soil mechanics and methodologies as provided within the current Eurocodes should allow for a better design, where a less conservative approach could be taken.

We understand that risk with variable ground conditions is always present and, therefore, we always emphasise that settlement values are only an estimation of how the ground is likely to behave and move. Therefore, we often incorporate some level of conservatism in design. However, what should not be forgotten is that serviceability limit states verification methodologies such as numerical methods, prescriptive methods, verification through in-situ testing or observational methods are at our disposal. These can therefore be used in order to challenge and potentially reduce the level of conservatism through gathering of better and more representative data, in order to make our design better and more efficient.

Even with the Eurocode Next Generation coming into play, with better indication of our approach to serviceability limit state and, therefore, resulting in a more efficient design, it is still vital that serviceability limit state limiting values are decided based on the design criteria of the structure throughout its design

28

Magazine

life, using the assessment criteria provided in the current codes. In addition further consideration given to methods of assessment of the ground and estimation of settlement can result in a better approach. The latter is most important in dealing with challenges such as variability of ground conditions which often are the reason for which a conservative approach is utilised.

References 1.

Front. Built Environ (2021), How can UK Housing Projects be Brought in Line With NetZero Carbon Emission Targets? L Jankovic et al.

2..

N/A (2021), Whole Life Carbon Approved Document Z, N.A 3.

Architects Declare (2019). UK Architects Declare Climate and Biodiversity Emergency [WWW Document]. UK Archit. Declare Clim.

Biodivers. Emerg. URL Available at: https:// www.architectsdeclare.com/ (accessed 5.6.21).

4.

RIBA (2019). RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge [WWW Document]. 2030 Clim. Chall.

URL Available at: https://www.architecture. com/about/policy/climate-action/2030climate-challenge (accessed 5.6.21).

5.

EAC (2021). Energy Efficiency of Existing Homes (No. Fourth). Environment Audit Committee.

6.

BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. (1995). Eurocode 7. Part 1, General rules (together with United Kingdom national application document). Part 1, General rules (together with United Kingdom national application document). London, British Standards Institution.

7.

CRC Press (2015), Structural Engineer’s Pocket Book Eurocodes, third Edition, C. Fiona

Association of Geotechnical & Geoenvironmental Specialists WHY BECOME AN AGS MEMBER? Enhance your status in the industry. Make a statement about quality and good practice. Participate in the AGS Working Groups and help shape the industry and set the standards.

WHAT DO WE STAND FOR? ■ Good practice in geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering ■ Quality companies providing a quality service ■ Health and Safety ■ AGS Data Format

WHAT DO WE OFFER? ■ Guidance to good practice ■ Listing in the Directory of Members ■ AGS Magazine focused on ground engineering ‘hot topics’ ■ Legal helpline ■ Chemical safety helpline ■ AGS Loss Prevention Guidance Document ■ Seminars, meetings, conferences and webinars ■ Collaboration with other bodies ■ Liaison with UKAS ■ Lobbying on matters important to the sector ■ Developing and maintaining the AGS Data Format

MEMBERS CAN CONTRIBUTE BY PRODUCING SUCH DOCUMENTS AS: ■ AGS good practice guidance ■ AGS publications ■ AGS safety guidance ■ AGS client guides

MEMBERS CAN PARTICIPATE IN AGS WORKING GROUPS: For further information on the AGS and details on how to become a member visit www.ags.org.uk Established in 1988, the Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists is a non-profit making trade association which represents over 140 leading companies specialising in site investigation, geotechnics, geoenvironmental engineering, engineering geology, geochemistry, hydrogeology, and other related disciplines.

■ Laboratories ■ Contaminated Land ■ Safety ■ Business Practice ■ Loss Prevention ■ Data Management ■ Executive Committee ■ Geotechnical ■ Instrumentation and Monitoring

May 2022

29

Driving at Work: A look at the guidelines Article contributed by Chris Dimelow, Operations Director at Lankelma

I

n 2020, a government task force estimated that a third of all road traffic accidents involve someone at work. This accounts for potentially 20 fatalities and 250 serious injuries per week. Yet the rules on drivers’ hours, vehicle weights and licence requirements can be difficult to apply to specifics within your fleet. This article discusses how the ground investigation (GI) industry fits into the national legislation and how to ensure you and your colleagues are adhering to the law.

30

Magazine

From 16th December 2021, the laws around towing a trailer changed to allow more licence holders the ability to tow without undergoing additional testing. This change was a government reaction to the HGV driver shortage, in an effort to free up examiner time, and whilst many individuals and organisations will be able to make the most of the new rules, it runs the risk of adding more uncertainty to an already misunderstood set of laws.

What the legislation tells us A simple rule of thumb is if the sum of the vehicle and trailer weight is less than 3.5 tonne, then the driver would probably fall under domestic drivers’ rules. The main restrictions

and potentially even operator licencing for your company. These are requirements used throughout the haulage and logistics industry to safely manage the operations of large goods vehicles across the continent. However, this can prove difficult to apply in the GI industry without the help of a transport manager or a competent person experienced with the level of compliance needed.

Many small-to-medium enterprises will have to make difficult choices of whether to use costly third-party couriers for their equipment mobilisations, or to fund both the training of employees and capital investment needed to comply. This will inevitably lead to instances of non-compliance, either consciously or subconsciously, when driving an overweight vehicle or to travel five hours to the next job after a full day on site.

Learning Lessons

under these rules are a limit of 10 hours total driving or 11 hours duty time per day.

There is a list of exemptions to this categorisation, so it’s important to correctly identify your vehicles along with the intended activities.

If your vehicles and/or trailer weights are over 3.5 tonnes, then EU rules can apply (with some exceptions).

This will likely mean the introduction of tachographs within your vehicle cabs

Following several instances of rail workers being involved in road traffic accidents on the drive home after a night shift, new fatigue management regulations were adopted. This included recommendations on shift times per day and week, along with minimum rest periods and importantly, the time spent travelling to and from work. Employers are urged within the guidelines to ‘assess and control work If your vehicles related road risks in their and/or trailer operation’ as the travel time can ‘contribute to fatigue’. weights are over Possible solutions include 3.5 tonnes, then [...] providing nearby lodgings this will likely mean or safe transport, such as a the introduction of taxi.

