Screw Piling
Australian Piling experts
Our Screw Piling product is the cheapest, quickest and strongest screw foundation system in today’s market. Unlike the traditional helical and multi fin cast helix used by the Australian Screw Pile market, our robust and rigid single helix no longer restricts the structural integrity of a screw pile.
Screw piles transfer building loads via the shaft (typically CHS section, 76mm dia – 273mm dia) to the helix plate, which is located at the bottom of the shaft. Sizes and thicknesses of each member is engineer designed to allow for all design loads and geotechnical conditions as per your project.
APE entered the Screw Pile market as an alternate contractor and has shown a diverse attitude in catering to a more affordable, stronger and engineered Steel pile technology, rather than duplicating the existing helical / multi fin offer available from our competitors.
In simple words, the strength of a helical plate screw pile is limited in structural strength and capacity; because the thickness of the multi steel plates / fins welded to the shaft are much thinner and not equivalent to our product in anyway. This means as the load transfers through to the shaft, it will circle its way through 2-3 helical thin plates making it end bearing on the final plate. Yet, our product uses only one heavy duty thick helix plate / fin which is thicker than the combined multi fins / helical plates used by other contractors. Our helical plates vary from 8mm up to 36mm in thickness. Our product is engineered, tested and accredited. We take confidence in our approach and proposals towards any engineer and ensure our design is backed up and warranted by the Australian standard and an Engineered Certificate.
Complying with the Australian Standard: AS 2159 – Section 8. APE screw pile product allows engineers, developers, builders, homeowners to specify APE Piles with full confidence.
Screw Pile (Screw Piles) Contractors with the Difference
We differentiate ourselves from our competitors by practising strong and old school foundation principles. Communication and understanding of your project specification requirements is our first approach. We will work with your engineer and explain to you the design figures stipulated and how we can comply or provide you with an alternate cost saving solution. Our product and service in Sydney cannot be beaten in strength, design life, durability and engineering. We believe in simple methodology, high grade quality steel and support Australian suppliers and fabricators.
Our Steel pipes and helix have been locally tested and certified by Australian Testing Facilities to achieve 450 Grade, which is higher than our competitors whom are providing the market with only 350 or less.
Our series of steel screw piles available commence from 60kN pile Safe working load (also known as 6 tonne) and up to 1300kN pile safe working load (also known as 130 tonne). In some cases, we can also pair and group several piles together to achieve higher loads stipulated on your project to cater for Lift Cores and Stair Wells etc.
There are many benefits of screw pile over other piling methods:
- No Spoil Removal Required
- Half the Cost of a Concrete Pile* – Extremely Cost Affective
- Half the Time of a Concrete Bored Pile*
- Half the Mess and traffic encountered on Site i.e. No Concrete Trucks, Steel Cages Concrete Pumps and Heavy large Rigs needed.
- Up to 20 times faster installation then any driven piles,
- Easy connection to footings and pile caps
- No Vibration encountered
- No dewatering requirements
- Can be Re-usable, recyclable, east to Drill back out
- Suitable for all soil types,
- Installed using calibrated torque correlation to soil type and strength.
- Full engineered Calculation, Design and Certification provided
- No On site Engineer inspection required
- Can Drill As Deep as required up to 30m deep
- No Open holes / Bunting required
- Fixed Prices can be Offered
- Can Access tight sites with widths of 1.75m and heights of 1.60m
Frequently Asked Questions
Our screw piles use a single, heavy-duty helix plate engineered for superior strength and end-bearing capacity. Unlike alternate helicast or multi-turn systems available in the market, our thicker helix (8mm–36mm) offers improved structural performance, durability and load transfer. This results in a stronger, more reliable foundation system that meets Australian Standards and engineering requirements. Our helix are more cabale to withstand corrosion conditions than others. We also have the largest and thickest discs in the NSW Market, we can customise the sizes to suit any condition. Where as the alternate helixes are limited to 600mm diameter and 10mm thick.
Our equipment and pile designs have allowed installation up to 38 metres deep too date, depending on geotechnical conditions and design loads. We use calibrated torque correlation to ensure each pile reaches the required capacity before installation is certified.
No they do not work on all soil types . Our screw piles are engineered for performance across most soil conditions, including sand, clay, mixed profiles and even hard materials. The heavy-duty teeth and helix design allow the pile to cut through tough layers without damaging the shaft or plate. Typically Screw Piles are used in Sandy sites , Sand over Clay, Clay over Rock. However if you have a site where the rockshelf is within 1m from slab level, then this is not a ideal for screw piles
Screw piling requires no spoil removal, no concrete, no steel reinforcement cages, and no large machinery, significantly reducing time, traffic and site disruption. Installation is typically up to 10 times faster than traditional driven or bored piling, and projects benefit from fixed pricing, less mess and immediate load-bearing capacity. For example we can install 80+ Screw piles to 4m deep in 1x day, where as it may take is 7x days to drill 75x bored piles to 4m deep
Absolutely. All screw piles designed and installed by Screw Piling Experts comply with AS 2159 – Section 8. They are fully engineered, tested, certified and supported with documentation for building approval. Our steel is also tested locally to 400 Grade, significantly exceeding the 350 Grade commonly used in the market.
We offer a wide range of screw pile capacities, from 60kN (6 tonne) through to 1800kN (180 tonne) safe working load. Where required, piles can also be grouped to support higher loads for lift cores, stair wells and heavy structural elements.
Quality Steel Screw Piers | Screw Pile Product To Face Any Condition
Our Screw Pile Product has been engineered and designed to take into consideration any ground condition encountered. The heavy duty tip / teeth ensure that the pile has ability to chew into any hard layers encountered without damaging the shaft or helix plate. The single heavy duty helix plate can be produced in a square or circular shape depending on the ground condition of your site. We do not encourage the use of a multi or helical plates as the overall thickness is distributed in half, and being an end bearing product, it is important you use a Solid Helix Plate.