USS Steel Sheet Piling Design Manual

Course Summary:

This manual is directed to the practicing engineer concerned with safe, economical designs of steel sheet pile retaining structures. The content is directed basically toward the designer’s two primary objectives: overall stability of the structural system and the integrity of its various components.

Emphasis is placed on step-by-step procedures for estimating the external forces on the structure, evaluating the overall stability, and sizing the sheet piling and other structural elements. Graphs and tables are included to aid the designer in arriving at quick solutions.

Three basic types of sheet pile structures are considered:

1. cantilevered and anchored retaining walls,
2. braced cofferdams and
3. cellular cofferdams.

Consideration is also given to the design of anchorage systems for walls and bracing systems for cofferdams.

Learning Objective:

The design procedures included in this manual are in common use today by most engineers involved in the design of sheet pile retaining structures. These methods have consistently provided successful retaining structures that have performed well in service.

However, in using these procedures, one should not be lulled into a false sense of security about the accuracy of the computed results. This is especially true with regard to lateral earth pressures on retaining structures. The simplifying assumptions inherent in any of these procedures and their dependence on the strength properties of the soil provide only approximations to reality.

Review the quiz before studying the course.

Course Content

Course Author: American Society of Civil Engineers