METHODSTATEMENTS

GabionMattressCanalLining
TechnologyOfGabions:
Moderngabionsareusuallyrectangularbaskets,dividedby
diaphragmsintocellsandformedof
wovensteelwirehexagonalmesh,doubletwistedandheavily
galvanised.Wirediameterstandard
sizesrangefrom2.0to3.0mm.Alltheedgesofthepanelsforming
thebasket,includingthe
diaphragms,arereinforcedwithgalvanisedwireofagreater
diameterthanthatusedinthe
wovenmesh.Handmadegabionsarereinforcedwiththesamewire
diameterastheoneusedtoweavethebaskets,industriallyproduced
gabions,however,arereinforcedwithlargerstandardizedwire
diameter.
Thebasketsareusuallysuppliedfoldedflatincompressedbundles
formaximumeaseandeconomyinshipment.
Theyareunfoldedandassembledonsiteusinggalvanisedwireina
continuouslacingalongtheedges.Sufficientquantitiesofthe
appropriatewiremustbesuppliedwiththebaskets.Itconsists
usuallyofrollsofgalvanizedwireataweightratioofabout5%of
gabionweight.
Inadditiontotherectangularbaskets,mattressesarealso
manufactured,thestandarddimensionbeing2m.wideby6m.long
withthicknessavailablebetween150mmand300mm.
Mattresseshavecloselyspaceddiaphragmsandinallotherrespects
aremanufactured,suppliedandassembledinthesamewayasthe
baskets.
Complementarytotherectangularbasketsandmattresses,
trapezoidalbasketsalsomaybeobtained,theseareusedto
construct,forexample,aweirwithabatteronthefrontfaceor
angledjunctionsinthehorizontalorverticalplane.Generally,the
numberofsuchunitsrequiredinagivenjobissmallcomparedwith
thetotalnumberofgabionsinvolvedanditismoreusualtomodify
standardrectangulargabionsonsitebycuttingandfoldingofthe
requiredpanels.

 Standardmanufacturedgabionbasketsandmattresses:
Dimensions No.of Capacity
Meters diaphragms m3
2x1x1 1 2
3x1x1 2 3
4x1x1 3 4
2x1x0.50 1 1
3x1x0.50 2 1.50
4x1x0.50 3 2
2x1x0.30 1 0.60
3x1x0.30 2 0.90
4x1x0.30 3 1.20

Sitingofworks:
The first step in building gabion works consists in pegging the
structures,accordingtothedesign.Thenitwillbepossibletobegin
theexcavationsforthegabionsfoundationlayer.
Preparationofthefoundationlayer:
An important advantage of gabions with respect to other
constructionmaterialsisthattheycanbedirectlyplacedonanytype
of soil. In spite of that, especially in hydraulic structures, it will be
preferabletoavoiddirectcontactbetweengabionsandnaturalsoil.
Infact,particularlyifthereisahighclaypercentageinthesoil,water
passingthroughandonthestructurecanscourthesoil.Inthiscase,
it is suggested to interpose a layer of graded material (i.e. with a
smallpercentageofclay)betweengabionsandsoil.Thislayerhasto
leveled and compacted thoroughly before gabions are placed upon
it. This layer can be easily compacted with the aid of manually
operated machines, with small engines, such as frog rammers and
vibrating plates. Roller engines, in fact, would not suit the purpose,
duetothelimitedsizeofthefoundationlayer.Ifsmallmachinesare
notavailable,thenadequatemanualtoolsmustbeemployed.
SignificanceandUse:
Gabionsandmattresses,describedinSpecifications
areplacedonsitesforstabilityandtoprevent
soilerosion.Theirabilitytofunctionproperlydependsontheir
stability,whichispartlydependentupontherocksfillingthem.
Rocksizesshouldbechosedtopreventthemfromfalling
throughthemeshofthegabionsormattresses.Therockalso
hastowithstandnaturalweatheringprocessesduringthelifeof
theprojectthatwouldcauseittobreakdowntosizessm.


