Soil reinforcement standard is revised

1 August 2016

BSI, the business standards company, has revised BS 8006-1:2010 Code of practice for strengthened/reinforced soils and other fills. The use of reinforcement in soils has become an accepted technique for the construction of retaining walls, steep slopes and basal strengthening. The standard provides recommendations and guidance for the application of reinforcement techniques to soils, as fill or in situ, and to other fills.

BS 8006-1 enables the civil and structural engineering industries to use consistent and safe design method for the construction of reinforced earthworks. The use of reinforced soil can bring significant benefits to those who own or are impacted by earthworks, such as infrastructure owners and neighbours. When planning infrastructure developments, reinforced earth techniques permit a reduction in land take and also allow enhancement of existing earthworks without further encroaching on surrounding land. 

Using BS 8006-1 reduces the impact on the environment as alternatives include either increased land take or construction using less sustainable products and methods. Additionally, reinforced soil is much less expensive in comparison to traditional earth retaining structures, it is rapid to build and has many technical advantages if structures need to be built on poor ground.

This code of practice has been revised and updated to include information about new methods of soil reinforcement and to bring the document in line with BS EN 1997-1:2004, NA to EN 1997-1:2004 and BS EN 14475:2006.

Anthony Burd, Head of Built Environment at BSI said: “BS 8006-1 is a crucial piece of guidance for the civil and structural engineering community. As an example, a great many projects for the highway authorities in the UK (Highways England, Transport Scotland, Welsh Government and Department of Regional Development NI) have relied on this standard, and those related to it, when it comes to safely developing land for transport. This is just one area where BS 8006-1 can be applied, and it has wide benefits for the construction industry and asset owners alike.”

What has been revised:

• Loading tables have been updated with reference to Eurocode loadings
• Clarifies ambiguous references within slip circle analyses as found in various parts of the Standard for slopes and foundations 
• The Blockwall specification has been updated

BS 8600-1 is of importance to consulting engineers, designers, suppliers of reinforced soil structures, manufacturers of reinforcement products, construction managers, construction engineers and planning engineers involved in the design, construction and maintenance of walls and abutments, slopes and foundations. 

It was developed using a collaborative consensus-based approach with input from industry experts such as Association for Consultancy and Engineering, Association of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Specialists, Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation/Zinc Information Centre, Federation of Piling Specialists, Highways England, Institution of Civil Engineers and International Geosynthetics Society.