“

tachographs within your vehicle cabs and potentially even operator licencing for your company.

Requests from the Principal Contractors for staff location and travel times are subsequently commonplace for shift planning within the rail industry. Is it time



May 2022

31

for similar requirements to exist across the GI industry?

We all hear the stories of 4am starts for field workers in order to reach site for the inductions at 8am and/or getting home at 10pm on a Friday night, but with the alternative being weekend travel disrupting the work life balance and increasing costs, it’s easy to see why these practices have become the norm.

If we’re going to ensure all workers attending our site have the right class of cut resistant gloves or the correct CPCS card for the plant their operating, should we not also check they haven’t driven 300 miles that morning?

Accreditation bodies such as the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) offer their members an opportunity to showcase their adherence to a high standard in terms of transport management and can be assurance to contractors that their supply chain invests in the correct practices. However, from experience, it is not straight forward.

What we can do The ability to apply the legislation to the

32

Magazine

specifics of your own business is key, to shine a light on the grey areas we often find ourselves in, or in some instances, look to put ourselves in. Given recent changes in licencing, it’s important to familiarise yourself with the current rules.

Firstly, identify and categorise your fleet to ascertain the specific restrictions of your vehicles when laden with equipment. Secondly, confirm the licencing and competence of the intended drivers. Then plan your work schedule accordingly to allow for at least the minimum breaks and driving hours as required by law.

Logistics have come a long way since the days of AA route planners. There are dozens of software packages available to help organise your vehicles, drivers, and their movements, and importantly, to ensure compliance. Many can be adjusted to suit your specific needs and are often scalable to help with the cost/benefit ratio.

Do not underestimate the importance of monitoring driving activities within your business. You can identify gaps in either driver or management competencies and

take action to introduce safer practices. In the UK, not only keeps you up to date with any event of a work-related road traffic accident, changes in the law, but also enables you to call a major focus of an investigation will be on on experts for advice on how best to manage the records kept; driver competencies, along your fleet. with tachograph records or Managers and senior staff employee timesheets, help to Do not should lead by example. establish not only how events underestimate By having a thorough unfolded, but also determine understanding of the the importance of any unsafe practices. By legislation, good practices monitoring driving monitoring, you are providing can be employed, evidence that unavoidable activities within your demonstrating an exceedances of driving hours, business. You can expectation within the for example, are recorded and identify gaps in either business. Investment in lessons can be learnt. maintenance and training driver or management Summary / Conclusions competencies and take to ensure your fleet is safe and legal is also action to introduce The HSE Driving at Work imperative. Further, good guidelines make it clear that safer practices. communication between ‘on the road work activities management and field and the risks should be effectively workers regarding shift patterns or fatigue, managed within a health and safety system’. either with themselves or colleagues, as well This means imbedding policies and procedures as reporting any accidents, incidents or near within an organisation to manage the risks and misses is crucial to implementing a positive associated measures. change.

“

Becoming a member of industry bodies such as the Road Haulage Association or Logistics

May 2022

33

Release of AGS 4.1.1

T

he AGS has long been associated with the method of exchanging ground investigation data. The AGS data transfer format has evolved over the last 30 years, through 12 versions, since the release of AGS 1 in 1992. In December 2020, AGS 4.1 was released, the culmination of decades' worth of feedback and response from the previous version. AGS 4.1 contained substantial enhancements to the data dictionary and represents the efforts of individuals from a wide variety of specialities within the sector.

After AGS 4.1 was released, it became apparent that further minor enhancements could be made to aid users. The Data Management Working Group has, therefore, continued work since the December 2020 release and now AGS 4.1.1 is available for download from the AGS website.

Note that AGS 4.1.1 supersedes AGS 4.1. The original AGS 4.1 document remains available for download but should only be used for

34

Magazine

academic purposes. AGS 4.1.1 is the latest version.

A full list of the changes in AGS 4.1.1 over the 4.1 version can be accessed on the AGS website https://www.ags.org.uk/data-format/ags4data-format/ags-4-1/ags-4-1-1/changelog/ ; a registered login will be required. The changes can be broadly summarized as follows: Î

A small number of data types have been adjusted to better serve their intended purpose. These are mainly in the CTRP, FGHI, RSCH and RUCS groups,

Î

The removal of some obsolete and erroneous headings (GCHM_RDEV, PMTD_ SEQ, WGPG_LIM and WGPG_ULIM),

Î

Description changes to clarify the intended purpose of fields,

Î

Adjustments to examples to aid consistency with the recommended data

type. Examples have also been added to various headers, Î

Î

Î

The AGS Validator is a tool for checking AGS 4.1.1 The AGS Validator is a tool for checking files for compliance with the transfer rules and is AGS 4.1.1 files for Some headers now have associated with the AGS a recommended unit compliance with the trade body rather than any defined where they did transfer rules and is specific software provider. It not have one specified, associated with the AGS also checks for compliance Inconsistencies between trade body rather than of earlier versions AGS 4.1, 4.0.4 and 4.0.3. The AGS the published Electronic any specific software Validator does not check for Transfer of Geotechnical provider. accuracy of the data, only and Geoenvironmental compliance with the rules.

Data document and The Validator will also export the listings on the website have been AGS data to an Excel .xlsx spreadsheet format. addressed,

“

A total of 387 minor adjustments from AGS 4.1.

Members of the Working Group have also been involved in the development of the AGS Validator, which will replace the current versions. In particular, the Working Group would like to acknowledge the efforts of Asitha Senanayake (Fugro) for his help in its development. A beta version of the validator is available for download and can be used in line with the conditions outlined on the webpage.

Many users of AGS 4.1.1 will still find the recording of the original launch webinar (08/12/2020) helpful due to the iterative nature of the changes. Additionally, the documentation retains (and has expanded on) much of the specific guidance for many of the groups. Users of AGS 4.1.1 will, hopefully, find these resources very helpful.

Questions and feedback are always welcomed from registered users on the discussion forums as this helps to ensure AGS remains relevant to the needs of our industry.

