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20 C h a p t e r 4 Introduction The web-based information and guidance system contains the vital information for the 46 geoconstruction technologies previously identified under SHRP 2 R02 Project Background in Chapter 1. The vital information allows for selecting, applying, designing, cost estimating, specifying, and moni- toring those geoconstruction technologies. The information and guidance system is a comprehensive toolkit of geotech- nical information to address all phases of decision making, from planning to design to construction to allow transporta- tion projects to be built faster, to be less expensive, and to last longer. Anyone involved in planning, design, and construction of transportation infrastructure will benefit from the informa- tion and resources available on the website. The target audi- ence of the information and guidance system is public agency personnel at the local, state, and federal levels. Other users will include engineering consultants, contractors, architect/engineer groups, and academics/students. The website allows immediate and automated access to the results of the SHRP 2 R02 research project. The overall con- cept of the information and guidance system is illustrated in Figure 4.1. The title for the website, Geotechnical Solutions for Transportation Infrastructure, comes from the objectives associated with the SHRP 2 R02 project. Programming for the guidance system is functionally complete. Internal review of the programming and documents has been completed. Minor revisions and additions are actively being incorpo- rated with additional review and comment cycles. The information and guidance system has intentionally avoided endorsing certain geoconstruction technologies over others. To the extent possible, naming specific manufacturers and contractors has also been intentionally avoided. The intent of the system is to offer a means of evaluating a particular geoconstruction technology. A thorough study of the informa- tion and guidance system should enable the user to determine where, when, and how a certain geoconstruction technology should be used (Terrel et al., 1979). Reference to two systems will be found in this report. The first system is the web-based information and guidance system, which refers to the entire website and contains a vast amount of technical and nontechnical information and guidance. A dynamic interactive selection system has been developed within the information and guidance system, as part of Tech- nology Selection. It is a knowledge-based decision support sys- tem. The term interactive selection system refers to the dynamic portion of the system that assists in identifying candidate technologies. Before detailing every aspect of the information and guid- ance system, the four primary components of the system, as illustrated in Figure 4.2, are described. The Catalog of Tech- nologies provides a listing of all the technologies. The infor- mation included in the Catalog of Technologies facilitates the technology transfer from the research project to everyday practice. The web-based system allows this information to be easily accessed. For each technology, the following documents are available as downloadable PDF files: ⢠Technology fact sheet ⢠Photos ⢠Case histories ⢠Design guidance ⢠Quality control and quality assurance (QC/QA) procedures ⢠Cost information ⢠Specifications ⢠Bibliography Technology Selection contains a listing of technologies by classification and an interactive tool to identify candidate tech- nologies for specific geoconstruction applications using proj- ect information and constraints. Final technology selection requires project-specific engineering. Before technology selection, site-specific conditions and constraints must be identified. The Geotechnical Design Process presents an overview of the considerations involved in Web-Based Information and Guidance System
21 evaluating site conditions and implementing a geoconstruc- tion technology. This website contains technical terms and industry specific jargon. Abbreviations and Glossary terms have been compiled to assist the user in understanding the acronyms and termi- nology used throughout this website and in its documents. Website Structure The interrelationship of the four primary components (see Figure 4.2) with the other features of the site is illustrated in Figure 4.3. The information on the individual Technology Information page forms the technology transfer to the user for a specific technology. One of the goals of the Technology Selection component is to refer the user to the appropriate individual Technology Information page, as shown in Fig- ure 4.3. The other features of the website support the four primary components or usability of the website. Information and Guidance System Website The Geotechnical Solutions for Transportation Infrastruc- ture information and guidance system website is currently housed in a server at the Iowa State University Institute for Transportation (www.geotechtools.org). The site will remain password protected through the com- pletion of beta testing and will be publicly released with approval by the project sponsors. homepage The homepage for the web-based information and guidance system is shown in Figure 4.4. The title of the web page is shown across the top. Along the left side of the page are but- tons to the pages, as shown in Figure 4.3, which include Home, Project Background, Geotechnical Design Process, Catalog of Technologies, Technology Selection, Glossary, Abbreviations, Frequently Asked Questions, Links, Submit a Comment, and About this Website, that are always avail- able to the user. The homepage highlights the four main parts of the system: Geotechnical Design Process, Catalog of Technologies, Technology Selection, and Glossary. The entirety of the text included on the homepage is shown on Figure 4.4. Figure 4.1. Information and guidance system overall concept. Knowledge and DocumentsProgram InterfaceMultiple Users Javascript Coldfusion Database Geotechnical Solutions For Transportation Infrastructure Technology Documents Additional Resources Figure 4.2. Relationship of the four primary components of the information and guidance system. Information and guidance system Catalog of technologies Technology selection Geotechnical design process Abbreviations and glossary
