SOIL INVESTIGATION

REPORT

Proposed Additional Floor of an Existing

Commercial/Residential Building

Located at
Lopez Jaena Street,
Ormoc City, Leyte

Owner:
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

Submitted by:
ENGR. BENEDICT B. BANQUIL, BSC, MEngg IPM

1. PURPOSE AND SCOPE

This report presents the result of our geotechnical investigation for the proposed
additional third floor of a commercial/residential building owned by Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola
in accordance to the latest National Building Code of the Philippines and National
Structural Code of the Philippines. The purpose of this investigation is to reevaluate the
in-situ soil parameters so as to determine if there is a need to strengthen the existing
foundation.

The

proposed

construction

of

an

additional

third

floor

of

commercial/residential building is located at Lopez Jaena Street, Ormoc City, Leyte

Based upon our review of documents submitted and discussion with the Project
Engineer/Contractor, it is our understanding that the proposed development will be the
construction of an additional third floor with a roof truss.
The scope of the work performed during our investigation included the following:

Review of the available literature and maps pertaining to geotechnical

conditions at the site surrounding the area.

Review of the estimated engineering properties of site materials.

Engineering analysis to develop geotechnical recommendations and design

parameters.

Preparation of this report including conclusions and recommendations for

development

2. SITE AND SURFACE OBSERVATIONS

The proposed construction site is located specifically at Lopez Jaena Street, Ormoc
City, Province of Leyte as shown in Figure 1. Geographically, Ormoc City is located
Latitude 11d 00m 26.59s N, Longitude 124d 36m 28.46s E, in a cove fronting Ormoc
Bay as shown in Figure 2.
In terms of topography, the area is relatively flat and is just a few meters above sea
level.
The main soil type at the proposed area is San Miguel Soil as shown in the Soil Map,
Figure 3. The San Miguel soils have yellowish brown gravelly clay; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, friable, very sticky plastic; few fine medium pores;
many moderately thick clay films on rock fragments; strongly acid; and abrupt angular
boundary.
Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

Originally, the natural ground level (NGL) is about the same level as the existing road.
Site drainage is mainly by gravity to the existing open drainage facilities located along
the main road.

3. SITE SEISMICITY/GEOLOGIC HAZARD

Geologic hazards that occur within the area in the recent years include seismic
shaking, liquefaction, landslides, and flooding events. Liquefaction and flooding are likely
to affect the site, though of less impact, due to its topographic condition, the clayey
nature of the existing soil, and the presence of water at the above the base of the
footing. Landsliding is not considered a hazard because the site is located at the flat
terrain.
However, the most likely geologic hazard with great impact to the site would be
ground shaking in the event of a large earthquake. Ormoc City is located few kilometers
away from Central Leyte Fault Line a major fault line traversing the island of Leyte, as
shown in the Map, Figure 4. From the Seismicity Map, Figure 5, the area is within the
periphery of the zone with dense seismic activity which indicates that the area is
constantly shaken by an earthquake. However, the number of earthquakes per year with
magnitude 5 and greater is less than 1 as shown in Figure 6.

The peak ground

acceleration of the location is between 4.0 to 4.8 m/s2 (or 0.5 g) with a ten percent
(10%) probability of exceedance in 50 years as shown in Figure 7.
Even if the structural engineers provides designs in accordance with the applicable
codes for seismic design, the possibility of damage occurring cannot be ruled out if
moderate-to-strong ground shaking occurs as result of a violent earthquake. Based on
this condition, the structure should be designed in accordance with the latest National
Structural Code of the Philippines (NSCP) criteria for seismic design parameters as
follows:
Near Source Factor - Type A
(Table 208-4 and 208-5, p2-39, Figure 208-2C, NSCP)
Seismic Zone - 4 use Z Factor = 0.40
(Figure 208-1, NSCP)

Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

4. SOIL INVESTIGATION
The site investigation included subsurface investigation of the site soil condition and
laboratory testing. The subsurface exploration consisted of one deep excavation or
borehole. The approximate location of the excavation is shown in Fig 8. The purpose of
the excavations was to delineate the subsurface conditions in the area of the proposed
improvements.

