For the engineer, foundation design is the compatibility between the nature of the soil at the project site and the needs of the structure in order to achieve the greatest amount of structural safety and the best amount of time and cost.
• Preparing a report on soil research and foundation recommendations is considered one of the basic preparatory work in the field of building and construction, to provide dataAnd the necessary recommendations for design and implementation needs. It also aims to ensure the safe behavior of the structure by achieving balance and stability of the foundations at shallow or deep depths with the soil conditions at the construction site. To achieve this goal, the soil report must contain the natural and mechanical soil characteristics at the site in terms of their impact on the design of the structure’s foundations according to its type, purpose, uses, permission for its movement, appropriate engineering behavior, and the economics involved in the construction process.
The Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering Research Institute is one of the research institutes affiliated with the National Housing and Building Research Center and has basic areas of work to serve development goals. These areas include national research, engineering consultations, laboratory and field tests, training, and codes.
Regarding research, the Institute follows a national approach based on evaluating the geotechnical characteristics of soil formations in Egypt, in addition to providing and documenting data and maps with modern systems for these formations and their characteristics in different regions, as well as studying the behavior of soils with widespread problems in Egypt, ground water and its relationship with soil and foundations, and preparing models for foundations and ground structures to study Behavior and compatibility of different types of foundations with different types of soil in Egypt, as well as studying soil movements and the balance of its formations in areas prone to collapse.
In the field of providing consulting services to the engineering sector, the Institute prepares soil research reports and foundation recommendations at various project sites, as well as conducting all laboratory and field tests, in addition to making structural designs for different types of foundations, dewatering and supporting the sides of excavations using the latest methods of modern structural design through the latest design programs.
In the field of training, the Institute participates in preparing training courses for engineers in the field of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering inside and outside the center.
• In the field of preparing codes, the Institute participates in the membership of the permanent committee and the specialized committees of the soil mechanics and foundation engineering code committees, and in preparing and updating these codes.