22 Shrp 2 r02 project Background The project background page contains an acknowledgement of sponsorship and provides a brief introduction to the SHRP 2 R02 project, the research team, and the tasks com- pleted for the project. Geotechnical Design process The Geotechnical Design Process web page is included to alert the user to the basic background information needed to con- duct geotechnical design such as project loading conditions and constraints, soil site conditions, and evaluation of alterna- tives. The R02 project encompassed such a wide range of pos- sible projects and geoconstruction technologies that a detailed design process could not be developed to cover all the possi- bilities. This system provides tools for project-specific design engineering and does not replace an engineerâs judgment. The process described does introduce the basic evaluation process for geoconstruction technologies. This page refers the user to the Links web page where additional information can be found to assist the user in the design process. Catalog of technologies The Catalog of Technologies web page lists the 46 geoconstruc- tion technologies in the system; a screenshot of this page is presented in Figure 4.5. The list of technologies in the cata- log is shown under SHRP 2 R02 Project Background in Chap- ter 1. The name of each technology is a hot-link button on the website that takes the user to a web page for that technology, which is discussed in more detail in the next section. A link is provided on the page to view the Catalog of Technologies with SHRP 2 R02 ratings. A Catalog of Technologies with Ratings web page was developed to assist the user in comparing similar technologies with regard to the SHRP 2 R02 ratings for degree of establish- ment, rapid renewal, minimum disruption of traffic, and production of long-lived facilities. The later three are the specific objectives of the SHRP 2 Renewal program. Figure 4.3. Information and guidance system website structure. Submit a Comment Home Page Links Frequently Asked Questions Technology Selection Glossary Geotechnical Design Process SHRP 2 R02 Project Background Technologies by Classification Interactive Selection System Submit Technology Specific Information Individual Technology Information Selection System Summary Catalog of Technologies Abbreviations About This Website
23 Individual Technology Information The downloadable documents provided on the individual Technology Information web page for each technology pro- vide the mechanism for technology transfer for the project. The intent of the entire information and guidance system is to guide the user to the information provided on this web page for each technology. An illustration of the structure of the downloadable documents is presented in Figure 4.6. An example of an individual Technology Information web page is shown in Figure 4.7. The information documents are downloadable as Adobe PDF files. The technology fact sheets are two-page sum- mary information sheets that provide basic information on the technology, including basic function, general description, geo- logic applicability, construction methods, SHRP 2 applica- tions, complementary technologies, alternate technologies, potential disadvantages, example successful applications, and key references. The photos show the equipment or methods used in the technology and can be valuable to get a perspective on the technology. Case histories provide a summary of project(s), which were preferably conducted by a United States state transportation agency (STA), and contain project loca- tion, owner, and performance information, and STA project engineer contact information. The design guidance and QC/ QA documents provide a summary of recommended proce- dures for the technology. The recommended design and QC/QA procedures come from an assessment of the current state of the practice of each technology. In cases where a Figure 4.4. Information and guidance system homepage.
24 Figure 4.5. Catalog of Technologies web page. Figure 4.6. Concept of individual Technology Information web pages. Individual Technology Information Catalog of Technologies Technology Fact Sheet Photographs DesignGuidance QC/QA Cost Information Specifications Case Histories Case Histories Bibliography Additional Resources* * Not available for all technologies. Cost Estimating Spreadsheet*
25 well-established procedure (e.g., an FHWA manual) exists, that procedure is recommended. In cases of technologies with multiple procedures but with no established procedure, the assessment led to a recommendation of procedure(s) to use. For a few technologies, design or QC/QA procedures were established based on additional research conducted during the project. For most technologies, there are two cost docu- ments available. Cost information provides an explanation of the cost item specific to the technology, generally emanating from the pay methods contained in specifications. Available regional and state cost numbers, generally from DOT bid tabs or national databases, are compiled for each technology. The second document consists of an Excel spreadsheet developed to estimate costs for the use of the technology and lists items (e.g., mobilization cost) that must be quantified to estimate the cost of applying a particular technology. The spreadsheet Figure 4.7. Example of an individual Technology Information page.
