ABSTRACT
Of late years pile foundations are used extensively in connection with load increment on the soil. Often pile foundations are applied in comparative favorable ground conditions at the surface of the base. In such cases increase the bearing capacity of foundations and reduce construction cost are questions of first-rate importance. One of the ways to increase the bearing capacity of a piled foundation is taking into account soil resistance in the base of the raft. Piled raft is similar to shallow foundation and can transfer significant part of the load into the base. It allows reducing number of pile in the foundation or shortening their length. As a result building terms and foundation costs reduce considerably. However nowadays there is no reliable and suitable in design practice methods of calculation pile foundations with bearing rafts. In order to devise such methods we have analyzed the results of piled foundation tests fulfilled by various authors up to date and have carried out series of laboratory and field investigations.