May 2022

35

Image credit: TCS Geotechnics

BS8661 Geotextiles: Guidance for specification for basic separation and filtration functions

SI has recently published an important new British Standard BS 8661 Geotextiles: Guidance for specification for basic separation and filtration functions. As the title implies, this document gives designers and specifiers some simple guidance on the selection of a suitable grade of separation and filtration geotextile for their next project.

basic end of the market and recognizes that more stringent design and specification considerations will be required for more onerous applications. The types of geotextiles addressed would generally be utilised, for example, as separation layers under roads, pathways, car parks and other trafficked areas.

Although these might be considered the most straightforward applications it is still easy to make simple mistakes that may compromise the integrity of the construction in the future.

Furthermore, it should be noted that, by volume, these are easily the most prevalent applications of separation geotextiles and, therefore, responsible for the greatest share of geotextiles used.

The standard focuses on the lighter and most

This type of standard has been long overdue

Article contributed by Ian Fraser , Chair - BSI Committee B553: Geosynthetics Note: the views expressed in this article are those of the author and not BSI or AGS.

B 36

Magazine

in the UK, which has seen a gradual decline in the level and quality of geotextiles used in basic separation and filtration over the last 10 to 20 years. This decline has taken us to a point where the UK’s standards are lagging behind many other developed countries like the US, Germany, South Africa and the Scandinavian states. The irony is that much of the early development of geotextile manufacture and their application was undertaken in the UK and it could be argued that the use of geotextiles as separation layers was born here. The decline in standards is mostly due to a fairly poor level of understanding and, therefore, specification but, before steam starts shooting from your ears, I am not blaming specifiers and designers for that, so please read on.

The main practical area of concern expressed by geosynthetics experts is the ability of some materials to withstand installation stresses and continue to function as intended. I am sure you are reading that last sentence and thinking ‘that’s obvious, of course they must be robust enough to survive installation’.

Obvious or not, it is a factor that is all too frequently ignored when specifying and selecting geotextiles in the UK and it is no accident that this is a key issue addressed by most other international separation geotextile classification systems. The sorts of laboratory tests that we undertake on geotextiles to obtain the important values for parameters that you see on datasheets, like their effective opening size and permeability, for example, are extremely useful for determining a geotextile’s likely performance on site. However, these tests are undertaken on pristine samples in a laboratory, and to be confident that these materials will perform satisfactorily in a real application we must be reassured that the installation stresses will not significantly change their performance. In simple terms, if the placement and compaction of aggregate over the geotextile is going to tear a hole in the material then clearly the characteristic opening size given on the data sheet will be somewhat academic and its ability to separate is clearly going to be significantly impaired.

Don’t despair because the solution is very simple. We just need to specify geotextiles that are robust enough or specify the method of placement and plant used to not damage it. This needs to be done for a range of given conditions to not be significantly damaged by installation or subsequent application.

We can, therefore, be confident that they will retain their performance characteristics when applied on site.

Whilst the solution is obvious the reality is that specifiers in the UK have not, until now, been provided with a helpful tool to allow them to make an informed choice about the grade of



May 2022

37

geotextile they need to employ for their given However, there may be instances where project conditions. In particular, little guidance filtration is not a concern, for example where has been provided on robustness and what you are separating coarse materials or where we like to call ‘construction or installation no significant water passage is anticipated. survivability’. Without that tool a reasonably The required levels of the parameters quoted detailed level of geosynthetic expertise is in the specification profiles in the required in order to make a standard are defined using choice and being somewhat current EN test methods (as In reality very few of a niche area, that expertise per CE and UKCA Marking) is thin on the ground. civil engineering and include consideration of In reality, very few civil undergraduate courses manufacturing tolerances. engineering undergraduate contain much, if These parameters are, courses contain much, therefore, those which are any, information on if any, information on already tested and quoted geosynthetics... geosynthetics and post by all European and most graduate geotechnical courses international manufacturers don’t fare much better. To my so are easy to obtain. As indicated above, point above, the lack of guidance and a suitable designers who are creating a specification for tool is not the fault of specifiers and designers. a project can simply run through the selection Given the current educational environment process and then ask in their specification for a outlined above it is, therefore, incumbent upon geotextile to comply with, for example, BS8661 the geosynthetics industry and its associated Specification Profile 2. Of course designers experts to help designers by plugging that gap can also use the standard to check that a by providing some simple guidance to help geotextile, which has perhaps been offered on them navigate towards the correct decisions. a project by a contractor, is suitable for the site BS 8661 sets out to do just that and provide and construction conditions. that tool.

“

The standard offers a choice of 3 basic grades of geotextile specification profile. Guidance on the selection of the correct profile for your project is provided based on: Î

subsoil conditions – shear strength/CBR

Î

construction conditions – compaction plant/site traffic/fill grain size/layer thickness

Î

importance of the filtration function in the proposed application.

As a side note, the functions of separation and filtration often work hand in hand in many UK geotextile applications, mostly because the presence and passage of water is a key part of everyday geotechnical design in this country.

38

Magazine

It is encouraging to note that the development of BS8661 has been supported by National Highways, Network Rail and the Environment Agency.

I am sure that designers and other end users will find this to be a valuable tool that they can rely on to help them make more informed decisions and protect the integrity of their works. As with all British Standards, the document will be reviewed regularly so all and any suggestions for improvements will be gratefully received. BS8661 is available now and if you are a designer I encourage you to obtain a copy and utilise it in your next project.

If you are a geotextile manufacturer or supplier I would suggest that you check your product range against the specification profiles to be sure that you comply.

Plastic coreboxes are the future – here are 5 reasons why In today’s increasingly eco-conscious world, plastic is often a bad word.

It pollutes. It takes an age to degrade. It’s killing our planet. On the contrary, wood is renewable, degradable and doesn’t pollute. In short, plastic is not environmentally-friendly.

But what if it was?

Now available in both single 1.5m channel and double 1m channel variations, RhinoCorebox is a plastic core transport and storage box made from 100% recycled materials. It is unequivocally the future of soil and rock core storage and is by far the best corebox on the market today. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. Zero waste RhinoCoreboxes are made from 100% recycled polypropylene and remain 100% recyclable at the end of their lifecycle. Zero waste. Nothing to landfill.