Soil and rock conditions encountered in the test pit excavation were

logged by visual and tactile methods properly.

During the excavation, soil samples

recovered from test pit were placed in moisture resistant containers and transported to
the laboratory for testing. Excavation was then backfilled upon completion.
They were tested in the laboratory for particle size gradation (ASTM D422-63),
Atterberg limits (ASTM D4318-05), and natural moisture content (ASTM D2216-05) for
the purposes of classifying according to the Unified Soil Classification System (USCS).
The layer formations of the soil at the site from the ground surface, as observed,
consist of 0.0m to 2.0m thick of silty soil layer and sand and gravel layer thereafter.
Groundwater was encountered 3.0 meter below the natural ground level.

5. RECOMMENDATIONS
The following are the recommendations for the proposed additional third floor of the
existing commercial/residential building with respect to geotechnical condition of the site:
a. The columns should be connected with tie beams at the ground level.
b. The structural engineer should check the existing size of the footings based on the
given design parameters and increase its sizes if necessary.
c. Allowable bearing pressure: 200 kPa or based on the presumptive load-bearing
values (see Table 304-1 NSCP 2010).
d. Depth of the footing: 2.0 meters below the natural ground level (NGL). Water
accumulating at the bottom of the excavation, if found, should be pump out prior to
pouring of concrete.
e. The foundation concrete should be at least Type I with a maximum water/cement
ratio of 0.50 by weight. Minimum unconfined compressive strength and reinforcement
condition should be in accordance with structural engineering requirements. In addition,

Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

NSCP Code recommendations should be followed in terms of minimum reinforcement

conditions for shrinkage and temperature stresses.
f. Use SE, Soft Soil Profile

6. OTHERS CONSIDERATIONS
Other design considerations are as follows:
Surface drainage. Provision shall be made for the control and drainage of the water
around the building and ensure that scour will not threaten such structures through
adequate embedment. It is recommended that appositive drainage be provided so that
water flows away from the foundations. Two percent drainage away from the foundation is
recommended. Surface water should be directed to street canals.
Sidewalks/Flatworks.

Concrete flatworks should have adequate joints for crack

control, a minimum of 100 mm in thickness, and reinforced with minimum of 10 mm DSB

on-center, each way (place steel rebar at mid-height of the concrete section).
Inspections.

Supplemental consulting will include review of final plans and

geotechnical services during construction. This office should be contacted for review of
finals plans for improvements. In addition, the soil engineer should be involved during
construction to monitor the geotechnical aspects of the development (i.e., foundation
excavations). During construction, it is recommended that this office verify site
geotechnical conditions and conformance with the intentions of the recommendations for
construction. Although not all possible geotechnical observation and testing services are
required by the government agencies, the more reviews performed, the lower the risk of
future problems.
Site safety. The contractor is the party responsible for providing a safe site. The
geotechnical engineer will not direct the contractors operations and cannot be
responsible for the safety of personnel other than his own representatives on-site. The
contractor should notify the owner if unsafe conditions are anticipated. At the time of
construction, if the geotechnical consultant considers condition unsafe, the contractors,
as well as the owners representative, will be notified.

Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

7. CLOSURE
The geotechnical investigation was performed using the degree of care and skill
ordinarily exercised, under similar circumstances, by geotechnical engineers practicing in
this or similar localities.

No warranty, expressed or implied, is made as to the

conclusions and professional advice included in this report.

The samples taken during the subsurface exploration and used for testing and
observations are believed to be representative of the entire area. However, soil and
geologic conditions can vary significantly between test pits. As in many developments,
conditions revealed by excavations may at variance with preliminary findings. If this
occurs, the changed conditions must be evaluated by the geotechnical engineer and the
design should be adjusted or an alternate design should be recommended.

Submitted by
PRC NO.
VALID UNTIL
PTR N0./Date
CTC No./Date
TIN NO.

Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola

: ENGR. BENEDICT B. BANQUIL

Civil Engineer
: 57247
: January 24,2017
:
:
: 142-062-451

FIGURES AND RESULTS

Soil Investigation
Mr. Ruvinieu Mendola