Engineering Foundations for Tall Buildings

Soil-structure interaction means different things to different people. Geotechnical engineers use SSI analyses to study how the above-ground and below-ground structures, and the supporting ground, interact and influence each other’s response under different loading demands, with a focus on the ground and foundation response. Structural engineers typically use SSI analyses to study how a superstructure responds under different loading demands for a compliant/flexible base by using equivalent foundation springs. In this article, we discuss the approach and results of SSI evaluations on the foundation and superstructure design of tall buildings. And, as geotechnical engineers, we focus on the SSI considerations and interactions with structural engineers during the evaluations and design process for three loading conditions: gravity, wind, and seismic.