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Multi-Functional Retaining Wall |
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Written by David Snyder
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Wednesday, 01 August 2007 |
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Michigan firm solves developer’s site challenges.
Developers have long tackled the problem of hilly building sites and they are ever in search of retaining wall products to maximize usable land space. When Rob Berends from Exxel Engineering of Grand Rapid, Michigan, was charged with the task of specifying a retaining wall on the Breton Woods project in Kent, Michigan, he was faced with several challenges. The most prominent of which was designing a retaining wall, with geogrid placement, to accommodate utilities that were to be placed directly through and behind the wall. Dennis Drier with Grand Rapids Gravel, an exclusive Redi-Rock Dealer, had introduced Rob to Redi-Rock’s wall solutions and Rob saw the Breton Woods project as a perfect fit for Redi-Rock.
When completed, the Breton Woods project will be a multi-use development consisting of single family homes, multi-housing, retail, and office space. The project is 2–3 miles long. The site was divided by an immense ravine, which is where the Redi-Rock wall was built. All of the utilities including water main, electrical, storm sewer, and fiber optic cables were within the confines of the wall, making the design and construction difficult.
The top four courses, or six feet of the wall, is where the major challenges occurred as this is where the utilities were tight behind the wall and where geogrid was required. To reinforce the wall and leave room for utilities, the wall was designed with looped geogrid placement (see photo).
“The layer of grid below the utilities was sized to handle the soil above as a surcharge and the looped grids provided local stability for the wall units and any future excavation for utilities,” explained Jack Bergmann, Redi-Rock International’s in-house professional engineer.
The end result was three Redi-Rock walls, the tallest of which was a 27-foot reinforced wall with utilities running through and behind the wall.
“This is the largest project that we have used with Redi-Rock,” said Berends, “but I would definitely use it again as it solved our problem.”
Ben Manthei, managing partner of Redi-Rock International, acknowledges that “every project has a unique aspect. Therefore, we treat every project like a new opportunity to showcase the versatility of our product. Plus. in most cases, less installation time and cost, as well as more durability – all with the ‘essence of natural rock look’ – make Redi-Rock the perfect solution for retaining wall applications. It’s not a hard story to tell,” Manthei said. SLDT
About Redi-Rock: Redi-Rock International has developed a strong reputation in big block retaining wall systems. Redi-Rock International was born seven years ago in Charlevoix, Michigan from the creative minds of MDC Contracting and has developed the industry’s largest dealer network with over 115 dealers across the nation and Canada.
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