2. 700% cheaper per use On average, wooden coreboxes get used a maximum of four times before being binned and/or replaced. That’s around £4 per use.

RhinoCoreboxes can be used upwards of 50 (yes, FIFTY) times. That’s a miserly £0.50 per use for the 1m boxes. Bargain.

3. Easy to clean Contaminants from samples soak into wood when they get wet. That means you can’t use that box again due to cross-contamination issues.

That’s not a problem for plastic RhinoCoreboxes. Just jet-wash them down and they’re ready to go again. Reuse.

4. Safer to use Gone are the days of flimsy, painful string handles tearing hands apart.

RhinoCoreboxes are ergonomically designed to make sure they’re comfortable to carry. They are lighter than their wooden counterparts, so they reduce your manual handling risk, and they even interlock when stacking for increased stability. Safe.

5. Core security Samples are the name of the game in ground investigation. Wooden boxes are not designed to house samples in a secure, supported manner. It’s literally a round core in a square box. Not good.

RhinoCoreboxes are different. They cradle your core and ensure it doesn’t get damaged in transit. Take better care of your core.

ADDED BONUS: Storage and transport In comparison to clunky, flimsy wooden boxes, empty RhinoCoreboxes save you 300% on transport costs and up to 300% in empty storage costs. That means more space in your stores for equipment and gear and massive cost reduction on getting boxes to site. Spacious savings.

RhinoCorebox has been developed by industry experts to tackle the issue of dangerously heavy, cumbersome, inefficient, ineffective and unsustainable wooden corebox useage. They replace something that is outdated, ineffectual and wasteful with something you can use again and again.

In short, RhinoCorebox turns a consumable into an asset.

1M BOXES

£25 + VAT EACH

1.5M BOXES

£27.5 + VAT EACH

Q & A with...

Roger Clark

BSc, MSc, DIC, MICE, Eur Ing, SiLC, NQMS SQP

What or who inspired you to join the geotechnical / geoenvironmental industry?

Job Title: Director Company: Marlowclark Consulting Ltd Brief Biography: Roger is a Chartered Civil Engineer, SiLC and NQMS SQP with 54 years of experience. He has represented AGS for the last 14 years on the SiLC PTP and is the AGS Director on the SiLC Board, having chaired the Board for 2 years to the end of last year.

Roger is a SiLC Assessor and also assists with the preparation of questions for the SiLC exam. He is an honorary member of the AGS Executive.

He was previously the Senior Director of CL Associates (CLA), which became the Geoenvironmental Consulting Division of ESG, now SOCOTEC. He had overall responsibility for management, business development and the technical capability and quality of the division including the direct control of certain major projects.

40

Magazine

The subject at university that inspired me most in my civil engineering degree course was geotechnical engineering, or soil mechanics as the topic was called then. On nearing the completion of my degree, it, therefore, seemed logical to apply to Soil Mechanics Limited (SML) and I was fortunate to be offered a job.

In the early years I had the privilege of working with or under the guidance of Noel Hobbs, Bryan Skipp, Alan Meigh and Ken Early, all of whom have been or are recognised for knowledge, skill and quality. This gave me the best grounding for my career that I could ever have wished for. At that time geoenvironmental was not really recognised as a specialism. It was only much later, as the manager of the SML Consultancy Division, and in the early stages of the industry waking up to the need for services in contaminated land and waste management, that I was involved in the setting up of CL Associates.

What does a typical day entail?

I am now substantially retired from professional work with the exception of providing whatever input I can to SiLC and AGS. I am Chair of my local parish, which gets me involved in community matters, liaising with the County Council and District Council to achieve whatever improvements I can to our local amenities.

Therefore, a typical day for me can be very varied, sometimes relaxed but at other times trying to stuff more into the day than will fit.

I switch from sitting in front of my computer preparing draft SiLC procedures or guidance, exam questions, assessing candidates, articles for the AGS e-magazine, and preparing for and attending PTP and Board meetings, etc to dealing with parish matters to family to gardening and house maintenance. You would be forgiven for thinking that I can control my own time choosing what I do and when. That is my objective but never seems to happen. Like all of you, having

stuck my hand up, I am subject to the demands that come at me from various quarters.

Are there any projects which you’re particularly proud to have been a part of?

There are three in particular, the first being the Nghi Son Refinery in Vietnam, which is about 250 km south of Hanoi.

Site clearing for the project broke ground in 2008 with construction beginning in 2013. Production commenced in 2018. Working with Foster Wheeler, I led a team within CLA to supervise site investigation and to design suitable foundations for heavily loaded structures on

about 60 m of soft marine sediments. Quite a challenge, but the team showed real skill and expertise to come up with an innovative foundation solution.

The second was a long-term leakage of fuel from a filling station on a promontory of fill at the edge of the River Nene floodplain. Sliding of the fill had ruptured fuel pipes and fuel had leaked downslope into the gravels of the floodplain.

We designed a scheme involving extraction pumping, surface skimming and activated carbon filters. This interesting project involved both geotechnical in respect of determining the cause of the

sliding and geoenvironmental in respect of the clean-up. For me, a really interesting aspect was providing expert witness in the High Court in London, which involved four full days of giving evidence and being cross-examined. I found the court proceedings fascinating and really admired the ability of our QC to grasp a multitude of information, particularly slope stability analysis, which was a completely new subject to him.

The third project was the Sydenham Gasworks near Crystal Palace, which again involved a combination of geotechnical and geoenvironmental input. This

May 2022

41

one sticks in my mind not just because I was involved over 17 years but also because of being involved throughout from the time that it was a smelly eyesore (and in spite of that there had to be a public inquiry at which I gave evidence), to now providing a local facility in the form of Bell Green Retail Park.

What are the most challenging aspects of your role?

Here, I think I should talk about my previous role with ESG. There was a need to balance the business requirements such as budgets, marketing and management with the need to keep technically up to date in both geotechnical engineering and contaminated land / waste management and to manage projects. Both of these sides to my role usually demanded more time than could be given, so the challenge was to deal with both and still get home for supper before it got thrown in the bin. The bigger challenge was that for my long-suffering 42

Magazine

wife, Janet, who had to put up with me.

that they have achieved this capability.

