Civil Engineering and Construction - Introduction

Federal Bureau of Prisons, Williamsburg, SC

Client: Federal Bureau of Prisons
Consultant: ECS
Main Contractor: Hensel Phelps

This shooting range back stop was constructed with a 25' vertical height on a 1:1 slope. The embankment was stabilized in 1' lifts using GeoGrid. With the onset of a wet summer, the saturated embankment encountered a 1' shallow plane failure. The contractor, Hensel Phelps, could not line a firing range with a standard rip rap solution so the Platipus^®Anchored Reinforced Grid Solution (ARGS) was chosen to stabilize the embankment.

Geotechnical firm ECS of Greenville, South Carolina was introduced to Platipus^® ARGS. As the pull out resistance of the anchor could be field tested to meet the stabilization requirements, the Engineers felt comfortable incorporating it into their design. Using Platipus^® S4 ARGS Percussive Driven Earth Anchors (PDEAs) High Performance Turf Reinforcement Matting (HPTRM) to 2½' beyond the failure plane, the embankment was stabilized and the surface was protected against erosion.

This low impact solution allowed the contractor to use lightweight hand held equipment to install the system. It also eliminated the need for heavy equipment that would have been required to rebuild the berm.

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