 BulkFillingMaterials:
Rocktofillgabionsormattressesmaybeanynatural
depositoftherequiredsizes,orcrushedrockproducedbyany
suitablemethodandbytheuseofanydevicethatyields
therequiredsizelimits.
Rocksshallbehard,angulartoround,durable,andof
suchqualitythattheyshallnotdisintegrateonexposureto
waterorweatheringduringthelifeofthestructure.Inallcases,the
sizesofanyoversizerockshallallowfor
theplacementofthreeormorelayersofrockwithineach
gabioncompartment,andtwoormorelayersofrockwithin
eachmattresscompartmentdependentupontheheightofthe
mattresses.Inallcases,undersizeandoversizerockshallbe
placedwithintheinteriorofthegabionormattresscompartment
andshallnotbeplacedontheexposedsurfaceofthe
structure.Thereshallbeamaximumlimitof5%undersizeor
5%oversizerock,orboth,withineachgabionormattress
compartment.
Gabionconstruction:
Settingupgabionbaskets:
Gabionsarecarriedfoldedtothesite.Whentheyhave
reachedthesite,thefollowingoperationshavetobedone:
thegabionnetsarecompletelyopenedandstretchedoutonthe
soil.
unfoldthegabiononafirmflatsurface.
stretchthegabionandstraightenanykinksinthemesh.
assembleeachgabionindividuallybyraisingthesides,endsand
diaphragms.
ensurethatallbendsareinthecorrectpositionsandthatthetops
ofallfoursidesareatthesameheight
lacethefourverticaledgesofthegabion.Thelacingcanbecarried
outeitherwithmanualorautomatictools.
Theutilisationofmanualandselfmadetoolsisgenerallyadequate;
laceinteriordiaphragms,iftheyexist,tothebottomandtothe
sidesofthegabion.
mesheddiaphragmsareusedtodividethegabionintodifferent
compartments,soastoavoidstonesshiftingandtomaintainthe
originalgabionshape.
beginlacingatthetop,twistingtheendofthelacingwirearound
theedges,thenlacingaroundtheedgesbeingjoined,usingadouble
tiethrougheachmeshinturn,andtieoffsecurelyatthebottom.
turntheendsofalllacingwirestotheinsideofthegabionon
completion.

 Placing
Positiontheassembledgabiononitssite.Secure
thesidefromwhichworksistostart,eitherby
lacingtocompletedworksortostakesdriven
intothegroundatthegabioncorners.These
stakesmustreachatleastthetopofthegabion
andbebracedbeforetensioningthegabions.
Eitherproceedwithstretchingandfillingofthe
gabion,orjoinmoregabionstothestructures
asrequired,tobestretchedasagroup.
Beforetensioningcancommence,alledges
(top,bottomandsides)ofthelineofgabions
mustbefirmlylaced.Thesamemethodadopted
forassemblinggabionbasketshastobeused
tojoingabionstooneanother,andtothe
structure.Indoingso,itwillbeveryimportant
toadheretothespecifiedgabionstructure
dimensionsandsizing.Connect
thetensionframetothelastgabionandtension
usingawirestrainer.
Useofgeotextilefilterlayers:
Asmentionedabove,where
thepotentialexistsforwater
toflowdirectlythrough
gabions,thecontactbetween
thegabionsandthenaturalsoil
shouldbeprotectedagainst
scour.Analternativetothe
placementofabeddinglayer
istheinsertionofalayerof
geotextilebetweenthegabions
andthenaturalsoilor
foundationmaterial.Thebest
suitedtobeusedwithgabions
isthequalityweighingbetween
500and700g/m2.Ageotextile
allowsthepassageofwater,
butnotsoil,andprotectsthe
materialadjacenttothe
gabionsfromscour.Toavoidleaksthroughholesinthegeotextile,
thefoundationlayershouldto
besmoothandfreefromangularstones,andthegabionsmustbe
placedonthegeotextilewith
greatcare.

 INSTALLATIONGUIDE:
1)FOUNDATIONPREPARATION:
Thefoundationonwhichthegabionsaretobeplacedshallbecutor
filledandgradedtothelines
andgradesshownonthedrawings.Surfaceirregularities,loose
material,vegetation,andallforeign
mattershallberemovedfromfoundationsurfacearea.Whenfillis
required,itshallconsistofmaterials
conformingtothespecifiedrequirements.Gabionsandbeddingor
specifiedgeotextilesshallnotbe
placeduntilthefoundationpreparationiscompleted,andthe
subgradesurfaceshavebeeninspected
andapprovedbytheengineerortheengineersrepresentative.
Compactionofbeddingorfiltermaterial
willberequiredperplansandspecifications.Thesurfaceofthe
finishedmaterialshallbetogradeand
freeofmounds,dipsorwindrows.Extracareshouldbetakenwith
foundationpreparationsinorderto
ensurealevelandsmoothsurface.Geotextileshallbeinstalledin
accordancewiththerequirementsof
theplansandspecifications.
2)ASSEMBLYANDPLACEMENT:
Theassemblyandplacementofgabionsshallbeinaccordancewith
thefollowingprocedures:
Assembly.Rotatethegabionpanelsintopositionandjointhevertical
edgeswithfastenersforgabion
assembly.Wherelacingwireisused,wrapthewirewithalternating
singleanddoublehalfhitchesat
intervalsbetween100to130mm.Wherespiralfastenersareused,
crimptheendstosecurethespirals
inplace.Whereringtypealternatefastenersareusedforbasket
assembly,installthefastenersata
maximumspacingof150mm.Usethesamefasteningproceduresto
installinteriordiaphragmswhere
theyarerequired.Interiordiaphragmswillberequiredwhereany
insidedimensionexceeds91cmfor
gabionbasketsthickerthan300mm.Diaphragmswillbeinstalledto
assurethatnoopenintervalsare
presentthatexceeds91cm.Forbaskets300mmorlessrectangular
cellsareallowedwithdimensions
91cminonedirectionandnottoexceed183cminthe
perpendiculardirection.
Placement.Placetheemptygabionsonthefoundationand
interconnecttheadjacentgabionsalong
thetop,bottom,andverticaledgesusinglacingwireorspirals.Wrap
 thewirewithalternatingsingleand
doublehalfhitchesatintervalsbetween100mmand150mm.Spiral
fastenersarecommonlyusedfor
theassemblyandinterconnectionofweldedmeshgabions.Spirals
arescreweddownattheconnecting
edgestheneachendofthespiraliscrimpedtosecureitinplace.
Lacingmaybeusedasneededto
supplementtheinterconnectionofweldedmeshgabions,andthe
closingoflids.
Interconnecteachlayerofgabionstotheunderlyinglayerofgabions
alongthefront,back,andsides.
Staggertheverticaljointsbetweenthegabionsofadjacentrowsand
layersbyatleastonehalfofacell
length.

