Bearing Capacity

Overview

Bearing capacity is the capacity of soil to support the loads applied to the ground. The bearing capacity of soil is the maximum average contact pressure between the foundation and the soil which should not produce shear failure in the soil. Our innovative testing methods enables you to assess this in applications that include temporary works platforms for mobile crane pads or piling rigs, building and temporary structure foundations, tank farms, pavements and others.

To find out more,ย Contact Us.

Products

CPT Trailer Rig Cone Penetration Test A.P. van den Berg

Cone Penetration Test โ€“ CPT

  • Used for site characterisation and soil sampling
  • Digital CPT piezocones to measure cone tip resistance (qc), sleeve friction (fs), pore water pressure (u) & inclination (Ix/y)
  • Range of rigs from portable light-weight skids to crawler and truck mounted
  • Click on modules for down hole shear vane, seismic CPT, conductivity and magneto
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Dynamic CBR field mining site

Dynamic CBR

  • Measures California Bearing Ratio (CBR) directly in the field
  • Penetration test
  • Evaluate the mechanical strength of subgrades and base courses
  • Immediate repeatable results so that on-site decisions can be made straight away
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Automated DCP โ€“ eKODIAKยฎ Multi-Mass Automated DCP (1)

eKODIAKยฎ Multi-Mass Automated DCP

  • Portable site investigation method for evaluating soil strength
  • Depth per blow automatically recorded, improving data resolution
  • Immediate electronic data capture and results presentation so that on-site decisions can be made straight away
  • Varying the hammering energy enables both stiff and soft material to be assessed with higher resolution
  • Overcomes rod friction issues
  • Meets standard EN ISO 22476-2 standard
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GRIZZLYยฎ Dynamic Probing Super Heavy

  • Dynamic Probing Super Heavy (DPSH) rig with Variable Energy capability
  • Self propelled compact GRIZZLYยฎ Dynamic Probing rig (L 1.86m x W 0.89m x H folded 1.24m) for tight access
  • Used for compaction control, site investigation, geotechnical drillingย andย soil samplingย (windowless push tube sampling and Standard Penetration Test (SPT) split spoon sampling) for chemical and geotechnical analysis
  • Automated data capture and results presentation so on-site decisions can be made straight away
  • Meets NF P94-063 and EN ISO 22476-2 standards
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Light Weight Deflectometer ZFG3000 ZORN Bridge Construction

Light Weight Deflectometer

  • Used for compaction control and bearing capacity estimation
  • Unbound or partially bound layers (sub-grade, sub-base, base)
  • Measures the deflection and stiffness (modulus)
  • Immediate repeatable results so that on-site decisions can be made straight away
  • Meets ASTM E2835-21 (2021) standard and Test Method Q258A Dynamic Modulus of Deformation โ€“ Light Falling Weight Device โ€“ Accelerometer Type โ€“ (DTMR QLD) March 2021
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PANDAยฎ Instrumented DCP

PANDAยฎ Variable Energy DCP

  • Used for compaction control and site investigation
  • Portable method for evaluating soil strength
  • Immediate repeatable results so that on-site decisions can be made straight away
  • Overcomes traditional DCP rod friction issues
  • Good for testing in challenging conditions (e.g. steeply sloping ground, remote locations, soft and marshy ground, over-water or confined spaces).
  • Meets NF P 94-105 standard for compaction control
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Plate Load Test PLT Anix DIN 18134 and ASTM 1195 / ASTM 1196 bearing capacity

Plate Load Test

  • Used to determine the allowable and ultimate bearing capacity
  • Measures the load-deflection relationship
  • Suitable for pavement, foundation and temporary works platform investigation.
  • Immediate repeatable results so that on-site decisions can be made straight away
  • Meetsย DIN 18134ย andย ASTM 1195 / ASTM 1196ย standards
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Trusted by our clients

Select Plant Hire (Laing O'Rourke)
WANT Geotechnics
Wakefield Regional Council
CMW Geosciences
LBS Engineering
Protest Engineering
Red Earth Engineering
WSP Australia
Boom Logistics
Global Engineering & Construction
MPC Kinetic
South 32
Future Generations
Senversa
RJE Global
Macquarie Geotechnical
Life of Mine Engineering
Kleinfelder

Our Valued Partners:

Anix Logo Plate Load Test PLT
A.P. van Den Berg Logo CPT Cone Penetration Test
MIT Dresden Logo
SOL SOLUTION logo
Zorn Instruments Logo Light Weight Deflectometer

Insitutek Blogs

Existing pavement condition, prior to treatment

Addressing moisture ingress and heavy traffic loading for cohesive pavement materials โ€“ Case Study

May 7th, 2025

Belle Panganiban

Itโ€™s always rewarding when we can bring both our โ€œtestโ€ and โ€œimproveโ€ capabilities to the same project.

This was the case with a recent case study for the application of TERRA-3000ยฎ, our clay soil stabilisation product in the City of Ballarat, VIC, which we tested using the Light Weight Deflectometer.

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Bridge Approaches – Managing the High Risk Transition Zone between Flexible and Rigid Structures

March 27th, 2025

Belle Panganiban

A bridge approach transition zone is the area where a road or railway track transitions from the rigid structure of a bridge to the flexible embankment or road pavement, aiming to minimize abrupt changes in stiffness and potential issues like differential settlement.

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ICTG 2024

Celebrating the Success of the 5th International Conference on Transportation Geotechnics (ICTG) in Sydney

November 23rd, 2024

Belle Panganiban

The 5th International Conference on Transportation Geotechnics (ICTG), held in Sydney, marked a milestone in the geotechnical and transportation engineering community. Organized by the UTS Transport Research Centre (UTS-TRC), this prestigious event brought together over 450 delegates from 30 countries, making it a truly global gathering for experts in the field.

Read More