Octicon, the prefab core for combined piles
A close collaboration between BTE company Lodewikus and Gebr. Van 't Hek Funderingstechnieken led to the development of the Octicon, a high-quality octagonal prestressed foundation pile.
The idea behind the octagonal Octicon is the more optimal use of the space in the drilling or piling tube. An octagonal foundation pile fills this drilling or piling tube more effectively. This means less space needs to be filled up, which results in the use of less grout. The new prefab core even ensures that up to 30% more load can be carried compared to a square pile of similar dimensions. This is a major benefit with the increasing load on foundations in the Netherlands.
The first Octicon project is already in production; at the Amsterdam Zuidas a unique residential tower at the Gustav Mahlerlaan is being built. Due to the heavy load on the foundations, the depth of the load-bearing layers and the design of this residential tower, innovation in the foundation design was requested. A total of 253 Octicon piles with a 430 mm2 diameter are used in this project.