What AGS Working Group(s) are you a member of and what has been the recent focus?

As many will know, SiLC also assesses suitability for someone to be on the NQMS SQP Register. Improving quality has to be the objective of everyone in our industry and these schemes are part of the process of achieving that.

SiLCs and SQPs are bound by a strict code of conduct, which is another factor in demonstrating their standing and ability to provide sound advice that is tansparent in identifying any uncertainties and the implications of the conclusions.

Apart from the AGS Executive, I attend the AGS Contaminated Land Working Group. My recent input to this has been the writing with Louise Beale of the Clients Guide to Geoenvironmental Reports and also aiding in the preparation of the Training Paths for Ground Practitioners – Geoenvironmental Specialists.

Why do you feel SiLC is important to the industry? What activities are SiLC working on at the It is an indicator that senior moment? professionals in our industry have gained a level of knowledge and expertise that has been judged by their peers to be at a high level. For many, it is considered to be a natural part of their career development demonstrating to their clients, regulators with whom they interact, their colleagues and themselves

One of the things that SiLC can do is to assist in developing knowledge and gaining recognition of significant issues that face the industry.

The Annual Forum is part of this and also the presentation of webinars, the next one being 'Regeneration of Historical Landfill Sites - Multi-

Stakeholder Perspectives' on 30th June, which will examine some of the problems currently being experienced. SiLC have also written to various Government departments and the EA regarding this.

scheme to determine where changes or improvements might be needed. One of the next tasks is to expand the NQMS documentation to include permitting and to modify some of the existing documentation to incorporate the results of the audit.

One of the significant issues facing us is the reduction that What changes would you has been seen in the number like to see implemented of young people joining in the geoenvironmental our industry for whatever industry? reason, be it a reduction More endorsement of schemes in the number of suitable like SiLC, SoBRA and NQMS university courses or simply by government departments. because we do not advertise Some progress has been ourselves enough. Having made on this in respect of the worked in the geotechnical and geoenvironmental field for NQMS in a meeting between the Steering Group a considerable and DLUHC, number Continued which will of years I, recognition hopefully lead like many and increased to some firm others, have commitments. understanding of thoroughly the causes of climate Continued enjoyed it and benefited from change including the recognition a very varied, effects of what we do and increased interesting, understanding as an industry. and often of the causes challenging career. of climate Looking back, I am very glad change including the effects that I chose the path that I did. of what we do as an industry.

The SiLC Affiliate Scheme is There is so much more that intended to encourage young can be done to reduce carbon people to join the profession, emissions for example, and a short promotional including how we remediate video has been prepared to sites, how many vehicle encourage them to do so. The movements are involved, the task now is to get as many extent to which the ground is people as possible to watch it. disturbed and hence releases

“

SiLC are part of the NQMS Steering Group and having carried out an audit of the

stored carbon, the emissions from any treatment processes that we use or recommend, etc. We need to educate

our clients in this respect, presenting them with sound reasoning for environmentally friendly schemes rather than just following traditional thinking. Many clients are already on board with this, but some, unfortunately, are not. Thinking back to the Nghi Son Refinery, their product is the cause of a large part of the problem, which can’t be mitigated by the plant itself, but it has to be said that in the early stages of the project the owners did take on board a number of mitigating measures to reduce the local environmental impact of the plant being built.

I would like to see more overall involvement of geotechnical and geoenvironmental specialists in project teams at a decision level. All too often, site investigation is procured, and then other professions make the fundamental decisions.

There needs to be more continuity with geotechnical and geoenvironmental specialists being involved throughout the investigation, design, and early construction stages of a project. The projects in which we have been involved throughout the process have always ended up running more smoothly, with less delay and often more cost effectively, with the prospect of unexpected costs being minimised by prudent spending at an earlier stage.

May 2022

43

Image Credit: David Owen

Ground movements on Underpinning – An Update from the Geotechnical Working Group

I

n April 2021, the Geotechnical Working Group issued an article titled "Ground movements on Underpinning – A problem with data?". The objective ofthis was launching a discussion to try and better understand the magnitude of ground movements that can arise due to underpinning and the construction of small-scale basements, and how ground movement data recorded, as part of the construction process, can be used to establish a robust framework or the analysis and prediction of potential movements on new projects.

Since publication of the article, an Underpinning Focus Group has been formed by interested members of the Geotechnical Working Group. The Focus Group has been

44

Magazine

working closely with the University of Portsmouth to facilitate an MSc project, using data from a series of basement excavations within central London, which was completed towards the end of 2021 and identified some issues likely to be common to many projects: Î

Often buildings involve a mixture of underpinning and piling, and this modifies the movement in different ways.

Î

Some buildings have inherent problems before construction starts and may already have ground movement problems before a new basement is excavated.

Î

There is normally no published ‘post construction report’ to say what went according to plan and what changes were

made during the construction, unless an article is published, making it difficult to assess what learnings were made.

In general, the study found that there was a good level of agreement between predicted and actual movements and was able to make the following recommendations: Î

Î

Close coordination between the geotechnical / ground investigation consultants, structural engineers, movement monitoring survey companies and the construction companies is important.

response of the ground and surrounding structures to basement construction.

Although it is generally considered that the deepened foundations provided by basements should make the overground structures more stable, the subsurface geology, excavation methods, construction techniques, and the quality of workmanship, can all have different impacts on the severity and extent of ground movements affecting adjacent buildings and structures.

