ABSTRACT
The increasing importance of ground improvement in general, and the rising demand for the deep vibratory methods of vibro compaction and vibro replacement stone columns in particular, prompted engineering societies in many countries to work out standards, specifications, and notes of guidance to support good practice in this specialized field of construction industry. In the United States, preference is given to case-by-case specifications that often accommodate the needs of the specific project in a better way. These and the guideline specifications reflect experts’ knowledge in the technical field as well as in contractual affairs and serve for both design-and-build and for measured contracts. Vibro concrete columns represent a variation of small diameter in-situ concrete piles and should, from a contractual point of view, be considered accordingly. The establishment and on-site control of the load carrying capacity and settlement performance should generally be by standard load testing, only in exceptional cases and with sufficient experience should dynamic load testing be performed.
