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FOUNDATION DESIGN

Foundation- Design
Considerations

Factors to be taken into consideration when

determining the type of the building foundations:
Function of the structure
Loads from the structure
Bearing capacity of foundation material
Total and differential settlement of foundation
Uplift forces acting on the foundation
Costs

Soil Bearing Capacity

The soil bearing capacity needs to be
determined. This can be done by:
Local or State Building Codes
Uniform Building Code (UBC)
Soil testing/analysis
Site inspection and simple soil testing
Soil borings taken at proposed foundation
locations

Foundations- Shallow
Shallow Footings- in Rochester, NY the base of
the footing must be 48 below ground surface.
Spread footing ( square or rectangular)- footing is
spread out over a broad area. Usually in low-rise
buildings
Strip Footing with load bearing walls, an example
would be basement walls, in which the building loads
are carried by the foundation walls with continuous
footings.
Grade Beams - as the name implies , these are beams
at grade. It may be built integral with the floor slab or
may be used for Pile caps.

Foundations - Deep
Pile Foundations - vertical structural
members that are forced into the ground by
pile drivers (similar to driving nails into wood)
Caissons similar to pile foundations, but
are created by auguring (drilling ) a deep hole
into the ground and then filling the hole with
concrete. Caissons may be belled at the
base. Steel reinforcement may also be used.
Caissons can extend to bedrock.

Foundations
Mat or raft foundations the entire
building is placed on one large continuous
footing. Typically used in locations where
the soil is weak/poor and bedrock is too
deep.
Mat foundations with caissons or piles
a combination of a mat foundation with
piles or caissons.

Soil Bearing Pressure

Spread Footings
Calculated Soil Bearing =
Load (pounds)
Area of Footing (sq.ft)
Compare to Allowable Soil
Bearing Capacity

Diminishing Soil Pressure

Critical zone
for
compaction

Soil
pressure cut
by at this
level
Soil
pressure cut
by 2/3 at
this level

W=footing
width

W
W

Building Type Guide

Short Span Buildings
10 to 40 feet bays

Flexible plan
Structural elements (columns) can determine spatial
relationships

Moderate Long-Span Buildings

40 to 140 feet bays
Need to consider structural depth of floor and roof in
the spatial planning

Building Type
Long-Span Buildings (> 150 feet )
Structural system determines the building's
image or visual statement

Reference Sources
Jefferis, A., & Madsen, D. A. (2001). Architectural Drafting
and Design. Albany, NY: Delmar, a division of Thomson
Learning.
Kane, K., & Onouye, B., (2002). Statics and Strength of
Materials for Architecture and Building Construction.(2nd
ed.). Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc
Shaeffer, R. E., (2002). Elementary Structures for
Architects and Builders (4th ed.). Columbus, OH: Prentice
Hall.
http://www.concretenetwork.com/concrete/footing_fundame
ntals/why_soils_matter.htm
http://www.emporis.com/en/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/lab/forces.html