Following completion of this initial pilot study, three more MSc projects are presently in hand and due for completion at the end of this Identify and confirm the geotechnical academic year, with the students working properties, depth and influence of on the modelling aspects of the problem superficial deposits, such as river terrace using real data from basement deposits, brickearth, and excavations in London, which, the weathered London Following it is hoped, will lead to Clay within the area of the further detailed analysis and completion of this proposed development to initial pilot study, three ultimately the establishment enable the development of a research group to more MSc projects are of a ground model that continue the work that has accurately reflects the presently in hand and been started. ground conditions. This due for completion can then be used in any In the long-term, the at the end of this subsequent design of Underpinning Focus Group academic year... the proposed basement is looking to facilitate the structure and analysis of collation of case study potential ground movements. data and are presently working on ideas for a suitable on-line system to allow members Accurately assess the state of buildings and other interested parties to submit data and infrastructure in the vicinity of the and share their experiences, which, in time, excavation site prior to construction. can hopefully be used to generate guidance through suitably reviewed research of the Ensure the ground and building monitoring case studies. In the meantime, if any readers survey targets are in-place before any of this or the previous April 2021 article have construction, ground loading or demolition data or other personal experiences that work commences, as it is important they think might be of use or would like to to establish a baseline of background become actively involved and contribute to noise, vibration and any other ground these discussions, then please contact the disturbance.

Geotechnical Working Group (ags@ags.org.uk), Make provision for monitoring sensors who will be more than happy to hear from you. to remain in place once construction is complete to provide data on the long-term

“

Î

Î

Î

May 2022

45

Standards Update

April 2022

RECENTLY PUBLIS STANDARD BSI 1377-2:2022

SUBJECT / TEST Methods of test for soils for civil engineering purposes – Part 2: Classification tests and determination of geotechnical properties BS EN 15936:2022 Soil, waste, treated biowaste, and sludge – Determination of total organic carbon (TOC) by dry combustion BS EN 16166:2021 Soil, treated biowaste and sludge – Determination of adsorbed organically bound halogens (AOX) BS ISO 23400:2021 Guidelines for the determination of organic carbon and nitrogen stocks and their variations in mineral soil at plot scale BS ISO Soil quality – Determination of organochlorine pesticides by gas 23646:2022 chromatography with mass selective detection (GC-MS) and gas chromatography with electron—capture detection (GC-ECD)

SUP BS 1 1377 BS E

BS E

New

New

SELECTED INTERNATIONAL & EUROPEAN “GE STANDARD CEN prEN 1997-1

SUBJECT / TEST Eurocode 7 - Geotechnical design – General Rules

SUP Will

CEN prEN 1997-2

Eurocode 7 - Geotechnical design – Ground properties

Will

CEN prEN 1997-3

Eurocode 7 - Geotechnical design – Geotechnical structures

Will

EN ISO 18674-7 (New project) EN ISO 18674-8 (New project) CEN ISO TS 24283-1 CEN ISO TS 24283-2 CEN ISO TS 24283-3 ISO DIS 22476-1

Geotechnical investigation and testing – Geotechnical monitoring by field instrumentation – Part 7: Measurement of strains: Strain gauges Geotechnical investigation and testing – Geotechnical monitoring by field instrumentation – Part 8: Measurement of forces: Load cells Geotechnical investigation and testing – Qualification criteria and assessment – Part 1: Qualified technician Part 2: Responsible expert Part 3: Qualified enterprise

New

ISO CD 22477-2 ISO DIS 24057

46

New

Part Part 2011 Part

Geotechnical investigation and testing – Field testing –Part 1: Electrical cone and BS I piezocone penetration test Geotechnical investigation and testing – Testing of geotechnical structures – New Part 2: Testing of piles: static tension load test Array measurement of microtremors to estimate shear wave velocity profile New

Magazine

SHED STANDARDS

PERSEDED/WILL SUPERSEDE 1377-2:1990, BS 1377-4:1990, BS 1377-5:1990, BS 7-6:1990, BS 1377-7:1990 , BS 1377-8:1990 EN 15936:2012

STATUS Published

EN 16166:2012

Published

w standard

Published

w standard

Published

PUB DATE March 2022 March 2022 January 2022 April 2022 January 2022

Published

EOTECHNICAL” STANDARDS – In preparation

PERSEDED/WILL SUPERSEDE l partially replace BS EN 1997-1: 2004 + A1: 2013

PUB DATE 2023

w standard

STATUS Comment period for prEN ended 6 January 2021 Comment period for prEN ended 6 January 2021 Comment period for prEN ended 6 January 2021 Project initiated

w standard

Project initiated

2023

l replace BS EN 1997-2: 2007

l partially replace BS EN 1997-1: 2004

2023 2023 2023

t 1- New standard To be published as CEN ISO Technical t 2 - ISO TS 22475-2:2006 (BS ISO 22475-2: Specifications. Texts still being refined.

1_ t 3- ISO TS 22475-3:2007 (BS ISO 22475-3: 2011)

2022

ISO 22476-1:2012

Comment period ended 21 August 2021

2022

w standard

Comment period ended August 2021

2023

w standard

Comment period ended 23 January 2022

2023

May 2022

47

Standards Update

April 2022

SELECTED INTERNATIONAL & EUROPEAN STANDA STANDARD ISO DIS 4974

SUBJECT / TEST Soil quality – Guidance on soil temperature measurement

ISO NP 7303 (New project) ISO NP 8529 (New project) CEN prEN 17505

Simplified method for oral bioaccessability of metal(oids) in soils

SUP New

New Will Soil quality – Bioaccessibility of organic and inorganic pollutants from New contaminated soil and soil-like material Will Soil and waste characterization – Temperature dependent differentiation of total New carbon (TOC400, ROC, TIC900) CEN FprEN 17516 Waste – Characterization of granular solids with potential for use as New construction material – Compliance leaching test – Up-flow percolation test Text CEN Cha ISO DIS18400-301 Soil quality – Sampling – Sampling and on site semi-quantitative determinations New of volatiles in field investigations ISO CD 24212 Soil quality - Remediation techniques applied at contaminated sites New

Proposed revision of BS10175:2011+A2:2017

B

S 10175:2011+A2:2017- Investigation of potentially contaminated sites – Code of Practice has recently been subjected to its regular five yearly review. Following this review, BSI Committee EH4 has agreed, in principal, to carry out minor revision. This decision is subject to confirmation by BSI, the formation of a Drafting Panel, and agreement on a timetable for the work. These formalities are likely to take at least several weeks to complete.

