Underpinning

The process of strengthening the foundation of an existing building or other structure is called underpinning. Usually, this involves extending the foundation depth or distributing the load across a greater area. Underpinning is a repair project and in order to choose the correct method, it is necessary to understand the current situation and problems concerning the entire foundation. Underpinning can be carried out for a variety of reasons, the most common of which are:

• A change in soil conditions under the foundation
• Soil characteristics were not properly taken into account during the design phase
• The original foundation is no longer suitable/strong enough
• The construction/repair/excavation of neighbouring structures endangers the current foundations
• Additional floors are to be constructed underground