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Mota-Engil Group

Fundação Manuel António da Mota

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Special Foundations

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We have been operating in the foundations market for more than 30 years, with more than 1,400 projects carried out in Europe (Portugal and Spain) and Africa.

Innovation is part of our DNA. We support sustainable growth and continually invest in training our teams and investing in state-of-the-art equipment. This allows us to better streamline construction processes and obtain a better quality/price ratio. ​We work with the aim of increasingly offering the best specialised solutions in the field of geotechnical works.

Strong foundations in projects that remain in history

The Special Foundations are segmented into 8 areas of activity: - Piles; - Micropiles; - Moulded walls; - Berlin-type containments; - Slope stabilisation; - Anchorage systems; - Geotechnical instrumentation - Injections.

Products and Services

Foundation and retaining piles, moulded in situ by rotary drilling of the ground, with diameters between 400 mm and 2000 mm and lengths of up to 60 m. Depending on the ground conditions, piles can be made using a variety of construction methods: ​- Continuous and Dry Auger Piles;​- Piles using Stabilising Fluid, Lost Mould Tube or Retrievable Tubing.​​

Piles

The drilling systems used to drill micropiles depend on the ground conditions. Our area uses the following: Down-hole and Surface Hammer; ​- Auger; ​- Crowns ​;- Triple T-Beam;- Drilling with or without the aid of an intubation liner.​The area carries out various types of micropiles with diameters of up to 300 mm and varying lengths. We specialise in​:- Pressure-injected high-strength steel tube micropiles;​- Micropiles in HEB Profiles sealed with Cement Grout.​​

Micropiles

We build retaining walls using moulded wall technology, with thicknesses ranging from 450 mm to 1200 mm and lengths of up to 50 m.​This technology consists of making reinforced concrete panels moulded in situ, by digging panels of the desired thickness and depth into the ground and then filling them with reinforced concrete.​​

Moulded Walls

For "Berlin" type retaining walls, both permanent and temporary, appropriate drilling equipment and other auxiliary injection and tensioning equipment is used.​The permanent ones are made up of reinforced concrete panels, with temporary or permanent anchorage systems, supported by vertical metal profiles. The temporary ones are made up of wooden beams placed between vertical metal profiles and reinforced by horizontal metal profiles and temporary anchorage systems.

Berlin-type containments

This area carries out slope support systems using nailing and shotcrete, passive or active nailing in steel rod, fibreglass, among others, injected with cement grout or resins using drilling methods adapted to the ground conditions.​The concrete is shot to varying thicknesses, either dry or wet, using appropriate equipment to convey the concrete by compressed air from the shotcrete machine to the application lance.

Slope Stabilisation

The permanent and temporary anchorage systems can be up to 50 metres long. They consist of cables or rods, both made of high-strength steel. For their execution we follow the inclination and lengths (free and sealing) set out in the project. The drilling methods are adapted according to the ground conditions, with the down-hole hammer, auger, crowns and triple t-beam being the most commonly used.

Anchorage systems

Geotechnical instrumentation work aims to monitor the behaviour of dams, embankments, excavations and retaining walls, as well as their impact on the terrain and surrounding structures.​The most commonly used devices in our area are:- Inclinometers;- Magnetic and Rod Extensometers;- Piezometers;- Fissureometers;- Clinometers;- Load Cells.In addition to these devices, we also carry out more specific ones, depending on the type of work to be monitored, as well as load tests on piles and micropiles.

Geotechnical Instrumentation

In this area, work is carried out on the injection of resins and cement injections with high mechanical resistance, adhesion, even in the presence of water, and the ability to penetrate cracks, with the aid of appropriate equipment.​The injection process is adapted to the actual conditions of the structure or terrain to be treated, as well as external factors in order to guarantee the complete filling of all voids.​Injections can be used in the following situations: treatment of dam foundations and injection of joints, consolidation injections in tunnels and repair of concrete structures.

Injections

Stabilisation of the northern cliff section, about 125 m long and with a maximum height of 45 m. Clearing and deforestation, nailing, shotcrete and mortared stone reprofiling work was carried out.

North Cliff of Azenhas do Mar

Construction of Ø1200mm foundation piles using lost pipe. The following work was carried out: Drilling to embed the piles in the rock mass.

Sines XXI Terminal

Peripheral containment was carried out on a curtain of Ø800mm piles.

Praça da Galiza metro station

For the work to extend these lines, the Special Foundations area carried out a number of works, in particular: execution of the boreholes in the section between Santos and Cais do Sodré stations, execution of the moulded retaining wall for the tunnel excavation, 0.60m and 0.80m thick and an average length of 24m (12.400 m2), Ø1000mm piles for the containment of the excavation of the Santos station shaft (5933m), 600kN anchorage systems in the beam of the Santos station shaft pile curtain (2018m), Ø800mm containment piles for the excavation of the accesses to Santos station and the tunnel (4280m), Ø800mm containment piles for the excavation of the trench between Av. D. Carlos I (3307m), Ø127 micropiles for reinforcing the foundations of buildings adjacent to Santos station (5082.23m) and Ø244 containment micropiles for excavating the CP - APL access and Lisbon Harbour Beltway (1957m).

Lisbon Metro - Yellow and Green Line

This project required the development of various works, such as:​ - Containment for vortex chamber: execution of peripheral containment with Ø600mm pile curtain (with shotcrete);​ - Chelas tunnel exit containment structure: execution of nailing and shotcrete;​ - Monsanto tunnel entrance containment structure: peripheral containment with Ø1000mm pile curtain.

Lisbon Drainage Tunnels

An intervention was carried out to prevent and mitigate the risk of landslides on slopes overlooking regional roads on the Cruzinhas slope (height:300 m | length:82m) in order to guarantee the safety conditions of the ER103 regional road between km 0+025. ​The work of clearing, cleaning and dismantling blocks, nailing at height, shotcrete, metal mesh and anchoring was essential for the work to be carried out properly.

Cruzinhas Slope - Madeira Island

Stabilisation work was carried out on 50 excavation and embankment slopes, using nailing, shotcrete, cable nets and DT nets, definitive anchoring and consolidation of railway tunnel lining massifs. This intervention was carried out over a length of 34 km in a railway environment using instrumentation and monitoring techniques for geotechnical control devices, Berlin-type containments and foundations for catenary massifs.

Modernisation of the Beira Alta line

Execution of moulded walls with thicknesses of 600mm, 800mm and 1000mm for the construction of the tunnel to bury the railway track in the city of León. Three pillar piles with a diameter of 1500mm were also made with a lost mould tube and centralisers to support the slab of the new León station.

Rail integration in León - Spain

Construction of foundation piles using recoverable pipes with diameters of 1500, 1200, 1000, 800 and 650mm for the foundations of all the structures to improve the connection between the A67 and A8 motorways in Torrelavega.

A67-Meseta motorway

Execution of foundation piles using 1500mm diameter recoverable pipes for the foundations of all the new structures in the construction of the new A-54 motorway, having executed 47m deep piles.

Lugo - Santiago motorway A54

A54 Motorway: Lugo - Santiago section

Execution of foundation piles using 1500 and 1200mm diameter recoverable pipes in the execution of a containment of a moving slope to contain the existing railway tracks, executing piles to a depth of 45ml.

Renedo-Guarnizo section and c-1 railway line

Renedo-Guarnizo section and C-1 railway line

Construction of micropiles using recoverable pipes with diameters of 250 and 220mm for the foundation of the plinths to increase the width of the N-621 road.