PROTECTION OF STEEL PILES IN NORWAY

During the last 20 or 30 years it has become usual in Norway to found important buildings on bare steel piles which are driven down to bedrock and left without special corrosion protection. In the given circumstances, this method is comparatively inexpensive and simple. For geotechnical reasons, it is desirable to choose piles as thin as possible in order to minimise interference from the soil. One particular advantage of steel piling, compared with concrete piling, is the relative ease with which steel piles can be lengthened by means of welding. The method is therefore likely to be adopted to an increasing extent. At the same time, however, there are understandable misgivings as regards the possibility of the steel piles being destroyed by corrosion within the anticipated lifetime of the building.