3)FILLINGOPERATION:
Afteradjacentemptywiregabionunitsaresettolineandgradeand
commonsidesproperlyconnected,
theyshallbeplacedinstraightlinetensiontogainauniformalignment.
Stakingofthegabionsmaybe
donetomaintaintheestablishedproperalignmentpriortothe
placementofrock.Notemporarystakes
shallbeplacedthroughgeotextilematerial.Connectinglacingwireand
otherfasteners(asallowed)shall
beattachedduringthefillingoperationtopreservethestrengthand
shapeofthestructure.
Internalconnectingcrosstilewiresshallbeplacedineachunrestrained
gabioncellgreaterthan500
mminheight,includinggabioncellslefttemporarilyunrestrained.Two
internalconnectingwiresshall
beplacedconcurrentlywithrockplacement,ateach300mmintervalof
depth.Inweldedmeshgabions
thesecrosstiesorstiffenerswillbeplacedacrossthecornersofthe
gabions(at300mmfromthecorners)
providingdiagonalbracing.Lacingwireorpreformedwirestiffenersmay
beused.
Thegabionsshallbecarefullyfilledwithrock,eitherbymachineorhand
methods,ensuringalignment,
avoidingbulges,andprovidingacompactmassthatminimizesvoids.At
nopointinthefillingprocess
mayrockbemechanicallyplacedfromaheightofover91cmfrom
machinetofillarea.Machine
placementwillrequiresupplementingwithhandworktoensurethe
desiredresults.Thecellsinanyrow
shallbefilledinstagessothatthedepthofrockplacedinanyonecell
doesnotexceedthedepthofrock
inanyadjoiningcellbymorethan300mm.Alongtheexposedfaces,the
outerlayerofstoneshallbe
carefullyplacedandarrangedbyhandtoensureaneat,compact
placementwithauniformappearance.
ModularGabionSystems:
ModularGabionsSystemsmaybesuppliedin:
(A) rollform.
(B) precutpanels.
(C) partiallyassembledgabionsormattresses.

Whenusingrollstock,begintheassemblyprocessatStep1.

Whenusingprecutpanels,proceedtoStep2.

Whenusingpreassembledgabions,proceedtoStep3.

Step1:

Panelsmaybecuttoappropriatesizesinthefield.Whenusingroll
stock,bottoms,lids,frontsandbacksmayberolledoutinlengthsup
to300'.

Step2:

Ends,diaphragms,frontandbackpanelsareplaceduprightonthe
bottomsectionofwiremesh.

Step3:

Securepanelsbyscrewingspiralbindersthroughthemeshopenings
inadjacentpanels.

Step4:

18Stiffenersshouldbeplacedinsideat12intervals(4percell)and
crimpedoverthelineandcrosswiresonthefrontandsidefaces.
Noneareneededininteriorcells.

 Step5:

Gabionsmaybefilledwithgradedstonebyhandorwithabackhoe
orloader.

Step6:

Afterfilling,closethelidandsecurewithspiralbindersatthe
diaphragms,ends,frontandback.

rates of placement and finishing of the gabion mattress lining

system:

lengthofshiftandnumberofshiftsperweek/month:
8 hourspershift.
2 shiftperday.
14 shiftperweek.
detailsofthesequences,timingsandresourcesfortheindividual
operations: