Frequently Asked Questions.
What is Surefoot made of?
All Surefoot pile caps are fabricated using 250 grade plates with variable thickness, starting with the T150 at 4mm to the S600 using 10mm. The driving guides are custom made to suit the micropiles.
What is a Micropile?
The micropile is one of the main components of Surefoot. Each micropile is driven into the ground and together they resist the loadings applied to the Surefoot cap.
Which Micropiles can be used?
Soil conditions, we recommend the use of Surepile double HDG grade 300 piles.
What are the maximum loads of Surefoot?
The Surefoot loads are determined using the relevant Australian Standards calculations. Surefoot can receive loads of up to 36 Tonne depending on the model. Further capacities can be achieved by combining models in groups and joining with steel sub frames. Surefoot is one of the only systems that has the capacity to resist high bending moments which means that it can be used for many purposes beyond typical construction such as communication towers, masts and wind turbines.
What is the corrosion capacity of Surefoot?
Depending on soil and environment characteristics, the design lifespan of a Surefoot is 50 years. Please see our compliance certificate for our coating system here.
How long does it take to install?
The smallest T150 and S250 caps can be installed in as little as 10 minutes, the larger high capacity caps S500 and S600 take between 30 and 45 minutes. Imagine, a complete foundation for a home installed in under a day with construction commencing on the same day.
What equipment is required to install?
A standard jack-hammer with a rating of 45 Joules is the main tool required to install Surefoot. Please read our Installation Manual to see all of the equipment required to install.
Installation on sloped sites?
It’s not necessary to level the land to build with Surefoot. Surefoot simplifies the construction process and adapts to the land without increasing costs. Surefoot can add value to heavily sloped sites that were traditionally prohibitively and costly to build upon.
Avoiding existing infrastructure and cabling?
When installing Surefoot in dense urban and industrial areas, it is prudent to contact “Dial before you dig” and have plans of existing infrastructure before installation commences. If this is not available, cabling and pipes can be located with a basic CAT scanner. Once located there are two options, change the location or position of Surefoot to avoid the infrastructure or use a 2 or 3 way Surefoot model that has the driving directions of the micro piles changed.
Avoiding services, obstacles and boundary conditions?
By using the Surefoot 2 or 3 way bases with the correct micro pile directions, Installation can avoid known obstacles such as foundations of existing building boundary conditions of the allotment.
Can Surefoot be used in Loose Sands / Soft Clays?
Depending on the applied loadings, Surefoot can be used in many applications on soils with low capacity. Our system allows for the use of micropile extensions to drive the piles further to a soil layer with a higher resistance value.
Can Surefoot be used in Reactive Soil sites?
By referring to each soil test, our engineering team can determine the appropriate pile embedment to minimise the impact of seasonal movement in soils.
Can Surefoot be used in Rocky soils?
Depending on the applied loadings and the type of rock encountered, our Engineering team can assess the best foundation solution in soils with rock layers.
Can Surefoot be used in Saline or Acidic soils?
When dealing with marine or very aggressive environments, Surefoot can be manufactured in Stainless Steel. Our pile caps can also be coated with marine-grade coatings. As for the piles, Orrcon Steel has the Maxi Tube option which has a greater capacity for corrosion than traditional coating systems.
Is Surefoot Certified to the Australian Building Code?
When required, the footing system is certified by a Registered Engineer/ practitioner who supplies computations, layout plan and certificate of Compliance- Structural Design to the Australian Building Code.
Has Surefoot been tested?
The product has been officially tested to European, Australian and International standards.
In Australia, it has been tested for research and innovation purposes by Swinburne University. In Europe it has been certified by Lloyd’s Registry to meet the requirements of all relevant Euro Codes. In addition to this, Surefoot has conducted many unofficial testing over the years for internal research. On a more recent note, our company has been engaged for a joint research venture led by the Australian Federal Government in collaboration with both Swinburne University and Melbourne University, this research will have a joint finance of $500,000 for more research and development of our products.
What is needed to get a Surefoot design?
For quotation purposes, our team only requires a basic diagram of the structure and a description of the project’s location and soil type. This service is free of charge. For Certification purposes certified drawings and a soil test are required.
Environmental Impact?
Surefoot does not disturb the land and soil of the job site. There is no need to level, cut and fill or change the landscape (unless specified). Surefoot does not disturb natural drainage patterns and can be installed around treed areas avoiding the use of root barrier systems, since the piles do not damage the tree roots. Surefoot eliminates or drastically reduces excavation, even when used in conjunction with concrete.
vs. Concrete?
For many applications Surefoot offers a superior solution to traditional concrete foundations. This is especially true when building on sloping sites, weak soils or if the structure is subject to large bending moment loads. Surefoot eliminates or greatly reduces excavation and heavy machinery on the job site.
vs. Screwpiles?
Other Steel piling systems such as helical piers and screw piles are relatively expensive solutions that are normally specified when there is a particular construction problem to resolve. Surefoot offers various advantages over these systems, Surefoot is more precise, has higher capacities (Price/capacity ratio) and is easier to install. Special drilling augers and other equipment are not needed, just small portable tools. Surefoot is the only system that can compete with concrete in normal building conditions, due to its great capacity in bending moment, which can be very low on screw piles.
Design Life Statement 8.10 Surefoot footings are designed and engineered to comply with the requirements of AS/NZ 1170.0 Structural Design actions – General principles. The “design life” for normal structures is 50 years, unless otherwise notified. In some circumstances we can design for a greater or lesser period depending upon the importance level and design events. When design and certification is undertaken by Surefoot, factors taken into consideration include applied structural loading to the footing, geo-technical data, capacity of the soil, corrosion factor, wind and terrain rating categories etc. Foundation design and certification is provided by a registered engineering practitioner. A condition of certification is that a pile log is provided to the certifying engineer by the installer / consumer for each footing installed. Duration of the period which the Surefoot footing is designed, is assumed to perform for its intended purpose with expected maintenance. Please refer to CSIRO document Foundation Maintenance and Footing Performance consumer guide BTF18.
Have a Question?
Get in Touch.
Contact us today and one of our specialist personnel will be very pleased to provide you with the best performance and solutions tailored to your specific project and service needs.
Give us a call on 1300 809 565 or get in touch online.