FAQ

Question

I downloaded your VLoad free software, the lateral loading function doesn't work. Is there any particular reason why? We are predominately designing capping beams to transfer lateral loading from bollard pulls, this would be a useful function.

Answer

To use a lateral load (horizontal load), you need to select the option ‘With fixed console’ in the ‘System data’, with a minimum embedment depth of 18 cm. See printscreen below.

If you selected this option, added a horizontal load, and it does not work, your loading might be out of the scope of the design software capabilities, or there might be a bug in the software. In any of these cases, just send us a sketch with the geometry and loadings and we will analyse your problem more in detail.

Question

For underground car parks (UCPs) below the groundwater level, do we need to drive the steel sheet piles down to an impervious layer (clay) to avoid problems with buoyancy and/or watertight connections between the sheet piles and the bottom slab?

Answer

Steel sheetpile wall does not always need to be driven down to an impervious clay layer. It depends on the soil and groundwater flow conditions. If the soil is too pervious, and the contractor cannot cope with the water ingress suing a standard pumping system, then a thick concrete bottom slab poured under water can be an alternative (cf. brochure 'Underground car parks - Guide book - NL - 2018'). In that case, in the final stage, one may have to anchor the bottom slab against buoyancy (Archimède) using vertical anchors / micropiles.


For the horizontal water seapage through the interlocks, seal welding of the interlocks can be done after excavation (without any sealing system inside the interlocks before installation). Seal-welding is quite expensive, so in some UCPs, the owner decided to accept a little bit of water passing through the interlocks. However, water flow through the interlocks should be prevented if the sheet pile wall is coated on its visible face for aesthetical reasons.


Basic details of a connection ssp / bottom slab are shown in our ‘Impervious steel sheet pile wall brochure’, on page 43. In general, a horizontal membrane is fixed to a horizontal steel plate that is welded onto the sheet piles. Alternatively, an expansive joint fixed on the sheet pile backed up with a special injection hose can be as effective (and cheaper). Small cracks in the slab can be filled with the injected grout (if necessary afterwards), and the expansion of the joint should be sufficient to fill any small gaps between the sheet piles and the slab. Studs fixed to the sheet pile wall can replace the welding of rebars to the sheet piles.

Question

I have installed the software and when I launched it the first time, it asked me for the serial code. I found it in on the webpage where I downloaded the installation file, entered it in the field, but I got a message stating the activation failed. What shall I do?

Answer

The automatic activation process is done over internet, but even when you have access to the internet, it unfortunately does not always work. The main reason is that nowadays computers are protected by a firewall that closes the ports required for the automatic activation.


The manual activation procedure, described on page 10 of the installation manual of the software, which is normally provided with the installation package, takes less than 10 minutes and works in almost all the cases.


However, should this manual activation fail too, please contact our technical department and we will do our best to solve the problem quickly: sheetpiling@arcelormittal.com.

Depending on soil conditions and type of application, steel sheet piles can be re-used several times: generally speaking, they can be driven 5 to 10 times before being scraped. In case of damage to the head or the tip due to installation, affected parts can be simply cut off, and the rest of the pile can be re-used.

Notes

• when re-using sheet piles on the same project, we recommend to order slightly longer piles than required to take into account damage to the head or tip. Alternatively, for large projects, ordering a few spare piles allows for splicing of damaged piles.
• re-using reduces significantly the environmental impact of the steel sheet piles

QUESTION

The handbook of the software states that the maximum loss of steel thickness of a sheet pile section is 7.0 mm. Why this limitation?

ANSWER

The software Durability uses a database with reduced section properties (section modulus, …). These properties were calculated based on simplified assumptions: uniform corrosion on one side of the sheet pile,...

Some sheet pile sections are still fit for purpose for losses of steel thickness above 7.0 mm, but our engineers believe that in such cases, a more rigorous calculation of the reduced section properties should be used. Please contact us for more information.

QUESTION

Le calcul de l’aire de cisaillement projetée A_v ne correspond pas à la formule (5.6) de l’Eurocode 3‑5.

RÉPONSE

La valeur de l’aire de cisaillement A_v dans le logiciel est renseigné en cm²/m, donc par mètre linéaire de rideau, tout comme les valeurs de W_el, M, V, etc.


Les formules de l’Eurocode 3‑5 sont exprimées par élément / par section transversale. On retrouve les valeurs par mètre linéaire du logiciel Durability en divisant la formule de l'Eurocode par la largeur de la palplanche, par exemple en divisant par 0.8 m pour une palplanche de type AZ‑800.

QUESTION

Is there a demo version of the software AMRetain? If not, how can I test the software before purchasing it?

ANSWER

AMRetain is a quite sophisticated and powerful software for the design of steel sheet piles. We do not supply a demo version, but in case of interest, an engineer from our technical department can schedule a physical meeting / webconference to present all the features of the software.

Notes

• AMRetain was developed to be used by experienced engineers,
• the price of the software is very attractive. Our goal is to promote the use of advanced design methods, but we do not intend to compete with commercial software.

Question

When I launch the software Durability under Windows 10, I get following message ‘error code 1722’.

Answer

The software Durability loads the default printer configuration during launching. It crashes if no default printer is available (it assumes that there is always a default printer installed).


Solution: select a default printer in your Windows operating system. If you don’t have a physical printer, Microsoft’s XPS or any pdf printer should work.


Please contact our technical department if the problem persists (e-mail sheetpiling@arcelormittal.com).