BS 10175:2011+A2:2017 is the keystone standard for investigation and assessment of sites where potentially harmful substances might be present either due to human activities (contamination) or natural processes. It sits at the centre of British, European and

48

Magazine

International standards directly relevant to investigation and assessment of such sites, or otherwise relevant to their remediation (e.g. removal of contaminants), provision of protective measures, and/or development or improvement. Its proper application is important for compliance with various regulatory provisions and planning guidance across all parts of the United Kingdom.

In addition to consideration by EH4, an informal consultation process has been followed involving circulation of information about the review to various stakeholder groups, and holding a free webinar at which information about BS10175 and the review process was provided.

ARDS ON SOIL & SITE ASSESSMENT - In preparation

PERSEDED/WILL SUPERSEDE w standard

STATUS Comment period ended 6 April 2022

PUB DATE 2022/23

w standard l complement BS ISO 17924 – see also NP 8529 w Standard l complement BS ISO 17924 – see also NP 7303 w standard

Second ballot closed 2 March 2022

2023

Approved to proceed September 2021

2023

Second enquiry completed

2023

w standard t will be identical to that in revised standard N TS 16637-3 Construction products – aracterization……upward percolation test w standard

Further consultation on the two parallel documents in progress.

2022

Comment period ended 16 February 2022

2022/23

w standard

Second CD in preparation

2023

The consultations have not revealed any major technical issues although, a few comparatively minor ones have been raised. The revision will include: Î

consolidation of Amendments 1 & 2 (see Box) into the text;

Î

updating of external references to guidance and regulatory regimes (some updating in this respect was undertaken when BS1075+A2 was prepared);

Î

revision with regard to some technical and wider issues including: Î

introduction of BS 10176,

Î

climate change,

Î

sustainability, and

Î

asbestos.

During the revision the following will be retained: Î

the present structure and overall approach; compatibility with the requirements and recommendations in related key BS and

BS/ISO standards including BS 5930, BS8576 and the BS ISO 18400 series of standards; terminology consistent with that used in BS 5930, BS8576 and the BS ISO 18400 series of standards; and applicability in all parts of the UK.

Amendments to BS 10175:2011 The first Amendment prepared in 2013 was to deal with the publication of BS8576 on investigations for ground gas.

BS10175:2011+Amendment 1 was confirmed in 2016.

The second Amendment was to deal with the publication of the BS ISO 18400 series of standards and to ensure alignment with BS5930:2015 – the geotechnical ground investigation Code of Practice. Other minor technical and editorial changes were also made including enhancement of the guidance about asbestos.

May 2022

49

Upcoming Events SiLC Webinar - Regeneration of Historical Landfill Sites – Multi-Stakeholder Perspectives Regeneration of Historical Landfill Sites – Multi-Stakeholder Perspectives is a webinar being held by SiLC on Thursday 30th June 2022 from 11.00am – 1.00pm.

This webinar will feature a discussion on the regulatory complexities to beneficial regeneration of sites constrained by historic landfilling from a consultant, contractor and regulatory point of view.

Our expert speakers will examine the challenges of this complex regulatory environment and the opportunities to produce sustainable and robust outcomes; and discuss the potential options for a more simplified regulatory approach.

SPEAKERS The speakers currently confirmed are: Î

Ian Evans, Senior Technical Director at Arcadis Consulting (UK) Ltd and SiLC PTP Chair/Deputy Chair of SiLC Register

Î

Danny Hope, Regional Director at Hydrock Consultants

Î

Joe Jackson, Managing Director at Jackson Remediation

Î

Mark Field, Project Director at Vertase FLI

TICKETS Tickets cost £25 per attendee (excluding VAT). To register for the webinar, please click HERE.

SPONSORSHIP SiLC have Associate sponsorship packages available for this webinar. Sponsorship packages start from just £300. For package details please click HERE or email silc@silc.org.uk.

50

Magazine

WITH WORLD CLASS GEOTECHNICAL TRAINING FROM EQUIPE Health and Safety Courses

Delivered in partnership with RPA Safety Services

IOSH Safe Supervision of Geotechnical Sites (3 Days) - £495 + VAT

Learn in detail how to keep yourself and your on-site operatives safe in the field - industry SSSTS equivalent

IOSH Avoiding Danger from Underground Services - £175 + VAT

In accordance with the requirements and guidance set out within HSG47

Other Health and Safety Courses Delivered in partnership with EB Safety Soltuions & RPA Safety Services

MARGI - Managing & working with Asbestos Risk in Ground Investigation - £225 + VAT

Comprehensive guidance to deal with asbestos in a GI environment, including CAR 2012

Geotechnical Courses

Prof. David Norbury’s Soil Description Workshop - £295 + VAT

Providing a detailed approach to soil description practices and techniques

Prof. David Norbury’s Rock Description Workshop - £295 + VAT

Providing a detailed approach to rock description practices and techniques

Online Geotechnical Courses Delivered in partnership with Plough Geotechnical

Basic Foundation Design - £250 + VAT

Shallow foundation overview for geotechnical practitioners and engineers

Further Foundation Design - £250 + VAT

Complex & deep pile foundations for geotechnical practitioners and engineers

Earthworks Design and Construction - £250 + VAT

A general overview of materials sourcing / selection for design & construction

Slope Stability Design - £250 + VAT

Comprehensive overview for geotechnical practitioners and engineers

May 2022

51

Training Courses Equipe Training: Specialist Geotechnical Courses Equipe Training are delighted to confirm that their specialist geotechnical training courses are continuing to be delivered, both in person at our dedicated training facility just outside of Banbury, Oxfordshire., and also online via Zoom! The in-person courses will be operating with limited places to ensure social distancing.

Available upcoming dates are provided below: Î

24th May 2022 - Slope Stability Design (Online Course)

Î

25th May 2022 - Earthworks Design and Construction (Online Course)

Î

22nd June 2022 - Professor David Norbury’s Soil Description Workshop

Î

13th July 2022 - Basic Foundation Design (Online Course)

Î

20th July 2022 - Professor David Norbury’s Rock Description Workshop

Î

7th September 2022 - Further Foundation Design

Places on these courses can be booked online here, or via contacting Equipe on +44 (0)1295 670990 or info@equipegroup.com

Equipe Training: Specialist Geotechnical Heath and Safety Courses Equipe Training and their health and safety training partners RPA Safety Services and EB Safety Solutions are delighted to announce their collection of specialist health and safety courses for the geotechnical market have resumed being delivered in person, as well as being delivered online where required.

