Significant advances in pile design and engineering have allowed Almita’s turnkey foundation solution to be utilized on an array of alternative energy projects. Our ongoing advances in manufacturing capabilities, installation capacity and detailed structural analysis have ushered in a new alternative for a variety of energy projects, including wind turbine foundations and solar farm projects in Canada
Screw piles are the logical foundation choice
for alternate energy projects.
By their very nature, screw piles are cleaner and more environmentally friendly than their counterparts: traditional driven piles. When the two are compared, screw piles produce a much smaller carbon footprint than driven piles. Because driven piles rely on skin friction, where screw piles utilize either a helix or a bearing plate, often a screw pile’s length and steel consumption can be as much as 40% less when compared to driven piles of equal capacity.
Another environmental benefit associated with screw piles is their significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions. Since screw piles do not require concrete, the CO2 emissions associated with every stage of concrete production (trucking, hoarding, reheating, etc.) are avoided.
During the installation of screw piles, the tailings are either entirely eliminated or greatly minimized as compared to concrete piles. Concrete piles can impact the ground water on a particular site when leeching soils are present. Screw piles do not have these issues.
Small Diameter Screw Pile Applications |
Solar Energy Farms |
| Significantly lower GHG’s from a screw pile | Small diameter screw piles are the ideal choice for solar farm applications. They typically use less steel than driven piles of equal capacity and are more environmentally friendly than the emissions generated from the in-field use of concrete or cast in place piles. Pound for pound, screw piles use less greenhouse gases than other foundations. Another benefit: they are easily installed with little or no noise pollution, and can be removed simply thereby drastically reducing the cost of reclamation. This is especially important for environmentally sensitive areas. |
| Load testing, engineering and installation capacities | Almita’s speed of installation combined with in-field load testing and engineering support, was used by EDF EnXco on one of Canada’s largest solar projects to date. Click here for the Arnprior Solar Farm Case Study. |
Large Diameter Screw Pile Applications |
Wind Turbine Foundations |
| Capacities on large diameter piles have risen substantially | Almita’s advances in design and engineering capacity of large diameter screw piles make us a logical choice for wind turbine foundations. Since screw piles in large groups reduce the size and quantity of concrete used on large footings, the use of screw piles can incur savings that significantly reduce the payback period for the client on these highly capital intensive projects. |
| Up-front Engineering Saves Time and Money for our Clients. | Almita engineers work with the client at the start of the project to assess the soils, provide detailed analysis of pile loads and pile selection thereby preventing cost overruns and project delays. Our dedicated load testing team can be on-site and complete a load test within a day. Almita’s screw piles were utilized on the Alaska Village Electrical Cooperative 100kW wind turbines in some of the most demanding soil and install conditions in remote Alaska. Click here for the Foundation Design of Wind Turbines Case Study. |
More Information
For more information about using screw piles for your Alternate Energy please email or contact us.
Robert (Bob) MacLaren
President and C.E.O.
M. Sullivan & Son Limited