26 can only be accessed as a link through the cost information document. The second document could not be prepared for a few technologies due to insufficient information. The spread- sheet can be modified by the user to estimate specific project cost based on either a preliminary or final design. A specifica- tions document is provided for each technology and provides a summary of example specifications identified during the project. The final document available for each technology is a bibliography compiled during the research project. It lists key references for that technology. Technology Selection A technology selection system was developed to aid the user in identifying potential geoconstruction technologies for a user-defined set of project conditions. The selection system contains both a listing of the technologies sorted by category and a dynamic interactive selection system. A schematic of the technology selection system and the interlink with the Technology Information web page is illustrated in Figure 4.8. The interactive selection system is entered after the user acknowledges the disclaimers and limitations of the interac- tive selection system. The start of the selection system is shown in Figure 4.9. In the classification system, the technologies are grouped into the following categories: ⢠Earthwork construction ⢠Densification of cohesionless soils ⢠Embankments over soft soils ⢠Cutoff walls ⢠Increased pavement performance ⢠Sustainability ⢠Soft ground drainage and consolidation ⢠Construction of vertical support elements ⢠Lateral earth support ⢠Liquefaction mitigation ⢠Void filling Thus an experienced engineer can access solutions according to particular categories of problems. The interactive selection system provides the user the oppor- tunity to access potential technologies based on four applica- tions, as illustrated in Figure 4.10. After the user identifies potential technologies, the technology catalog can be accessed, which includes information necessary for additional screen- ing (i.e., depth limits, applicability to different soil types, accept- able groundwater conditions, applicability to different project types, ability to deal with project-specific constraints, and general advantages and disadvantages). The interactive selec- tion system points the user back to the technology-specific information found in the catalog. The interactive selection system is discussed in detail in Chapter 5. Glossary and Abbreviations Terms were identified during completion and review of the assessments for the 46 technologies. The term definitions pro- vide reference to existing documents where possible. The Glos- sary page is provided in an alphabetical listing sentence with a hot-linked system of the letters for ease of use. Where a clear definition does not exist, the terms will be defined as used in this system. In addition to the glossary, a list of abbreviations was compiled to assist the user with the myriad of abbreviations used in the practice of applying geoconstruction technologies. Frequently Asked Questions To assist the user, a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) web page was developed. The questions shown in Figure 4.11 are answered on the FAQ web page. Responses to the questions have been written for use with the website and contain links to various pages on the website. Submit a Comment A Submit a Comment web page was developed to capture comments. The need for a mechanism to capture comments was repeatedly confirmed after presenting the system to user groups during its development. The Submit a Comment system captures each input in a database, which will allow comment Figure 4.8. Conceptual layout of technology selection. Technology Selection Individual Technology Information Technologies by Classification Interactive Selection System Interactive Selection System Summary (in a new window) Interactive Selection System Output (PDF)
27 Figure 4.9. Technology Selection web page. sorting during comment review. Additionally, as a supplement to the Submit a Comment system, a mechanism to allow users to upload technology-specific information was developed. The submission of files is captured in the database for future sorting. An addition to this submission feature is the require- ment for the user to add a statement discussing why the infor- mation being submitted should be considered for inclusion in the system. Links Many state and federal departments have developed techni- cal information that provides additional information regard- ing selecting, implementing, and designing projects with geo construction technologies. Some organizations that sup- port geoconstruction technologies are also shown on this page. Proprietary or for-profit links were not considered for inclusion. Users wishing to suggest additional links can do so with the Submit a Comment form. About This Website An About This Website page was developed to provide an introduction to the purpose of the website, which is to dis- seminate the research results developed for SHRP 2 R02, Geo- technical Solutions for Soil Improvement, Rapid Embankment Construction, and Stabilization of the Pavement Working Platform.
28 Additional Resources Additional resources are provided throughout the website as hot links in the area(s) where the resources could benefit the user. Three additional resources are described in the follow- ing paragraphs. A Userâs Guide to the Information and Guidance System was prepared and is included as Appendix A. The Userâs Guide to the Information and Guidance System provides a brief introduction to the website and examples of how to use the website. The Userâs Guide to the Information and Guidance System will be available at the website. Figure 4.10. Interactive Selection System web page. A White Paper on Integrated Technologies for Embank- ments was developed to assist users in identifying possible combinations of geoconstruction technologies, which was required because the selection system leads users only to indi- vidual technologies. The White Paper on Integrated Tech- nologies for Embankments will be available throughout the interactive selection system. A White Paper for Reinforced Soil Slope Facing details was prepared to assist users with implementation of facing options for the reinforced soil slope technology. The White Paper for Reinforced Soil Slope Facing will be available through the Reinforced Soil Slope Technology Information web page.
29 Figure 4.11. Frequently Asked Questions web page.