These courses are approved and certified by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and meet the requirements of UK Health and Safety regulations for working on geotechnical and land drilling sites. Upcoming courses have limited numbers of places available in order to maintain social distancing within the classroom environment. Upcoming dates include: Î Î Î

Please enquire for dates - Managing and working with Asbestos Risk in Ground Investigation 14th - 16th June 2022 - IOSH Safe Supervision of Geotechnical Sites 23rd June 2022 - IOSH Avoiding Danger from Underground Services

Places on these courses can be booked online here, or via contacting Equipe on +44 (0)1295 670990 or info@equipegroup.com

52

Magazine

How to become a Member of the AGS AGS Members all share a commitment to quality in the geotechnical and geoenvironmental industry. This has become widely recognised by clients, governmental bodies and other associations that touch issues to do with the ground.

We welcome both companies and individuals who want to be recognised for their quality of practice to join our growing membership of over 130 Members. We shape our industry, continually improve practice and collaborate on issues that affect us all; from clients, all the way through to the people who use the land and the buildings we help develop.

To become a Member of the AGS, please visit http://www.ags.org.uk/about/become-a-member and submit your application online. Please note that all membership applications are reviewed by the Membership Committee 6 weeks in advance of each quarterly Executive meeting.

The deadline for the next round of completed applications is Tuesday 10th May 2022.

AGS Chemical and Legal Helplines All Members of the Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists are entitled to free chemical and contractual advice through the use of Loss Prevention Committee Members, Marquis & Lord and Beale & Co. For advice on chemical safety and best practice, Marquis & Lord will provide 30 minutes of free advice to all AGS Members.

Additionally, if you’re an AGS Member and are looking for legal advice, please contact Beale & Co and quote ‘AGS Helpline’ where the first 15 minutes of legal advice will be free of charge.

CHEMICAL SAFETY HELPLINE Marquis & Lord Tel: +44 (0) 121 288 2386 www.marquisandlord.com

LEGAL HELPLINE (Please quote Beale & Co ‘AGS Helpline’) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0400 www.beale-law.com

Member Reporting Service for Industry Issues If you have any queries regarding AGS Data Format, there is a discussion forum on the AGS Data Format website, where queries can be posted and answered by the Data Format team.

If a Member has any issues with regard to Safety, Contaminated Land, Geotechnical, Instrumentation & Monitoring or Laboratories which you think the industry should be aware of please email ags@ags.org.uk, we will then forward your email to the relevant AGS Working Group.

Disclaimer All articles in the AGS Magazine are the opinions of the authors and are not intended to be a complete or comprehensive statement of the law, nor do they constitute legal or specialist advice. They are intended only to highlight current issues from date of publication that may be of interest. Neither the writer(s), nor the AGS, assumes any responsibility for any loss that may arise from accessing, or reliance on the material and all liability is disclaimed accordingly. Professional advice should be taken before applying the content of the articles to particular circumstances.

May 2022

53

Advertising and Rates An online advertising campaign within the AGS Magazine will help to build and increase industry awareness of your company’s profile, initiatives and offerings.

The AGS can help build a package to suit your needs and budget; whether it’s a series of adverts across multiple issues, a combination of event sponsorship and advertising, or a single advertorial.

How to Advertise in the AGS Magazine The AGS Magazine is a free email publication that looks at a range of topical issues, insights and concerns, whilst publishing new guidance notes, working group activities and information on upcoming industry seminars.

With 6 issues each year, our subscribers include industry professionals such as practitioners, chartered specialists, senior decision makers and managing directors To receive a media pack or to discuss advertising rates, please contact Caroline Kratz on 0208 658 8212 or email ags@ags.org.uk

Adversiting Requirements

Advert Sizes and Rates

All adverts should be sent in a PDF, PNG, JPEG, TIFF, PSD (Photoshop) or EPS (Illustrator) format.

 FULL PAGE W: 210mm H: 297mm RATE: £400  HALF PAGE W: 210mm H: 145mm RATE: £250  QUARTER PAGE

COMPANY NAME ADDRESS CONTACT NUMBER EMAIL

W: 105mm H: 145mm RATE: £160

LOGO

 DIRECTORY Company name, address, contact number, email and one logo.

RATE: £50

54

All advertising artwork must be supplied in 114 dpi resolution.

Magazine

Artwork must be delivered to the AGS using the agreed artwork specification size listed left.

Artwork should be emailed to ags@ags.org. uk no later than 10 days prior to publication.

Directory Statom Group

Stuart Wells Limited

Statom House 795 London Road, West Thurrock , Essex , RM20 3LH

Stuart House Hargham Road Shropham, Norfolk NR17 1DT

01708 222777 enquires@statom.co.uk

01953454540 www.stuartwells.co.uk enquiries@stuartwells.co.uk

VertaseFLI Ltd Number One Middle Bridge Business Park Bristol Road, Portishead Bristol, BS20 6PN +44 (0) 1275 397 600

AGS Dates for Your Diary Sustainability in the delivery of Brownfield Regeneration (webinar series) Sustainable Remediation Solutions Î Date: Tuesday 17th May Î Time: 11am (approx. 2 hour duration) Sustainable Management of Soils: Î Date: Thursday 26th May Î Time: 11am (approx. 2 hour duration) Î Fee: £25 for AGS members and employees of members or £30 for non-AGS members for one webinar. Alternatively, AGS members can attend both webinars for £45 and nonAGS members can attend both webinars for £55.

AGS Annual Conference (live event) Î Î Î

Date: Wednesday 6th July Time: 9am – 4pm Location: Geotechnica, Warwickshire Event Centre in Leamington Spa

Full details to be released in due course

Pressuremeter Testing (webinar) Î Î Î

Date: October TBC Fee: FOC Sponsorship: Headline and Associate packages available

Full details to be released in due course

Data Management Conference (live event) Î

Date: November/December TBC

Full details to be released in due course May 2022

55