Sustainable precast concrete foundation system for residential construction

Abstract

Residential construction has changed little in decades. In North America, houses are constructed predominantly with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete basement foundations and “custom-built” wood platform – framing structures. To improve the productivity of residential construction, a precast concrete foundation (PCF) system was developed by the University of Alberta and its industrial partners. Although the PCF system can be built much faster and better than conventional CIP foundations, it has not been considered a viable alternative in residential construction due to the belief that it is costly and less flexible. To overcome this perception, special research efforts were made to address issues of manufacturability, constructability, and standardization. This paper proposes an innovative design of the PCF system that satisfies functional requirements, while obtaining a minimum total cost and achieving flexibility. The unique features include a modularized rib structure, external insulation, and simplified bolted connections. A comparative analysis between PCF and traditional CIP concrete foundation systems is also presented.