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Built to Last: Your Guide to Flawless Pier Foundations

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  Proper Pier Construction The Structural drawings will show you the design of the piers. Survey in the pier location as shown on the drawings.  This must be done with extreme accuracy, using strings, batter boards, and a transit or laser level to ensure correct spacing and alignment. Check the bell diameter and confirm that it is in compliance with the design. Check the depth of the pier to confirm that it is per the design. Water must be pumped out of the pier if it is more than 3” deep. If there is a lot of water, then you may have to perform a dewatering procedure. Consult with the engineer to determine the approved method of dewatering the area. Install the specified reinforcing steel. Check it with the design drawings. Provide a steel casing if need be.  Remove the steel casing after the pour.    To eliminate failures on your next building project, ensure that your Construction Manager or General Contractor has a QC (Quality Control) program and that the...
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From Raw Land to Rock-Solid: Your Guide to Site Clearing and Building Pads

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  Site Clearing and building Pads Preliminary Geological Review So, you are looking to develop a piece of property.  You may want to consider conducting a preliminary geotechnical review of your property.  You can go to the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) and review their Geological maps for your project site.  In this example, you will notice that the soil is named as a Moswell, Kurth, and Raylake soil. The Moswell soil has a high shrink-swell potential and low strength. The Kurth soil has a moderate shrink-swell potential. And the Raylake has a very high clay content and low strength. With this information, it would be wise to have a Geotechnical Firm conduct a study of your property to determine the best practice for developing it.  Geotechnical Investigation of your Property Set up your Geotech firm to conduct soil boring at your project site. Identify and lay out your borehole locations by surveying your intended building.  A Geotech rep...
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The Blueprint for a Perfect Construction Design-Build Proposal.

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  Design-Build Project Proposal Review   Four Building project Preliminary Drawings Value Engineering Suggestions Life Cycle Cost Analysis  A 7 Bay Storage Building 115’ x 40’  An alternate 12 Bay Storage Building 165 x 40’ Retail Building, 210’ x 40’  An Alternate 3-story Storage Building, 210’ x 40’   To review this Design-Build project, I presented preliminary 2D and 3D drawings and a construction estimate so that the Owner could review and make a decision on continuing with the project.  This preliminary estimate will help the Owner assess the feasibility early in their project review. It is a rough order of magnitude (ROM) of the construction costs that are based on my past similar projects. My initial estimate would be a square foot cost. I also provided a more detailed estimate based on the takeoff of the materials from the drawings.                   ...
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